Leite Rondônia Boosts Dairy Farming in the Ji-Paraná Region

Through the Leite Rondônia Project, the Instituto BioSistêmico (IBS) has been bringing knowledge and technology to support the development of small dairy farms in the Ji-Paraná region, Rondônia.

This initiative, in partnership with the Zoetis Foundation, provides technical assistance to farmers, facilitating access to milk quality tests, reproductive techniques such as Fixed-Time Artificial Insemination (FTAI), and ultrasound examinations for herds.

These activities are part of the reproductive and sanitary management services conducted during the fourth round of the project in November and December.

For many farmers, the project marked their first encounter with these advanced technologies. Farmer Antônio Ramiro Martins from Ouro Preto do Oeste, for instance, had never performed ultrasound examinations or used FTAI before joining Leite Rondônia.

“I have 12 pregnant cows and 9 more inseminated, awaiting pregnancy confirmation. I aim to continuously improve the productivity of my herd, which currently consists of 29 cows. I’ll keep working on improving the animals' genetics,” says Antônio.

During reproductive management visits, cows undergo ultrasound examinations to confirm pregnancies and identify pathologies, enabling more effective treatment. Those eligible for FTAI are selected to receive specific protocols.

Following this, the project carries out sanitary management visits and FTAI procedures, which include artificial insemination for selected cows, milk quality tests, and herd health monitoring.

For farmer Rubens Alves Arruda, the project has been an invaluable learning experience. “Milk quality has improved thanks to the hygiene practices recommended by the technicians for milking. We’ve started feeding the cattle with silage and feed, which has helped increase production,” he shares.

According to veterinarian José Lucas Gregório, an IBS consultant who conducted the fourth round of reproductive management services, the progress among farmers committed to implementing changes on their properties is evident.

“We’ve noticed improvements in animal management, particularly in the adoption of good milking practices and forage planning,” highlights the consultant.

Veterinarian Ricardo Arruda, another IBS consultant who carried out the fourth round of sanitary management services, observed that many farms have adopted pre-dipping (disinfecting cows’ teats before milking) and mastitis tests as part of their routines. These measures have helped reduce mastitis incidence and improve milk quality.

“With each technical visit, farmers show progress. We’ve also seen an improvement in the quality of the mineral salt provided to the herd, which is essential for supplementing macro and micromineral deficiencies, critical for the animals’ productive and reproductive functions,” Ricardo explains.

About the Leite Rondônia Project

Conceived and implemented by the Instituto BioSistêmico, the Leite Rondônia project is supported by resources from the Zoetis Foundation. The initiative seeks to promote the development of dairy farming on a total of 100 properties, with a family farming profile, in the Ji-Paraná region, in the state of Rondônia, in the Amazon Biome.

It proposes a set of activities and technological assistance resources, structured and modulated in four thematic axes aimed at improving the production process: good practices, reproductive management, nutritional management and health management.

In addition to technical visits to each property, the project provides for training meetings. These include training focused on the sustainability of dairy farming in the Amazon Biome, highlighting topics that require greater attention on the properties, reinforcing the good practice measures to be implemented during the project.

The project uses the CheckMilk methodology, which has a platform with a management system and application for technical teams and producers. The system facilitates project management and the application assists the producer on a daily basis, as a support, an extension of IBS consultancy that can be accessed at any time in the palm of your hand.