WEBVTT 00:00:11.720 --> 00:00:15.060 Breaking free from the chains of the past Where 00:00:15.060 --> 00:00:18.820 truth moves faster than a Holstein calf No law 00:00:18.820 --> 00:00:21.660 waiting on some printed page We're charting new 00:00:21.660 --> 00:00:25.300 ground in the digital age From genomic codes 00:00:25.300 --> 00:00:29.120 to robot facts We cut through the noise, no hold 00:00:29.280 --> 00:00:32.460 them back not your daddy's dairy news tonight 00:00:32.460 --> 00:01:01.759 we're sparking Welcome back to the Deep Dive, 00:01:01.759 --> 00:01:03.560 where we cut through dairy industry noise to 00:01:03.560 --> 00:01:05.379 get you the insights that actually matter for 00:01:05.379 --> 00:01:08.019 your operation. Today, we are wrestling with 00:01:08.019 --> 00:01:12.640 a topic that, on paper, promises guaranteed dollars, 00:01:12.700 --> 00:01:15.859 yet still sits squarely in the maybe later category 00:01:15.859 --> 00:01:18.739 for too many farms, dairy barn lighting. And, 00:01:18.760 --> 00:01:20.379 you know, this is a deep dive centered around 00:01:20.379 --> 00:01:23.099 a feature piece focusing on a potential 8 % production 00:01:23.099 --> 00:01:25.430 boost from simple LED lighting. Sounds almost 00:01:25.430 --> 00:01:27.349 too good to be true, right? But the biggest surprise 00:01:27.349 --> 00:01:31.150 isn't the science. It's the sheer conflict between 00:01:31.150 --> 00:01:33.349 the academic data and the farm reality. We have 00:01:33.349 --> 00:01:35.390 20 years of rock -solid science confirmed by 00:01:35.390 --> 00:01:37.049 people like Dr. Jeffrey Dahl and others since 00:01:37.049 --> 00:01:40.170 the early 2000s, showing a dramatic, huge return 00:01:40.170 --> 00:01:42.609 on investment, yet widespread adoption on farms. 00:01:42.650 --> 00:01:45.150 It just hasn't materialized. That is the core 00:01:45.150 --> 00:01:47.790 conflict we're tackling today. We're looking 00:01:47.790 --> 00:01:49.829 at a solution that has been definitively proven 00:01:49.829 --> 00:01:53.340 to work, but is somehow, you know... being overlooked. 00:01:53.459 --> 00:01:56.459 Our mission is to determine if simple, high -quality 00:01:56.459 --> 00:02:00.079 LED lighting is truly the next low -cost efficiency 00:02:00.079 --> 00:02:03.400 driver that farmers are missing out on. Or if 00:02:03.400 --> 00:02:05.340 it's just another expensive gimmick the industry 00:02:05.340 --> 00:02:09.300 has successfully managed to overcomplicate with 00:02:09.300 --> 00:02:11.740 complex control systems and maybe unnecessary 00:02:11.740 --> 00:02:14.460 spectral tuning features. Yeah, it's time for 00:02:14.460 --> 00:02:17.159 the no BS answer for the farmer making those 00:02:17.159 --> 00:02:19.500 capital investment decisions. And, you know, 00:02:19.520 --> 00:02:21.180 we have to start with the context here because 00:02:21.180 --> 00:02:24.599 the technology lag in this specific area is massive. 00:02:24.620 --> 00:02:26.419 It's kind of staggering, actually. When you look 00:02:26.419 --> 00:02:28.539 at the research pipeline for things like, say, 00:02:28.580 --> 00:02:30.620 genomics or robotics, it moves pretty quickly. 00:02:30.759 --> 00:02:33.340 But lightning, walk into most dairy barns today 00:02:33.340 --> 00:02:35.580 and you are still looking at ancient fixtures, 00:02:35.800 --> 00:02:38.419 metal halide, high pressure sodium, maybe even 00:02:38.419 --> 00:02:41.080 old fluorescent tubes that frankly belong in 00:02:41.080 --> 00:02:43.879 a museum. This represents a monumental disconnect. 00:02:44.159 --> 00:02:47.169 And the stakes couldn't be clearer. We're talking 00:02:47.169 --> 00:02:49.849 about an average 8 % increase in daily production. 00:02:50.189 --> 00:02:52.689 That's not trivial. We ran the conservative numbers 00:02:52.689 --> 00:02:54.590 on what that actually means for our listeners. 00:02:54.770 --> 00:02:57.050 Yes, and these numbers should really snap people 00:02:57.050 --> 00:03:00.129 to attention. An 8 % bump translates to about, 00:03:00.229 --> 00:03:03.289 what, 2 .5 pounds per day per cow against standard 00:03:03.289 --> 00:03:05.770 production. Now, let's take a modest 100 -cow 00:03:05.770 --> 00:03:09.550 herd averaging, say, 75 pounds per day. If we 00:03:09.550 --> 00:03:11.889 assume that 8 % increase, that's 6 additional 00:03:11.889 --> 00:03:15.169 pounds per day per cow overall, which, at current 00:03:15.169 --> 00:03:18.659 prices, translates to potentially over $34 ,000 00:03:18.659 --> 00:03:21.759 in additional annual revenue. $34 ,000? Yeah, 00:03:21.819 --> 00:03:23.979 and that's against a relatively small investment 00:03:23.979 --> 00:03:26.300 in hardware, potentially. That's pure opportunity 00:03:26.300 --> 00:03:28.639 costs being lost every single year the lights 00:03:28.639 --> 00:03:30.340 aren't addressed. And here's the provocative 00:03:30.340 --> 00:03:32.120 insight we kind of derived from looking across 00:03:32.120 --> 00:03:35.599 all the sources. Simple $600 LED systems can, 00:03:35.819 --> 00:03:38.439 and often do, match the performance of complex 00:03:38.439 --> 00:03:41.400 integrated systems costing $6 ,000, $15 ,000, 00:03:41.580 --> 00:03:43.699 or heck, even more. It suggests that the dairy 00:03:43.699 --> 00:03:45.530 farmer might actually be better off sticking 00:03:45.530 --> 00:03:48.729 with the absolute proven basics you know good 00:03:48.729 --> 00:03:52.110 light for long enough rather than chasing optimization 00:03:52.110 --> 00:03:54.509 targets that might not even really exist due 00:03:54.509 --> 00:03:58.210 to the messy reality of bovine biology we suspect 00:03:58.210 --> 00:04:01.879 the industry has significantly overcomplicated 00:04:01.879 --> 00:04:04.180 the solution to justify an enormous price tag 00:04:04.180 --> 00:04:06.259 when the core problem, like you said, is just 00:04:06.259 --> 00:04:08.599 a profound lack of light