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vor 4 Jahren

XtraBlatt Issue 02-2019

INTERNATIONAL 1 2 1 Hans

INTERNATIONAL 1 2 1 Hans Walch, hotelier and farmer from Kirchberg in Tirol. 2 All the youngstock come onto the alm too. 3 In summer the cows get only fresh grass from the alm and some concentrates. 4 Sparkling clean. But in summer unused, because all livestock is up on the alm. 5 The summer milk from the alm grass is processed on the spot. 3 yoghurt and whey drinks. When lactation peaks, cheese is made daily. As milk output wanes, so does cheese making. “The most important step here was building our ‘Kasplatzl’ demonstration cheese dairy on the lower alm”, reports Hans Welch. “Because on that site we don’t just produce cheese, we sell it. A hospitality area has been added and a large sun terrace. The guests reach us with their bicycles, on foot or by car. In summer, bread is baked up here and also retailed are sausage meats and ham from our own alm pigs that we feed with the whey from our cheesemaking. What we don’t sell on the alm is marketed through our hotel restaurant, other retailers and colleagues. As well as our hotel in the valley, we also have a retail outlet of our own.” Made from the milk produced back at the steading in winter, yoghurt is produced for the hotel and the rest of the liquid milk goes bulk to the regional Pinzgau Dairy. Cheese production from the alm is a tradition in the region, although local output has greatly reduced in the last decades. The family Walch commitment in this direction is therefore seen positively. There’s also government support for the milk and cheese enterprise During the alm season, Hans Walch junior and a milker take care of the herd. A cheesemaker comes up from the valley to make the cheese. The alm team is also supported with more staff members for the shop and catering enterprise. A tie-up cowshed with milking pipeline is used for milking the herd on the upper alm. On the lower level mountain grazings, the cows queue up to be milked through a 2x2 tandem parlour. This steading has more than enough capacity because by the time milking starts here many cows are drying off. The lower alm steading is relatively new because a few years ago an autumn storm took the roof off completely. According to the motto: “When renewing, make it modern”, investment included not only a new roof but also new milking tackle. THREE CUTS Scherrhof fields cover 65 ha pasture, 50 of them owner-occupied. The lower and upper alm cover 60 and 190 ha respectively. Over the years, Hans Walch has repeatedly added to the land total by buying meadows. The result is a somewhat scattered holding which means it’s more practical to wrap round bales for silage from the first and 26

4 5 third cuts. The second cut is carted home for hay with final aeration in a loft. In fact, silage is not seen positively when making mountain cheese in that it can lead to fermentation problems. Hans Walch explains how this danger is avoided. “14 days before we drive the cattle up to the alm, we change the feeding to fresh grass. Once the cows are up on the mountain there’s a 20 day pause observed before milk is used for hard cheese production. Otherwise, the system wouldn’t work.” During the alm season, all the cows get is upland meadow grass with a little concentrate feed. At Scherrhof in Tirol, John Deere tractors are used. In Hungary, the brand of favour is Fendt. On both farms forage machinery is from Krone. “Why haven’t we machinery from an Austrian manufacturer, you might ask? In the past, this was in fact the case”, recalls Hans Walch. “However, I had a problem with our local dealership because one of our tractors in Hungary was not running optimally. Unfortunately, the problem could not be solved to my satisfaction so that I ended up looking around for another supplier – and the one I found had Krone in his range.” In the meantime, he has a front mounted mower and a rear mounted one, a mountainside mower and a round baler that mainly works in straw, with some hay baling. In Hungary he uses a butterfly mower and also belonging to the Walch fleet are two large hay rakes, a tedder and two further round balers. “Through the very good service I’ve experienced, I’ve become a Krone fan. I’ve been in the factory a few times and also find it very sympathetic to work together with a family concern in this way.” In the future, Hans Walch Snr. plans to withdraw more and more from the business. His wife is already retired, the Hotel Elisabeth managed by a director. And for him too, pension time looms not far in front. But he certainly won’t end up with nothing to do. Alongside the farm in Hungary he wants to again spend more time back home at Scherrhof. “But only as helping hand or during harvest”, he laughs. “Very definitely I will not be mixing in the management. That is now my son’s business.” « 27