Increasing herd sizes on Franche-Comte daily farms place grazing systems under strain

International audienceIn the Franche Comte region, where Comte cheese is produced, dairy herd sizes are increasing; this trend matches what is seen on a broader scale. However, in this region, common intensive farming and livestock feeding practices are framed by cheese certification requirements. In this study, we administered a survey to 24 dairy farmers whose herd sizes exceeded 80 cows. Despite having large herds, farmers were able to maintain grazing-based systems by 0 rethinking field patterns and animal parcel assignments; ii) differentially managing grasslands (e.g., tightly controlling grazing, overseeding permanent grasslands, and developing temporary grasslands); and iii) exploiting complementary forms of forage (e.g., grass or maize green feed, hay). These shifts, which respect regional regulations, could weaken local production systems