in a lot of these old 00:04:08.599 --> 00:04:10.560 barns. All right, let's unpack this and get specific 00:04:10.560 --> 00:04:12.580 on the data because understanding the mechanism 00:04:12.580 --> 00:04:15.960 is key to trusting the investment, right? The 00:04:15.960 --> 00:04:18.620 science is pretty undeniable. The proven protocol 00:04:18.620 --> 00:04:22.279 replicated for two decades now is 16 to 18 hours 00:04:22.279 --> 00:04:24.660 of continuous light exposure. And that light 00:04:24.660 --> 00:04:27.519 needs to be at a target intensity of 100 to 200 00:04:27.519 --> 00:04:30.259 lux at cow eye level. To put that in perspective 00:04:30.259 --> 00:04:32.980 for folks listening, 100 lux is roughly the legal 00:04:32.980 --> 00:04:36.060 minimum for like a well -lit walkway. And 200 00:04:36.060 --> 00:04:37.800 lux is what you probably experience in a decent, 00:04:37.839 --> 00:04:39.839 well -lit office environment. It's consistent 00:04:39.839 --> 00:04:41.959 to find a light, not just, you know, stray barn 00:04:41.959 --> 00:04:44.579 light leaking in. It's all about the hormonal 00:04:44.579 --> 00:04:47.319 cascade. That's the key. When the cow's system 00:04:47.319 --> 00:04:50.100 receives that extended light, it suppresses the 00:04:50.100 --> 00:04:53.459 nighttime hormone. Melatonin. Melatonin is produced 00:04:53.459 --> 00:04:55.819 in the pineal gland, and light exposure basically 00:04:55.819 --> 00:04:59.079 flips that switch off. Exactly. And less melatonin 00:04:59.079 --> 00:05:00.939 means the body enters a more productive phase. 00:05:01.360 --> 00:05:04.180 This is where we see two critical hormonal responses. 00:05:04.800 --> 00:05:08.180 First, a significant 15 % to 30 % increase in 00:05:08.180 --> 00:05:11.000 IGF -1. That's insulin -like growth factor 1. 00:05:11.550 --> 00:05:14.509 What's important here is how IGF -1 works. It 00:05:14.509 --> 00:05:17.790 doesn't just improve efficiency vaguely, it actively 00:05:17.790 --> 00:05:20.389 redirects energy. That's right. The presence 00:05:20.389 --> 00:05:23.230 of IGF -1 helps prioritize nutrient partitioning 00:05:23.230 --> 00:05:25.910 towards the mammary gland. So those valuable 00:05:25.910 --> 00:05:27.949 calories the cow eats are being more efficiently 00:05:27.949 --> 00:05:30.170 shuttled away from, say, maintenance or body 00:05:30.170 --> 00:05:33.180 fat, and directly towards milk production. Your 00:05:33.180 --> 00:05:35.420 feed is literally getting a huge boost in effectiveness. 00:05:35.740 --> 00:05:37.819 And the second hormonal factor is the bump in 00:05:37.819 --> 00:05:40.480 prolactin, which increases by, get this, 25 to 00:05:40.480 --> 00:05:43.339 40 % when melatonin is suppressed. Prolactin 00:05:43.339 --> 00:05:45.600 directly stimulates the epithelial cells within 00:05:45.600 --> 00:05:47.920 the mammary tissue, driving milk synthesis. So 00:05:47.920 --> 00:05:49.519 it's kind of a double whammy. A double whammy. 00:05:49.759 --> 00:05:52.180 better feed utilization from the IGF -1, and 00:05:52.180 --> 00:05:54.600 increased biological factory stimulus from the 00:05:54.600 --> 00:05:56.399 prolactin. Wait, wait, did you catch that part 00:05:56.399 --> 00:05:58.879 about prolactin increasing 25 to 40 percent? 00:05:59.060 --> 00:06:00.959 Yeah. When you put it like that, it changes the 00:06:00.959 --> 00:06:03.620 conversation entirely. It means that if I haven't 00:06:03.620 --> 00:06:06.040 fixed my lighting, I'm not just losing a percentage 00:06:06.040 --> 00:06:08.920 point of volume, I'm actively suppressing the 00:06:08.920 --> 00:06:11.819 hormone responsible for milk synthesis by a really 00:06:11.819 --> 00:06:15.139 significant fraction. I'm literally leaving thousands 00:06:15.139 --> 00:06:17.959 of dollars in improved efficiency and increased 00:06:17.959 --> 00:06:20.399 volume in the bulk tank every single month because 00:06:20.399 --> 00:06:22.600 I haven't bought a timer and a few bulbs. Exactly. 00:06:22.600 --> 00:06:24.879 That number alone should be the driver for every 00:06:24.879 --> 00:06:27.899 single farm decision. But here's where the management 00:06:27.899 --> 00:06:30.620 complexity comes in and maybe why some farms 00:06:30.620 --> 00:06:33.980 hesitate. The dry cow paradox. Ah, yes, the dry 00:06:33.980 --> 00:06:36.399 cows. The research is really clear on this. Dry 00:06:36.399 --> 00:06:38.720 cows require the complete opposite protocol to 00:06:38.720 --> 00:06:40.879 set up their next lactation successfully. They 00:06:40.879 --> 00:06:42.939 need the short day protocol. Absolutely. Dry 00:06:42.939 --> 00:06:45.459 cows actually need eight hours of light followed 00:06:45.459 --> 00:06:48.819 by 16 hours of complete darkness. The purpose 00:06:48.819 --> 00:06:51.519 of this short day manipulation is to allow prolactin 00:06:51.519 --> 00:06:54.079 levels to drop significantly during the dry period. 00:06:54.319 --> 00:06:56.899 When prolactin drops, the receptors for it become 00:06:56.899 --> 00:06:59.339 more sensitive. So when the cow freshens and 00:06:59.339 --> 00:07:00.860 she moves back into the long day environment, 00:07:01.120 --> 00:07:04.339 those receptors are super primed, maximizing 00:07:04.339 --> 00:07:06.899 the response in the next lactation cycle. You 00:07:06.899 --> 00:07:08.959 are literally setting the stage for increased 00:07:08.959 --> 00:07:11.759 production a year in advance. OK, so if you're 00:07:11.759 --> 00:07:14.540 a farmer listening, you now have two completely 00:07:14.540 --> 00:07:16.540 contradictory lighting protocols you need to 00:07:16.540 --> 00:07:20.100 manage on the same facility. Lactating cows needing 00:07:20.100 --> 00:07:23.379 16 to 18 hours and dry cows needing only eight 00:07:23.379 --> 00:07:26.279 hours. That duality is the theoretical hurdle, 00:07:26.360 --> 00:07:28.639 right? But let's be honest, in the real world, 00:07:28.720 --> 