Reproductive traits and economic aspects on dairy cattle.

Abstract

This study aimed to characterize the reproductive parameters and economic indicators of dairy farms. Data were from technical assistance of the Programa de Desenvolvimento em Pecuária Leiteira (PDPL-UFV) including 26 farms, from September 2022 to August 2023, comprising an entire production cycle. The following economic indicators were selected as dependent variables: Unit Net Margin (UNM), Operating Profitability (OP) and Rate of Return on Capital (RRC). Reproductive parameters were used as explanatory variables in multiple linear regression analysis. A stepwise selection was performed and only variables significant at p < 0.10 were kept in the final model. Pregnancy rate of cows, number of inseminations per pregnant heifer, and replacement rate were the reproductive parameters with the greatest effect on the evaluated economic indices. The UNM and OP were positively affected by pregnancy rate of cows and number of inseminations per pregnant heifer, but replacement rate negatively affected both indices. Only the pregnancy rate of cows showed a significant and positive effect on RRC. Results suggest that the economic viability of a dairy farm is not only associated with cutting costs such as reducing the number of inseminations in heifers, or increasing revenue by selling animals, which increases the replacement rate.