Vistarop Vanesa A, Larriestra Alejandro J, Vissio Claudina, Demateis Llera Federico, Yaful Graciela N, Blanco Carlos J, Bartolomé Julián A
Carrera de Medicina Veterinaria-UNRN, Choele Choel, Rio Negro 8360, ArgentinaCIT Río Negro-CONICET, Rio Negro 8336, Argentina.
Facultad de Ciencias Veterinarias UNRC, Rio Cuarto, Córdoba 5800, Argentina.
Transl Anim Sci. 2025 Sep 6;9:txaf110. doi: 10.1093/tas/txaf110. eCollection 2025.
This research was conducted to gain more insight into the productivity and good management practice (GMP) adoption of cow-calf operations in Río Negro Province, Argentina. The objectives were to characterize productivity and management profiles according to GMP adoption, identify herd clusters, and describe the performance and productivity within each specific cluster. A survey sample of 142 out of 1,229 cow-calf and cow-calf to-finish operations from Avellaneda and Pichi Mahuida counties provided data on productivity, herd structure, and GMP adoption. The productivity variables, calves per 100 cows (C/100 c) and calves per 100 ha (C/100 ha), were described statistically using quartiles, and differences by county according to the 3-month breeding season adoption were explored. Moreover, herd structure and GMP-related variables were subjected to multiple correspondence analysis (MCA) with complete-link hierarchical cluster analysis to typify the operations. A total of 127 out of 142 farmers provided productivity data, showing median values of 79.00 C/100 c (Q1 = 67.00; Q3 = 85.00) and 4.58 C/100 ha (Q1 = 2.78; Q3 = 8.00). A Significant difference was found between 3-month and year-round breeding operations for both variables (82.00 C/100 c vs 75.50 C/100 c; P = 0.0006 and 5.60 C/100 ha vs 3.97 C/100 ha; P = 0.0072). Three farm clusters (Cl) were identified: Cl 1 (low adoption), Cl 2 (moderate transition), and Cl 3 (GMP-oriented). Cl 3 showed the highest GMP adoption level, and a significant difference was found in the C/100 c variable (85.00 C/100 c vs. 76.00 and 80.00 for Cl 1 and 2, respectively; P = 0.0233). Cluster profiling enhances our understanding of the cow-calf operation segment and highlights the importance of GMP adoption for improving productivity in cow-calf operations. The results should be interpreted with caution due to the limitations of a cross-sectional study showing correlational associations. Nevertheless, it provides insights for designing science-based and targeted interventions to improve the performance of the beef cattle industry in Río Negro, Argentina, and may be the basis for prospective or interventions studies in the future.
本研究旨在更深入地了解阿根廷内乌肯省奶牛-犊牛养殖场的生产力和良好管理规范（GMP）采用情况。目标是根据GMP采用情况对生产力和管理概况进行特征描述，识别畜群集群，并描述每个特定集群内的性能和生产力。从阿韦亚内达县和皮奇马伊达县的1229个奶牛-犊牛及奶牛-犊牛育肥养殖场中抽取了142个作为调查样本，提供了有关生产力、畜群结构和GMP采用情况的数据。使用四分位数对生产力变量（每100头母牛的犊牛数（C/100 c）和每100公顷的犊牛数（C/100 ha））进行统计描述，并探讨根据3个月繁殖季节采用情况各县之间的差异。此外，对畜群结构和与GMP相关的变量进行多重对应分析（MCA）和完全链接层次聚类分析，以对养殖场进行分类。142位农民中有127位提供了生产力数据，中位数分别为79.00 C/100 c（Q1 = 67.00；Q3 = 85.00）和4.58 C/100 ha（Q1 = 2.78；Q3 = 8.00）。发现这两个变量在3个月繁殖和全年繁殖养殖场之间存在显著差异（82.00 C/100 c对75.50 C/100 c；P = 0.0006和5.60 C/100 ha对3.97 C/100 ha；P = 0.0072）。识别出了三个农场集群（Cl）：Cl 1（低采用率）、Cl 2（适度转型）和Cl 3（以GMP为导向）。Cl 3显示出最高的GMP采用水平，并且在C/100 c变量上发现了显著差异（Cl 3为85.00 C/100 c，Cl 1和Cl 2分别为76.00和80.00；P = 0.0233）。集群概况分析增进了我们对奶牛-犊牛养殖部门的理解，并突出了采用GMP对提高奶牛-犊牛养殖生产力的重要性。由于横断面研究显示的是相关关联存在局限性，因此对结果的解释应谨慎。尽管如此，它为设计基于科学的针对性干预措施以提高阿根廷内乌肯省肉牛产业的性能提供了见解，并且可能成为未来前瞻性或干预性研究的基础。