00:07:30.819 the dry cow protocol is often the one that gets 00:07:30.819 --> 00:07:32.800 shoved aside first, and that's a massive missed 00:07:32.800 --> 00:07:35.220 opportunity for priming their system. And it's 00:07:35.220 --> 00:07:37.399 particularly challenging for smaller farms. If 00:07:37.399 --> 00:07:39.639 you're running, say, less than 200 head, you 00:07:39.639 --> 00:07:41.639 often don't have completely separate, isolated 00:07:41.639 --> 00:07:44.019 housing for your dry cow group where you can 00:07:44.019 --> 00:07:45.620 achieve complete light separation. It's just 00:07:45.620 --> 00:07:48.339 not practical. In that scenario, you're forced 00:07:48.339 --> 00:07:51.370 to make a tough capital decision. Prioritize 00:07:51.370 --> 00:07:53.610 maximizing the current milk check from the lactating 00:07:53.610 --> 00:07:56.329 cows, or invest in potentially expensive structural 00:07:56.329 --> 00:07:58.910 solutions to maximize the next lactation from 00:07:58.910 --> 00:08:01.990 the dry cows. Given cash flow pressures, most 00:08:01.990 --> 00:08:04.589 farmers understandably choose the immediate milk 00:08:04.589 --> 00:08:06.910 production boost. It makes sense financially 00:08:06.910 --> 00:08:10.470 in the short term. So let's talk about why, despite 00:08:10.470 --> 00:08:12.870 this rock -solid science and those huge financial 00:08:12.870 --> 00:08:15.449 incentives, universal adoption hasn't happened. 00:08:15.509 --> 00:08:17.490 It's because I think... The industry is trying 00:08:17.490 --> 00:08:20.129 to sell a perfect solution to an imperfect biological 00:08:20.129 --> 00:08:22.430 problem. Yeah, we have to challenge the conventional 00:08:22.430 --> 00:08:24.810 wisdom that we should always chase the next tiny 00:08:24.810 --> 00:08:27.649 efficiency gain. The problem is the discrepancy 00:08:27.649 --> 00:08:30.250 between the neat, tidy research trials and the 00:08:30.250 --> 00:08:33.039 messy, dirty reality of the barn. Think about 00:08:33.039 --> 00:08:34.980 where the research gets its most jaw -dropping 00:08:34.980 --> 00:08:37.639 results. They show responses up to 15%, which 00:08:37.639 --> 00:08:40.100 is huge. But when you drill into those papers, 00:08:40.200 --> 00:08:42.600 you realize those massive improvements are generally 00:08:42.600 --> 00:08:45.320 seen on farms starting from a truly poor baseline. 00:08:45.779 --> 00:08:48.139 We're talking about old barns that had maybe 00:08:48.139 --> 00:08:51.279 30 or 40 lux, perhaps from ancient dyeing fixtures. 00:08:51.460 --> 00:08:53.980 When you suddenly introduce 150 lux there, of 00:08:53.980 --> 00:08:56.139 course you see a massive jump. The bar was practically 00:08:56.139 --> 00:08:58.639 on the floor, so any light works wonders. That's 00:08:58.639 --> 00:09:01.259 the trap, isn't it? If a farm is already using 00:09:01.259 --> 00:09:04.700 decent lighting, say, modern T8 fluorescent tubes 00:09:04.700 --> 00:09:07.919 that still manage to provide maybe 100 lux, the 00:09:07.919 --> 00:09:09.720 additional improvement you gain from upgrading 00:09:09.720 --> 00:09:12.840 to high -end LEDs might be minimal, maybe only 00:09:12.840 --> 00:09:16.179 2 % instead of 8%, and suddenly the cost -benefit 00:09:16.179 --> 00:09:19.139 equation flips completely. And this brings up 00:09:19.139 --> 00:09:21.419 the biggest confounding variable in real -world 00:09:21.419 --> 00:09:23.740 dairy farming. How often does a farmer upgrade 00:09:23.740 --> 00:09:25.940 just their lighting? Almost never. Right, never. 00:09:26.080 --> 00:09:28.299 Lighting upgrades almost always coincide with 00:09:28.299 --> 00:09:30.940 a full renovation. Fixing ventilation, upgrading 00:09:30.940 --> 00:09:33.799 cow comfort, installing a new feed system, maybe 00:09:33.799 --> 00:09:36.259 adding cooling misters. Everything changes at 00:09:36.259 --> 00:09:38.720 once. So you see an increase in production? Great. 00:09:39.120 --> 00:09:41.200 But you can't really tell if it was the better 00:09:41.200 --> 00:09:44.059 air quality, the reduced heat stress, or the 00:09:44.059 --> 00:09:46.980 light itself. In the real world, it's almost 00:09:46.980 --> 00:09:49.820 impossible to isolate the lighting effect. And 00:09:49.820 --> 00:09:52.840 that leads to warranted farmer skepticism about 00:09:52.840 --> 00:09:55.620 the singular ROI of the lights themselves. They 00:09:55.620 --> 00:09:57.720 wonder, you know, was it really the lights? And 00:09:57.720 --> 00:09:59.059 this is where we need to look at the biological 00:09:59.059 --> 00:10:01.360 messiness that sophisticated lighting companies 00:10:01.360 --> 00:10:04.379 conveniently skip over in their sales pitches. 00:10:04.659 --> 00:10:07.759 Let's talk about Dr. Dong -hyun Lim's 2021 research 00:10:07.759 --> 00:10:10.000 for a sec. Oh, that study published in Animals, 00:10:10.100 --> 00:10:13.100 yeah. That was critical because it moved beyond 00:10:13.100 --> 00:10:15.179 just looking at herd averages and actually looked 00:10:15.179 --> 00:10:18.929 at the individual cow. Lim's team found massive 00:10:18.929 --> 00:10:22.129 individual variation in melatonin response within 00:10:22.129 --> 00:10:25.190 the same herd. We're talking up to tenfold differences 00:10:25.190 --> 00:10:27.389 in baseline melatonin levels and their response 00:10:27.389 --> 00:10:30.210 thresholds. Tenfold? Think about what that means. 