Judging from the shortage of agricultural workers from the perspective of milking robots, the introduction of agricultural foreign workers is not the only option

Taiwan, which is located in the subtropics, produces more milk per cow than many large dairy farmers. At present, there are 553 cheese farmers in Taiwan, raising 130000 cows, of which about 60, 000 are lactating cows, with an annual milk output value of more than 10 billion yuan, ranking ninth among individual agricultural products. While consumers enjoy fresh dairy products, dairy farmers are the most labor-intensive in the animal husbandry industry.

Milking twice a day, 365 days a year, at four or five o'clock in the morning and at three or four o'clock in the afternoon. With extremely long working hours and heavy work, cheese agriculture has become the first industry to be hit by the shortage of agricultural workers.

I remember that six years ago, a graduate student reported a research paper on robot milking in class. at that time, all countries were still in the stage of research and development. Six years later, more than 20% of farms in Nordic countries have introduced milking robots, especially in Denmark, where one in four dairy farmers uses robots for milking, and the proportion continues to increase.

In recent years, the international research and development of milking robot has made rapid progress and mature technology, which has been upgraded to intelligence in addition to automation. Each milking, can record data, into the system calculation, through the accumulation of big data, so that the management of dairy cattle more sophisticated. In March 2019, the Animal products Laboratory invited Professor Robert R. Peters of the University of Maryland to come to Taiwan to share his experience in using milking robots in North America in recent years.

Professor Peters pointed out that the most obvious difference after the introduction of milking robots on farms is the significant reduction in full-time manpower, especially to replace the hardest morning and evening milking work. At the same time, milking cows can enter and leave the milking facility freely, and as long as the cows feel swollen, they will go to the milking robot, unlike when milking with human milk, they have to wait for milking time twice a day.

Professor Peters pointed out that the most obvious difference after the introduction of milking robots on farms is the significant reduction in full-time manpower.

According to statistics, in the pastures using milking robots, the average number of milking per cow is 2.8 times a day, and the overall milk yield has also increased. Some cheese farmers believe that the quality of life has been improved and that they can spend more time with their families. As a result, the willingness of the second generation to take over has increased, and the pasture has been able to operate sustainably. The quality of milk, the current research shows that there is no significant change, but the reproductive traits are slightly worse, especially the empty fetal period is longer, it may be an increase in milk production, resulting in negative energy balance and affect conception, which needs further study.

However, the biggest obstacle for dairy farmers to use milking robots is the high price. A robot can easily cost NT $6 million and can serve at most 60 milking cows. At the same time, Taiwan's cheese farmers have a relatively small site. If a milking robot is to be added, the moving line of the cattle will have to be modified accordingly, and the ranch facilities need to be renovated. This has become another heavy burden.

At present, the problem of labor shortage of dairy farmers is becoming more and more serious, and some dairy farmers have been calling for the government to open up the introduction of foreign labor. With reference to foreign experience, the addition of milking robots or the introduction of foreign workers are options to alleviate the labor shortage. However, these two choices will bring completely different consequences to the future development of Taiwan's dairy industry.

If foreign labor is introduced, the immediate effect is that the salary level of cheese agriculture will stagnate, the willingness of graduates of professional departments to enter the industry will be greatly reduced, and the safety and quality of dairy products will be less guarded by professionals.

It is more difficult to compete with cheap and high-quality imported dairy products. In addition, whether foreign workers have the skills to work on pastures, whether they can overcome the psychological fear of managing large animals, and whether they will become runaway foreign workers under the condition of long working hours and high labor intensity, the follow-up management problems all test the cheese farmers and the peasant associations that assist in the introduction of foreign workers.

With the increase in basic wages in Taiwan, the current cost of bringing in foreign workers, plus labor and health insurance, employment stability fees, and accommodation management fees, is about 40,000 yuan per person per month. Against this background, Taiwan already has the conditions to introduce milking robots. At the same time, dairy farmers need to be matched with more accurate dairy feeding and management, which will become an opportunity for cheese agriculture to upgrade again.

It is suggested that when the government considers opening up cheese agriculture to foreign workers, it can also consider another solution to guide cheese agriculture to move towards intelligence. Through long-term low-interest loans, we can relieve the financial pressure of investing in robot equipment, help Taiwan's cheese agriculture to be in line with international standards, and it is also necessary to train professionals to learn the maintenance operation of milking robots.

To solve the problem of agricultural labor shortage, the introduction of agricultural foreign labor is an option, but not the only option.