“Freed from 4 Hours of Milking a Day”… Young Farmer CEO Kim Dae-hyun’s ‘40 kg Miracle’ Achieved Through Data Farming

Dairy farmers are deeply troubled by labor shortages, rising production costs, and the daily repetitive milking(extracting milk) work. This is because the people doing the work are aging and feed prices and labor costs are soaring, while milking labor, which cannot be skipped even for a single day, is holding farms back.

In livestock farming circles, people even say “dairy farmers have to go milk cows even if their parents pass away”. Because dairy cows can develop diseases such as mastitis if they are not milked diligently twice a day, morning and evening, it is not easy for dairy farmers to leave their farms even for personal family events.

The ‘helper(substitute labor) system’that helps farmers take vacations has become more active and given them some breathing room, but milking still accounts for an overwhelming share of total labor. According to the National Institute of Animal Science, about 40%of the time a dairy farm works over 1year(a total of 3661hours) was found to be spent solely on milking work. In other words, they devote a considerable amount of time to milking cows.

Against this backdrop, one farm is drawing attention by combining robotic milking machines with a self-mixing TMR system to record an average milk yield of more than 40㎏ . The main figure is Kim Dae-hyun, CEO(born in 1992·Nonsan, South Chungcheong Province·more than 70milking cows), who entered dairy farming in 2014, following in his parents’ footsteps. He emphasized, “By introducing robotic milking machines and being freed from milking labor, I was able to focus more on individual animal management”. In January 2024, after introducing robotic milking machines, we heard about the results proven by data and the process of adopting the technology.
 

"Once I was freed from milking labor, I could see the cows"
After graduating from Korea National College of Agriculture and Fisheries, he began full-fledged ranch management in 2014. He started each day at 5a.m. every dawn. For dairy farmers, milking twice every day is an unavoidable fate.

CEO Kim Dae-hyun recalled, “Each milking took 2hours, so I spent a full 4hours a day on milking. Working on the ranch in earnest was rewarding, but it was also hard”and “At the time, my mother was ill, and as labor became scarce, we pushed ahead with introducing robotic milking machines”.

In the fall of 2023, the robotic milking machines were installed, and full-scale operation began in January of the following year. After robotic milking machines were introduced, data analysis took the place of reduced labor hours. By monitoring data measured in real time during milking, such as body temperature, milk fat, and milk protein ratios, he detects the risk of ketosis or signs of mastitis at an early stage. He has moved away from the old method of relying on guesswork and built a rapid response system based on objective data.
 

These changes led to improved ranch performance. According to changes in Nonsan Ranch’s 26-month herd test results provided by NongHyup Feed, monthly average milk yield from January 2023to December 2023ranged from a low of 29㎏ to a high of 35㎏ . However, from January last year, when the robotic milking machines were introduced, milk yield increased sharply. Daily average milk yield rose from 34.1㎏ in December 2023to 42.3㎏ in December 2024, meaning, in 1year, average milk yield increased by 24.04% . During the same period, the average 305-day milk yield was also confirmed at 13,095㎏, up 25.4% from 10,446㎏. Although the number of milking cows, which had reached as many as 100, was reduced to around 70, increased yield per cow raised the ranch’s total milk production.

CEO Kim explained, “I gained the leeway to focus entirely on individual cow management with the time that used to be spent on milking”and “I can immediately use data such as the body temperature, milk fat, and milk protein of cows that have completed milking. Through health reports provided by the robotic milking machine company, I check for sick cows and other issues”. He added, “As the number of milkings increased from 2to 3~3.5times, the daily average milk yield per cow rose from the previous 32~33kg level to the 40kg range”.
 

Switching to self-mixed TMR and feed control were the keys to success
The domestic adoption rate of robotic milking machines is still known to remain below 5% . Quite a few farms fail after introducing robotic milking machines. Experts cite ‘failure to control feed provision’as a cause of failure. A robotic milking machine is a system that induces cows to enter the milking parlor on their own through the reward of feed. However, commercially distributed TMR feed makes it difficult to precisely adjust ratios, which can reduce cows’ visit rate to robotic milking machines or lead to digestive disorders. This is why CEO Kim Dae-hyun switched from distributed TMRto a ‘self-mixed TMR system’.

He personally inspected the quality of imported forage(timothy·tall fescue·oats·alfalfa)to ensure the safety of nutritional supply, and precisely adjusted mixing ratios according to cows’ milking stages and rumination status. Reducing production costs through self-mixed TMRwhile maximizing the efficiency of inducing robotic milking became the core driving force behind achieving milk yield of more than 40kg.
 

Maximizing productivity through a data-linked system
In addition to robotic milking machines, Nonsan Ranch operates necklace-type estrus·and rumination detectors, as well as smart coolers that can be remotely controlled from outside(maintaining 4.5°C ) . Installing sufficient ventilation facilities in the barns and maintaining clean barns are also contributing to productivity improvement. Through this precise feeding management, the ranch has overcome the shortened parity problem commonly experienced by high-yield farms and is maintaining a healthy average of 2.5parities. Along with increased milk yield, it has achieved three goals at once: improved reproductive rate, and reduced digestive diseases.

Help from dairy experts is also playing a part. NongHyup Feed experts not only propose feed provision programs by period but also continue to provide advice on improvements to the ranch environment. CEO Kim Dae-hyun said, “Dairy experts create programs that include appropriate feeding amounts and timing for compound feed, forage, and additives that can increase feed intake. They also helped remove structures that block air(wind) circulation so that barn temperatures can be lowered during the hot summer season like now”.
 

Thanks to these efforts, the ranch has been able to achieve monthly sales ranging from 95 millionwon to 100 millionwon. It also lowered the feed cost ratio per milk revenue from 60%to the 40%range. The cost of installing the robotic milking machines and auxiliary facilities was about 740 millionwon, of which 70%(about 518 millionwon)was paid out of pocket.

Applying the net profit per dairy cow of 2.235 millionwon from the National Data Agency’s 2025livestock production cost survey results, Nonsan Ranch’s annual net profit can be estimated at 156.45 millionwon(based on 70milking cows). By simple calculation, the cost of investing in the robotic milking machines can be recovered in 4.72years.

“Each robotic milking machine can handle up to 50milking cows. Since we have two machines, I want to expand to 100cows and increase our current quota of 3050㎏ to 4tons”said CEO Kim Dae-hyun, revealing his future plans, and emphasized, “With data management in place, we can observe individual animals in detail. Although the initial investment cost is somewhat burdensome, both productivity and profits increase, so I would like to recommend it to other farms as well”.