00:10:30.409 --> 00:10:32.710 You can have a cow that shows perfect melatonin 00:10:32.710 --> 00:10:35.409 suppression at a mere 50 lux. That's like a twilight 00:10:35.409 --> 00:10:37.470 setting. Sitting right next to a cow that needs 00:10:37.470 --> 00:10:39.509 the full 200 lux, that office lighting level, 00:10:39.710 --> 00:10:42.029 to get the same hormonal response. And if we 00:10:42.029 --> 00:10:44.690 connect this to the bigger picture, the source 00:10:44.690 --> 00:10:47.090 material specifically suggests that maybe only 00:10:47.090 --> 00:10:50.990 30 to 40 % of cows will respond strongly to photoperiod 00:10:50.990 --> 00:10:53.289 manipulation. The rest of the herd might see 00:10:53.289 --> 00:10:55.809 a moderate or even a low response. Okay, so this 00:10:55.809 --> 00:10:58.090 raises a really important question then. If the 00:10:58.090 --> 00:11:00.590 biology is that messy and the response is so 00:11:00.590 --> 00:11:04.179 varied, Why spend a fortune on a complex system 00:11:04.179 --> 00:11:06.940 trying to hit some perfect uniform target intensity 00:11:06.940 --> 00:11:09.500 across the whole barn? Wait, I have to push back 00:11:09.500 --> 00:11:11.299 on that a little. Isn't that kind of defeatist? 00:11:11.360 --> 00:11:13.919 If technology could maybe identify the 40 % of 00:11:13.919 --> 00:11:16.059 cows that respond best, or if we could use variable 00:11:16.059 --> 00:11:18.679 lighting to boost those slower responders, wouldn't 00:11:18.679 --> 00:11:20.379 that justify the complexity and the expense? 00:11:20.620 --> 00:11:22.240 Isn't that the whole promise of precision dairy? 00:11:22.539 --> 00:11:25.299 Well, that is the promise. Absolutely. But here's 00:11:25.299 --> 00:11:26.980 the problem with the implementation we see right 00:11:26.980 --> 00:11:29.799 now. The expensive systems often promise automated 00:11:29.799 --> 00:11:32.240 spectral tuning or integration with environmental 00:11:32.240 --> 00:11:35.320 monitoring. They look fantastic on the sales 00:11:35.320 --> 00:11:37.820 sheet, very high tech. But if the underlying 00:11:37.820 --> 00:11:40.360 biological variation is so darn high, trying 00:11:40.360 --> 00:11:43.059 to precisely tune the light intensity or the 00:11:43.059 --> 00:11:45.360 wavelength for some theoretical perfect outcome 00:11:45.360 --> 00:11:48.580 is probably chasing diminishing returns. You're 00:11:48.580 --> 00:11:50.419 basically trying to hit a moving target with 00:11:50.419 --> 00:11:53.059 a complex missile when a simple hammer might 00:11:53.059 --> 00:11:55.200 work just as well for 80 % of the job, you know? 00:11:55.480 --> 00:11:58.120 So the farmer's choice becomes, spend maybe $5 00:11:58.120 --> 00:12:01.120 ,000 on a simple, robust system that reliably 00:12:01.120 --> 00:12:05.120 delivers the proven 16 hours of 150 lux, a known 00:12:05.120 --> 00:12:07.240 baseline for good suppression across most cows. 00:12:07.419 --> 00:12:11.120 Or spend $15 ,000, maybe more, on a system designed 00:12:11.120 --> 00:12:13.159 to achieve perfect uniformity across the barn, 00:12:13.259 --> 00:12:15.259 knowing full well that maybe two -thirds of the 00:12:15.259 --> 00:12:17.379 herd won't respond uniformly anyway because of 00:12:17.379 --> 00:12:19.980 their own biology. That's the calculation. Stick 00:12:19.980 --> 00:12:23.240 to the proven basics. Adequate light, 16 to 18 00:12:23.240 --> 00:12:26.000 hours. Simple systems are cheaper. They're generally 00:12:26.000 --> 00:12:28.419 more durable in harsh barn environments. And 00:12:28.419 --> 00:12:30.860 given the biological variation, they are likely 00:12:30.860 --> 00:12:33.120 just as effective for the vast majority of operations. 00:12:33.519 --> 00:12:36.720 Okay, let's pivot to the economics. Because ultimately, 00:12:36.860 --> 00:12:39.740 capital outlay versus projected return is what 00:12:39.740 --> 00:12:42.659 drives adoption on farms. We established the 00:12:42.659 --> 00:12:46.610 rough ROI math earlier. A 100 -cow herd. potentially 00:12:46.610 --> 00:12:49.509 generating $34 ,000 in additional annual revenue 00:12:49.509 --> 00:12:52.610 from that 8 % bump. Seems clear. Now compare 00:12:52.610 --> 00:12:54.690 that potential revenue to the cost of a simple, 00:12:54.789 --> 00:12:57.210 durable LED installation. If you're spending 00:12:57.210 --> 00:13:00.509 between, say, $3 ,000 and $5 ,000 for a commercial 00:13:00.509 --> 00:13:02.370 -grade system, the kind you find in warehouses, 00:13:02.409 --> 00:13:05.190 nothing fancy or dairy -specific, that payback 00:13:05.190 --> 00:13:08.029 period is projected to be incredibly fast. We 00:13:08.029 --> 00:13:10.230 are talking maybe two to six months to recoup 00:13:10.230 --> 00:13:12.230 the initial investment. purely from increased 00:13:12.230 --> 00:13:14.950 milk sales. That ROI makes it seem like a complete 00:13:14.950 --> 00:13:17.350 no -brainer. So why are people hesitating? The 00:13:17.350 --> 00:13:19.389 answer often lies in the details and the hidden 00:13:19.389 --> 00:13:21.750 costs. Many older barns are just not structurally 00:13:21.750 --> 00:13:23.769 or, more importantly, electrically ready for 00:13:23.769 --> 00:13:26.110 modern loads. That's the silent killer of so 00:13:26.110 --> 00:13:28.750 many capital projects on farms. State extension 00:13:28.750 --> 00:13:31.029 guides, especially those focusing on infrastructure 00:13:31.029 --> 00:13:33.730 upgrades in older facilities, highlight this 00:13:33.730 --> 00:13:36.769 constantly. Older barns often require substantial 00:13:36.769 --> 00:13:39.210 electrical work that has nothing directly to 00:13:39.210 --> 00:13:41.740 do with the light fixture itself. We're talking 00:13:41.740 --> 00:13:45.080 panel upgrades, new wiring to handle the circuits, 00:13:45.220 --> 00:13:48.000 or maybe running new grounding systems, especially 00:13:48.000 --> 00:13:50.899 when switching from old low voltage fixtures 00:13:50.899 --> 00:13:54.679 to modern LEDs. Depending on your existing infrastructure, 00:13:54.980 --> 00:13:57.620 that adds a hidden cost of anywhere from like 00:13:57.620 --> 00:14:01.120 $2 ,000 to maybe $8 ,000 to the total investment. 