Article Sécurit'Lait Presse Océan - Friday 31st, May 1995

Fluorescent leg bands to identify cows

Alan Coraud, breeder-winegrower-inventor

Alan Coraud, a farmer at La Remaudière in the Loire-Atlantique region, is more than just a multi-tasker. As well as dairy cows and Muscadet, he is also involved in invention and communication.

At Alan Coraud's farm, some cows wear a fluorescent leg bands on their right hind leg. Not for elegance, but for very practical reasons. Pink for those being treated with antibiotics, green for dry cows, yellow for those that have just calved, orange for those that deserve special attention, such as the strong-headed ones.

A colour code

As a young replacement cowherd, constantly changing herds, Alan Coraud found it difficult to identify cows with a problem. Especially those treated with antibiotics, whose milk makes the whole product of a milking unfit for production. A greasy pencil stroke, a piece of string, a piece of duct tape on the tail, and later a Velcro strip on the leg, all tried to point them out. But these signs were no match for the movement and friction of the stalls.

He came up with the idea of widening the Velcro strap and adding a plastic buckle. As a result, the leg bands no longer snaps off. Patented in January 1995, the leg bands has been on the market since last summer. Major dairies (La Cana, Eurial, Bongrain) are offering it to their producers. Sécurit'Lait’ is sold in packs of six at 10 francs each, excluding VAT. Cardboard or plastic charts, installed in the milking parlour, summarise the details of the fluorescent leg bands. It's a simple, highly reliable system that can prevent serious problems. The presence of antibiotics in milk costs farmers 15 million francs a year and companies twice that.

Milk, Muscadet, marketing

Alan Coraud is increasingly leaving his herd of 38 cows and the five-hectare vineyard he runs with his wife and one employee. Working with two of his brothers in a marketing consultancy, he canvasses the campsites of the South-West to produce their advertising brochures. One of the agency's departments also designs labels for winegrowers. The Moulin de Sainte Catherine labels resemble the wines they cover: soft green for the Muscadet, "Pelure d'oignon" for the Gamay.

Gilles BÉLY