ERICH Wagner used to have a simple black and white approach to dairy farming, but since adding an extra colour, he hasn't looked back.
Last year, the Murray Goulburn supplier from Jancourt East issued strict instructions to his livestock agent that he would "take anything but Friesians."
And not long after, he was the owner of 244 Jerseys bought from Derrinallum breeder Ray Thompson.
The smaller cows have fitted well into the 420-strong autumn-calving herd, and the green pastures are now littered with both Jerseys and Holsteins.
Erich has plans to increase the Jersey numbers.
"We could milk 500 (Jerseys) where we milk 400 Friesians without any trouble," he said.
With only a handful of cows left to calve and his recent "phenomenal" milk cheques, Erich can't speak highly enough of the smaller breed.
"It's much easier to get 20 litres (a day) from a Jersey than 26 litres (a day) from a Friesian, much easier and (using) a hell of a lot less feed," he said.
"The calving is dead easy, a piece of cake."
Erich, wife Natasha and children Joel 16, Stephanie, 13, Cooper, 11, Sydney, 2, Clancey, 11 months, and newborn Flynn, needed to boost their herd numbers last year after ending a sharefarming agreement that included the cows.
After speaking with the local vet about issues around calving ease and fertility, he decided to investigate other breed options.
The change meant turning away from 40 years of Holstein breeding and a previous way of life. Nights are no longer spent calving cows down and litres have been replaced by kilograms of butterfat and protein.
The Wagners decided they no longer needed the high volumes of milk for a viable return and decided that focusing on components would offer the same income with less work.
Last year, the herd averaged 3.6 per cent butterfat and 2.9 per cent protein. This year, butterfat has jumped to 4.5 per cent and protein to 3.6 per cent, with the cows each producing an average of 8500 litres per year.
"If you produce 20 litres (with a Jersey) you need 25-26 litres with a Friesian to have the same fat and protein," he said. "You can be right up there with the big litres but to produce you need a lot of feed."
Unlike other farmers who are using cross-breeding to experiment with other breeds, Erich said he preferred to stick with the straight breeds to avoid potential "dangers" with crossing.
Wary of milk fever and difficulty rearing calves, Erich has so far only had trouble with milk fever.