00:14:01.240 --> 00:14:03.759 It can easily double the project cost. That hidden 00:14:03.759 --> 00:14:05.600 electrical bill is the reason so many lighting 00:14:05.600 --> 00:14:08.159 projects die on the drawing board. It changes 00:14:08.159 --> 00:14:09.980 the conversation from a simple lighting upgrade 00:14:09.980 --> 00:14:12.879 to a full and expensive utility overhaul. And 00:14:12.879 --> 00:14:15.139 suddenly that quick two -month payback period 00:14:15.139 --> 00:14:17.980 stretches out to a year, maybe more. That makes 00:14:17.980 --> 00:14:20.220 it a much more calculated risk, especially when 00:14:20.220 --> 00:14:22.279 you factor in high current interest rates and 00:14:22.279 --> 00:14:24.919 the volatility of milk prices. Beyond just the 00:14:24.919 --> 00:14:27.399 installation cost, let's talk durability and 00:14:27.399 --> 00:14:29.419 maintenance in the barn environment. Yeah, think 00:14:29.419 --> 00:14:31.120 about the environment these electronics have 00:14:31.120 --> 00:14:34.669 to live in. Constant dust, high humidity, methane, 00:14:34.970 --> 00:14:38.529 ammonia. That environment is incredibly corrosive. 00:14:38.529 --> 00:14:41.639 We've seen it. time and time again. Those delicate, 00:14:41.720 --> 00:14:44.740 fancy digital controllers designed to tune spectrum 00:14:44.740 --> 00:14:47.879 and integrate with smart barn systems. They often 00:14:47.879 --> 00:14:51.320 fail long before the actual LED chips do. I remember 00:14:51.320 --> 00:14:53.720 one farm visit, their state -of -the -art controller, 00:14:54.000 --> 00:14:55.779 it looked like it belonged on a spaceship. It 00:14:55.779 --> 00:14:57.759 just completely corroded after only six months. 00:14:58.000 --> 00:15:00.279 They ended up having to bypass the whole thing 00:15:00.279 --> 00:15:02.480 and just install a rugged, simple mechanical 00:15:02.480 --> 00:15:04.539 timer you could probably buy at any hardware 00:15:04.539 --> 00:15:07.320 store. Durability really matters more than bells 00:15:07.320 --> 00:15:09.399 and whistles in a dairy barn. That speaks volumes 00:15:09.399 --> 00:15:11.620 about prioritizing resilience over features. 00:15:11.860 --> 00:15:14.460 Yeah. But let's not overlook one major, maybe 00:15:14.460 --> 00:15:17.600 unforeseen benefit that really changes the ROI 00:15:17.600 --> 00:15:20.039 calculation, especially regionally, heat reduction. 00:15:20.320 --> 00:15:22.580 Oh. This is a massive factor that often gets 00:15:22.580 --> 00:15:24.980 overlooked but can sometimes override the main 00:15:24.980 --> 00:15:28.379 photoperiod effect. LEDs generate about 50 % 00:15:28.379 --> 00:15:30.980 less heat than traditional metal halides or those 00:15:30.980 --> 00:15:33.759 older high -intensity discharge lamps. 50 % less 00:15:33.759 --> 00:15:37.159 heat is huge. For farmers in the southeast or 00:15:37.159 --> 00:15:40.799 southwest, think Georgia, Florida, Southern California, 00:15:41.059 --> 00:15:43.840 where heat stress can absolutely wipe out production 00:15:43.840 --> 00:15:46.139 and compromise health for maybe eight months 00:15:46.139 --> 00:15:49.690 a year. The reduced heat load from the LEDs might 00:15:49.690 --> 00:15:52.090 actually be the single most valuable feature 00:15:52.090 --> 00:15:54.789 of the upgrade. It's a dual benefit. You get 00:15:54.789 --> 00:15:57.049 the photo period increase and a crucial tool 00:15:57.049 --> 00:15:59.470 for heat stress mitigation. Definitely. And remember 00:15:59.470 --> 00:16:02.509 the financial offsets, too. Before anyone writes 00:16:02.509 --> 00:16:04.730 that check for new lights, you absolutely must 00:16:04.730 --> 00:16:07.330 check with your local utility provider. Energy 00:16:07.330 --> 00:16:09.789 efficiency rebates are widely available, often 00:16:09.789 --> 00:16:11.970 covering 20 to 40 percent of the cost of switching 00:16:11.970 --> 00:16:14.710 to modern LED systems. That can significantly 00:16:14.710 --> 00:16:16.789 shorten the payback period again, especially 00:16:16.789 --> 00:16:19.289 since LEDs have a ridiculously long lifespan, 00:16:19.490 --> 00:16:21.809 like 50 ,000 plus hours, compared to the short 00:16:21.809 --> 00:16:23.950 life of old fixtures. Hashtag, hashtag before. 00:16:24.169 --> 00:16:26.269 Regional considerations and case studies. The 00:16:26.269 --> 00:16:28.320 lesson emerging here, I think, is that the photo 00:16:28.320 --> 00:16:30.559 period benefit is really not one size fits all. 00:16:30.639 --> 00:16:32.559 Regional variations fundamentally change the 00:16:32.559 --> 00:16:34.840 ROI equation and probably the decision on what 00:16:34.840 --> 00:16:37.330 kind of system to buy, if any. Absolutely. The 00:16:37.330 --> 00:16:39.769 regions that see the highest, most consistent 00:16:39.769 --> 00:16:42.850 ROI are clearly the ones with long, dark confinement 00:16:42.850 --> 00:16:45.309 periods. Specifically, you look at the upper 00:16:45.309 --> 00:16:48.570 Midwest, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Michigan. When 00:16:48.570 --> 00:16:51.110 cows are inside from October right through April 00:16:51.110 --> 00:16:54.009 and natural daylight hours are super short, that 00:16:54.009 --> 00:16:56.450 extended photo period provides a monumental boost 00:16:56.450 --> 00:16:58.470 that simply doesn't exist to the same degree 00:16:58.470 --> 00:17:01.049 elsewhere. Yeah. Take northern Minnesota in December. 00:17:01.250 --> 00:17:03.370 They might only get, what, eight or nine hours 00:17:03.370 --> 00:17:06.339 of effective natural daylight. the cow system 00:17:06.339 --> 00:17:09.559 into a constant short day cycle which naturally 00:17:09.559 --> 00:17:12.930 suppresses production. Installing long -day lighting 00:17:12.930 --> 00:17:15.230 immediately reverses that natural biological 00:17:15.230 --> 00:17:17.890 constraint. It's a huge lever there. Now, compare 00:17:17.890 --> 00:17:19.509 that to somewhere like the California Central 00:17:19.509 --> 00:17:22.589 Valley, which has extensive open -sided or freestall 00:17:22.589 --> 00:17:25.049 facilities. For much of the year, natural light 00:17:25.049 --> 00:17:27.710 already provides adequate exposure. You're not 00:17:27.710 --> 00:17:30.130 starting from a baseline of 40 lux. You're starting 00:17:30.130 --> 00:17:33.049 from maybe 2 ,000 lux outside and easily 150 00:17:33.049 --> 00:17:36.029 lux inside the shade on a bright day. The incremental 00:17:36.029 --> 00:17:38.069 gain from an artificial lighting upgrade is going 00:17:38.069 --> 00:17:40.259 to be much, much smaller. And then you have grazing 00:17:40.259 --> 00:17:43.019 operations, say in parts of New York or Wisconsin, 00:17:43.359 --> 00:17:45.740 where cows are out on pasture during the peak 00:17:45.740 --> 00:17:48.039 production months like spring and summer. Those 00:17:48.039 --> 00:17:50.039 animals are outside getting plenty of natural 00:17:50.039 --> 00:17:52.460 light during the optimal 16 -hour period anyway, 00:17:52.660 --> 00:17:55.119 so the indoor barn lighting upgrade provides 00:17:55.119 --> 00:17:57.920 minimal benefit during those key months. Their 00:17:57.920 --> 00:17:59.799 investment needs to be timed or maybe focused 00:17:59.799 --> 00:18:02.279 differently, perhaps just for the winter. And 00:18:02.279 --> 00:18:04.680 circling back to that heat stress factor, the 00:18:04.680 --> 00:18:07.500 southeast and southwest are kind of unique cases. 00:18:08.079 --> 00:18:10.920 Down in Georgia or Florida, if the barn is consistently 00:18:10.920 --> 00:18:13.819 above 80 degrees Fahrenheit, the cow is stressed. 00:18:14.000 --> 00:18:15.759 And frankly, the lighting benefits are likely 00:18:15.759 --> 00:18:18.809 negated by that stress. Here, the primary driver 00:18:18.809 --> 00:18:21.369 for an LED upgrade might be purely heat mitigation 00:18:21.369 --> 00:18:24.289 and energy savings, not really photo period manipulation. 00:18:24.970 --> 00:18:27.650 The economic justification shifts completely 00:18:27.650 --> 00:18:31.430 from more milk to less stress and better energy 00:18:31.430 --> 00:18:33.410 efficiency. OK, so if you're listening to this 00:18:33.410 --> 00:18:34.829 and you're thinking, all right, maybe I do need 00:18:34.829 --> 00:18:37.650 to act. How do you do it intelligently without 00:18:37.650 --> 00:18:40.630 taking a huge risk? We'd advocate for the smart, 00:18:40.789 --> 00:18:43.690 low risk approach. You test small first. This 00:18:43.690 --> 00:18:46.450 is critical. First, you identify the darkest, 00:18:46.650 --> 00:18:48.589 maybe lowest performing section of your barn. 00:18:48.690 --> 00:18:51.109 Perhaps it's an old addition or a far end that 00:18:51.109 --> 00:18:53.569 never got proper maintenance. That's your testing 00:18:53.569 --> 00:18:56.349 group. Then install simple, commercial -grade 00:18:56.349 --> 00:18:59.569 LED fixtures in just that area. Nothing proprietary, 00:18:59.910 --> 00:19:02.509 nothing fancy. Use a basic mechanical timer, 00:19:02.630 --> 00:19:04.869 keep the group separate if you can, and then 00:19:04.869 --> 00:19:07.289 monitor that specific group of cows closely for 00:19:07.289 --> 00:19:10.869 six to eight weeks. You need hard data from your 00:19:10.869 --> 00:19:13.920 own farm. daily production changes, maybe changes 00:19:13.920 --> 00:19:16.759 in behavior, even feed intake metrics if you 00:19:16.759 --> 00:19:45.839 can track them for that group. Let's talk a little 00:19:45.839 --> 00:19:48.440 about the future and the... The hype surrounding 00:19:48.440 --> 00:19:50.519 this. When you look at the product landscape, 00:19:50.700 --> 00:19:53.799 every manufacturer seems to promise some revolutionary 00:19:53.799 --> 00:19:57.359 AI optimized system. But what's the reality of 00:19:57.359 --> 00:19:59.539 the underlying technology? Well, the reality 00:19:59.539 --> 00:20:02.619 is fundamentally standard LED chips are powering 00:20:02.619 --> 00:20:04.640 almost all these systems, whether it's Samsung, 00:20:04.880 --> 00:20:08.099 Osram or Cree. They are basically the same chips 00:20:08.099 --> 00:20:11.920 used in industrial warehouses. There is no magical 00:20:11.920 --> 00:20:15.779 dairy -specific LED chip that somehow justifies 00:20:15.779 --> 00:20:18.900 a huge price tag. It's commodity technology at 00:20:18.900 --> 00:20:21.420 the core. The complexity, and therefore the cost, 00:20:21.680 --> 00:20:23.880 really comes from the sophisticated control systems 00:20:23.880 --> 00:20:26.279 they bundle with it. But we've already kind of 00:20:26.279 --> 00:20:28.619 established that for the core photoperiod effect, 00:20:28.700 --> 00:20:31.599 the melatonin suppression, the best control system 00:20:31.599 --> 00:20:34.299 is often just a basic, reliable mechanical timer 00:20:34.299 --> 00:20:36.980 set for that 16 -hour on, 8 -hour off cycle. 00:20:37.119 --> 00:20:39.190 Simple. Now, we should acknowledge there are 00:20:39.190 --> 00:20:41.809 a few genuinely useful innovations that solve 00:20:41.809 --> 00:20:44.130 practical problems like deep red lighting. That's 00:20:44.130 --> 00:20:46.549 a good example. Ah, yeah. That's the exception 00:20:46.549 --> 00:20:49.579 that proves the rule, maybe. Since cows apparently 00:20:49.579 --> 00:20:52.259 cannot see deep red wavelengths, specifically 00:20:52.259 --> 00:20:56.079 around 650 nanometers, you can introduce red 00:20:56.079 --> 00:20:58.380 lighting for night work without disrupting their 00:20:58.380 --> 00:21:01.140 crucial dark period. This is actually huge for 00:21:01.140 --> 00:21:03.319 large operations or those in northern states 00:21:03.319 --> 00:21:05.720 during those long winter nights. Workers can 00:21:05.720 --> 00:21:08.680 check animals, handle emergencies like a calving, 00:21:08.700 --> 00:21:11.299 or even scrape alleys without turning on bright 00:21:11.299 --> 00:21:13.359 white lights and disrupting the cow's essential 00:21:13.359 --> 00:21:16.920 eight hours of darkness. That is solving a real... 00:21:17.180 --> 00:21:19.619 practical operational conflict. That makes sense. 00:21:19.779 --> 00:21:21.920 But beyond that, we pretty quickly enter the 00:21:21.920 --> 00:21:23.799 realm of solutions looking for problems, don't 00:21:23.799 --> 00:21:26.019 we? We hear about ongoing university research, 00:21:26.220 --> 00:21:28.180 which is fascinating stuff. Things like using 00:21:28.180 --> 00:21:30.119 circadian rhythms to predict health problems 00:21:30.119 --> 00:21:32.460 before clinical symptoms appear or linking specific 00:21:32.460 --> 00:21:35.019 light exposure to immune function. That's valuable 00:21:35.019 --> 00:21:37.480 basic science. But then that basic science somehow 00:21:37.480 --> 00:21:39.460 gets translated on the trade show floor into 00:21:39.460 --> 00:21:42.720 pitches for like AI optimization platforms that 00:21:42.720 --> 00:21:44.819 integrate light sensors with activity monitors 00:21:44.819 --> 00:21:47.460 or and I've actually heard this pitched. Blockchain 00:21:47.460 --> 00:21:49.819 verified lighting schedules. Blockchain? Come 00:21:49.819 --> 00:21:51.680 on. I'm not buying the blockchain lighting schedule. 00:21:51.880 --> 00:21:54.720 I just refuse. Exactly. Cows don't need blockchain 00:21:54.720 --> 00:21:57.680 verification. They need light. The basic biological 00:21:57.680 --> 00:21:59.880 need is adequate light for a sufficient number 00:21:59.880 --> 00:22:02.259 of hours. That foundational requirement is where, 00:22:02.359 --> 00:22:05.740 like... 80 % of the benefit lies. Chasing the 00:22:05.740 --> 00:22:08.180 final 5%, trying to perfectly tune the light 00:22:08.180 --> 00:22:10.559 for a herd with that tenfold melatonin variation 00:22:10.559 --> 00:22:13.819 we talked about with complex, expensive software, 00:22:14.079 --> 00:22:16.839 it simply doesn't justify the investment risk 00:22:16.839 --> 00:22:20.200 for most operations. Keep it simple. We need 00:22:20.200 --> 00:22:22.960 to challenge the popular industry narrative that 00:22:22.960 --> 00:22:25.319 the low adoption of lighting technology is somehow 00:22:25.319 --> 00:22:28.920 due to pharma resistance to change or maybe a 00:22:28.920 --> 00:22:50.650 lack of forward thinking. And if a farmer is 00:22:50.650 --> 00:22:53.049 highly leveraged, They simply can't afford to 00:22:53.049 --> 00:22:55.690 gamble on a complex system that might only deliver 00:22:55.690 --> 00:22:58.589 a marginally better result than a reliable, simple 00:22:58.589 --> 00:23:01.230 system costing one -tenth as much. They have 00:23:01.230 --> 00:23:04.630 to prioritize proven, simple durability. It's 00:23:04.630 --> 00:23:07.170 smart business. And here's the critical point, 00:23:07.230 --> 00:23:09.150 I think, and the research definitely backs this 00:23:09.150 --> 00:23:12.130 up. Technology will never fix poor management. 00:23:12.470 --> 00:23:15.619 Ever. We know that stress hormones, whether from 00:23:15.619 --> 00:23:18.099 high somatic cell counts, unresolved lameness, 00:23:18.200 --> 00:23:21.500 or chronic heat stress, completely override any 00:23:21.500 --> 00:23:23.559 potential benefit you might get from photoperiod 00:23:23.559 --> 00:23:26.440 manipulation. The cow's body is already dealing 00:23:26.440 --> 00:23:29.380 with a major biological crisis. Right. The lighting 00:23:29.380 --> 00:23:31.599 benefit is basically nullified by those larger 00:23:31.599 --> 00:23:34.279 systemic issues. You absolutely have to fix the 00:23:34.279 --> 00:23:36.839 management basics first. Lighting is a productivity 00:23:36.839 --> 00:23:39.400 enhancer. It's not some magic fix for underlying 00:23:39.400 --> 00:23:41.759 herd health or comfort problems. The whole lighting 00:23:41.759 --> 00:23:44.049 story is really just... one more reflection of 00:23:44.049 --> 00:23:46.609 the adoption pattern we see across almost all 00:23:46.609 --> 00:23:49.210 dairy technology, robotics, monitors, precision 00:23:49.210 --> 00:23:52.289 feeders, you name it. Adoption is usually driven 00:23:52.289 --> 00:23:55.130 by one of two things, either a financial crisis 00:23:55.130 --> 00:23:58.349 that forces efficiency gains or a generational 00:23:58.349 --> 00:24:00.450 change that brings a different tolerance for 00:24:00.450 --> 00:24:03.430 risk and capital investment. Lighting has just 00:24:03.430 --> 00:24:05.250 been kind of waiting in the queue because the 00:24:05.250 --> 00:24:07.930 return, though potentially massive, often requires 00:24:07.930 --> 00:24:10.190 addressing those hidden electrical costs first, 00:24:10.309 --> 00:24:13.230 which is a bigger project. So perhaps the fact 00:24:13.230 --> 00:24:15.470 that most barns still run those museum -quality 00:24:15.470 --> 00:24:17.789 fixtures isn't really about being behind the 00:24:17.789 --> 00:24:20.849 times, but about experienced managers prioritizing 00:24:20.849 --> 00:24:24.009 capital protection and proven solutions. Exactly. 00:24:24.009 --> 00:24:27.049 If simple LED bulbs and a basic timer can deliver 00:24:27.049 --> 00:24:29.549 similar results to systems costing 10 times more, 00:24:29.769 --> 00:24:32.190 which the biological messiness strongly suggests 00:24:32.190 --> 00:24:35.170 they often can, then the low adoption rate isn't 00:24:35.170 --> 00:24:37.150 a failure to innovate. It's simply good management 00:24:37.150 --> 00:24:39.460 protecting capital. That kind of farm wisdom, 00:24:39.539 --> 00:24:42.079 that practical caution is priceless. That is 00:24:42.079 --> 00:24:44.359 a strong final point. Knowing the difference 00:24:44.359 --> 00:24:46.799 between what actually works reliably and what 00:24:46.799 --> 00:24:49.539 just sounds fancy and expensive is really the 00:24:49.539 --> 00:24:52.839 core of good decision making on the farm. Hashtag 00:24:52.839 --> 00:24:55.299 tag tag actionable insight segment. All right, 00:24:55.299 --> 00:24:57.160 let's bring it home. Farmer just finished morning 00:24:57.160 --> 00:24:58.940 milking. Maybe they're driving to the feed store 00:24:58.940 --> 00:25:01.619 or perhaps just checking in on the dry cow pen. 00:25:02.220 --> 00:25:04.339 What are the three key things they need to take 00:25:04.339 --> 00:25:06.880 away from this discussion? What are the immediate, 00:25:07.079 --> 00:25:09.880 medium, and long -term actions? Okay, number 00:25:09.880 --> 00:25:11.859 one, immediate action, something you can literally 00:25:11.859 --> 00:25:14.799 do this week. Measure your baseline light intensity. 00:25:15.549 --> 00:25:18.250 You absolutely cannot just guess this. Purchase 00:25:18.250 --> 00:25:20.710 or borrow a simple, reliable light meter. They're 00:25:20.710 --> 00:25:23.130 pretty cheap, $60 to $100, easily accessible 00:25:23.130 --> 00:25:26.230 online or at electrical supply stores. Your goal 00:25:26.230 --> 00:25:28.109 is to measure light intensity right at cow eye 00:25:28.109 --> 00:25:30.309 level, so about four feet off the ground, in 00:25:30.309 --> 00:25:32.109 the darkest and the lightest areas of your barn, 00:25:32.190 --> 00:25:33.890 during the daytime when the lights would normally 00:25:33.890 --> 00:25:36.390 be on. Get real numbers. And use this simple 00:25:36.390 --> 00:25:38.859 decision framework. If you are consistently below 00:25:38.859 --> 00:25:41.759 50 lux, pretty much everywhere, you have a massive, 00:25:41.819 --> 00:25:44.279 proven, immediate opportunity for that potential 00:25:44.279 --> 00:25:46.559 8 % production boost. That's your green light. 00:25:46.680 --> 00:25:49.539 If you are consistently above 150 lux throughout 00:25:49.539 --> 00:25:52.579 your facility already, honestly, spend your limited 00:25:52.579 --> 00:25:54.880 capital elsewhere. You likely won't see a big 00:25:54.880 --> 00:25:57.859 return. Do not buy new lights just because. Okay, 00:25:57.900 --> 00:26:01.160 number two, medium -term strategy. Thinking over 00:26:01.160 --> 00:26:03.799 the next three to six months, test small and 00:26:03.799 --> 00:26:06.509 focus on management prerequisites. If you are 00:26:06.509 --> 00:26:08.890 one of those farms consistently below that 50 00:26:08.890 --> 00:26:11.650 lugs threshold, conduct a small monitor trial 00:26:11.650 --> 00:26:14.410 in the darkest section of the barn first. Don't 00:26:14.410 --> 00:26:16.390 redo the whole barn yet. Use simple, durable, 00:26:16.529 --> 00:26:18.990 commercial -grade LED fixtures and basic mechanical 00:26:18.990 --> 00:26:21.730 timers. Keep it cheap and robust for the test. 00:26:22.410 --> 00:26:24.089 Critically, though, before you even do that, 00:26:24.230 --> 00:26:26.369 ensure your core management, things like herd 00:26:26.369 --> 00:26:29.190 health, fresh cow protocols, nutrition, cow comfort, 00:26:29.329 --> 00:26:32.410 is absolutely dialed in. Remember, stress hormones 00:26:32.410 --> 00:26:34.470 will override the lighting benefits, so fix the 00:26:34.470 --> 00:26:36.789 foundation first. Don't put the cart before the 00:26:36.789 --> 00:26:38.890 horse. Makes sense. And finally, number three, 00:26:38.990 --> 00:26:41.210 long -term positioning. Looking out over the 00:26:41.210 --> 00:26:44.230 next one to two years, factor lighting into all 00:26:44.230 --> 00:26:47.009 capital projects, especially electrical. Right. 00:26:47.069 --> 00:26:49.250 If you are already planning a major renovation, 00:26:49.589 --> 00:26:51.930 building a new facility, or doing significant 00:26:51.930 --> 00:26:54.650 electrical upgrades anyway, that is the ideal 00:26:54.650 --> 00:26:58.769 time to incorporate proper... photo period lighting, 00:26:58.869 --> 00:27:02.349 you know, 16 to 18 hours at 100 to 200 lux. By 00:27:02.349 --> 00:27:05.009 bundling it with existing electrical work, you 00:27:05.009 --> 00:27:07.829 minimize the proportional impact of those potentially 00:27:07.829 --> 00:27:11.349 nasty hidden $2 ,000 to $8 ,000 electrical costs. 00:27:11.470 --> 00:27:13.630 It just becomes part of the bigger project. And 00:27:13.630 --> 00:27:15.250 definitely don't forget to call your local utility 00:27:15.250 --> 00:27:17.410 company about those energy efficiency rebates. 00:27:17.529 --> 00:27:20.269 Getting 20 to 40 % off the top makes the math 00:27:20.269 --> 00:27:22.589 work almost every single time, significantly 00:27:22.589 --> 00:27:25.410 reducing that payback period. Those are three 00:27:25.410 --> 00:27:27.789 clear, actionable steps that respect the farm's 00:27:27.789 --> 00:27:30.029 capital and risk tolerance, moving the conversation 00:27:30.029 --> 00:27:32.170 away from the fancy gimmicks and back to the 00:27:32.170 --> 00:27:34.130 basic science and practical application. This 00:27:34.130 --> 00:27:36.049 has been another deep dive from the Bullvine 00:27:36.049 --> 00:27:38.410 podcast. What we hope you take away from this 00:27:38.410 --> 00:27:41.410 is the immense value of focusing on simple, measurable 00:27:41.410 --> 00:27:44.630 solutions over just the marketing hype. If this 00:27:44.630 --> 00:27:47.309 kind of impartial data -driven analysis helps 00:27:47.309 --> 00:27:49.809 your operation make better decisions, head over 00:27:49.809 --> 00:27:53.910 to www .thebullvine .com for more articles that 00:27:53.910 --> 00:27:56.109 tell you what's really happening in dairy. And 00:27:56.109 --> 00:27:57.970 seriously, subscribe wherever you get your podcasts. 00:27:58.309 --> 00:28:00.529 We're releasing episodes twice weekly now, and 00:28:00.529 --> 00:28:02.410 trust me, you don't want to miss what we've got 00:28:02.410 --> 00:28:04.690 coming next week. We're diving into the real 00:28:04.690 --> 00:28:06.950 cost -benefit analysis of activity monitors, 00:28:07.170 --> 00:28:09.509 especially for smaller dairy herds. That should 00:28:09.509 --> 00:28:12.069 be interesting. Until then, keep observing those 00:28:12.069 --> 00:28:13.849 cows and maybe go measure the light.