Milk transport: the Antos 2540 L operated by the Molkerei Berchtesgadener Land dairy
Economics & Logistics
Martin Kamhuber collects milk from remote mountain farms in the Antos 2540 L – even in ice and snow.
The round moon hangs serenely in the sky. The darkness slowly ebbs
away, unveiling the peaks of the Berchtesgaden Alps. The outlines of
alpine ridges emerge from the blue of the night, followed by the first
lines of trees, standing out as dark dashes on the mighty,
snow-covered slopes. Minus seven degrees Celsius. Half past six in the
morning. The breath steams out of the mouths of the ruminating cows in
the outside barn. Two cones of light break out of the night-black
forest,following the narrow track that winds its way between the piled
up snow up to Heidi Sulzauer's mountain farm.
Now the white Antos 2540 L has reached the farm. Driver Martin Kamhuber jumps down from the cab: "Morning!" After a brief chat with the farmer, Kamhuber takes the hose from the truck and inserts the intake nozzle in the stainless steel vat containing the morning's still warm milk. The powerful pump draws around 700 litres of milk a minute into one of the three tanks on the Antos, which is fitted with a collecting tank system from Jansky Optimate and Trema milk type separation system.
"The premium farm milk goes into the two big tanks with a capacity of 6500 and 7000 litres, while the organic milk is collected in the small 3000 tank," explains Kamhuber. The system controls fully automatically which milk is pumped into which tank. This is made possible by an identification chip on the milk tub or milk churn which Kamhuber scans beforehand. The system also takes a small sample during the pumping process, enabling subsequent laboratory analysis of the milk quality for each individual farm.
The milk is soon in the tanks, Kamhuber takes his leave and jumps
back into his Antos. He works to a tight schedule. Today, Kamhuber's
milk collection trip for the Berchtesgadener Land dairy takes in 105
farms in under six hours, spread out along a spectacular 120-kilometre
route against a magnificent alpine backdrop.And with heavy
early-morning snowfall into the bargain. Numerous farmers drive their
full milk churns to roadside collection points, but Kamhuber drives
directly to many small farms.
"Milk transport in the Alps, with high weights, the swashing milk and the tight bends on steep gradients – that's probably the toughest test there is for a truck," says Kamhuber. "I set off at five in the morning. The plan shows the farmers reliably and to the minute when I am at which stop. A lot of them have second jobs and have to get off to work," says the 34 year-old.
A tight schedule, whatever the weather.
The Antos is now undertaking the rough ascent to the Maria Gern chapel.Kamhuber hears on the radio that the German army is planning a manoeuvre today specifically on account of the heavy snowfall. "Uhu," comments the driver, unperturbed. Kamhuber does not need any extra training sessions. "We're on the road every day – whatever the weather. The cows need milking every day, and no ifs or buts. With the right vehicle and the right tyres, that's no problem – and with snow chains, if need be," says Kamhuber.
For easier manoeuvring and added safety when alighting at the edge
of the road, the right-hand-drive Antos has its exhaust system fitted
on the left-hand side.Why does the dairy go to such lengths to take in
small farms on Kamhuber's demanding round, some of which only deliver
20 litres of milk? "We want this unparalleled quality of mountain
farm milk. And for the farmers it is not worth driving down into the
valley to deliver small quantities. So we drive up and collect the
milk from them," explains Kamhuber.
Vehicles as the dairy's "calling cards".
It is 11.22 a.m. Today's trip is done. At the dairy on the A8 in
Piding he hands in a cross-section of the milk samples at the
laboratory in a bottle. The milk is then pumped out of the tanks for
further processing. Time for a brief chat with Bernhard Pointner. The
40-year-old is the elected executive director of the dairy Milchwerke
Berchtesgadener Land Chiemgau eG/Molkerei Berchtesgadener Land, which
has been in existence for 90 years.
"State-of-the-art, fuel-efficient vehicles are integral to our sustainability-driven corporate philosophy."
Bernhard Pointner, executive director of the Molkereigenossenschaft Berchtesgadener Land in Piding
The dairy collects milk from 1.800 farmers between the Zugspitze and Watzmann mountains and employs a workforce of more than 400. It markets organic alpine milk and the premium brand "Bergbauernmilch" (mountain farm milk) throughout Germany, with a focus in the south of the country. Sales of milk products exceeded 200 million in 2016. Turnover: around 205 million euros. The dairy has discovered sustainability as a lucrative niche: "Our customers are prepared to pay more for their milk, because they know that they get more for their money than just the milk," says Pointner.
The higher retail prices mean that the milk prices which the dairy is able to pass on to the farmers are among the highest in Europe. This makes it worth their while to maintain their small-scale dairy operations, to look after the mountain pastures, to reduce the use of antibiotics to a bare minimum and to avoid green genetic engineering.
The sustainable concept also calls for the right fleet of vehicles: "Reliability is of prime importance when you're dealing with fresh produce. This is best ensured with our own fleet – and state-of-the-art vehicles from Mercedes-Benz enable us to cut fuel consumption," explains Pointner. "The trucks also provide us with advertising space – as a small dairy, we can't afford expensive TV advertising. The trucks must present an attractive spectacle, and they are washed thoroughly after every trip. Customers associate the vehicle with the product."
Photos: Bernhard Huber
Video: Nikolas
Spirk
Editing: Alexander Tempel
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4 comments
Raum Stuttgart und bin erstaunt daß die Molkerei
einen eigen Fuhrpark betreibt.
Raum Stuttgart und bin erstaunt daß die Molkerei
einen eigen Fuhrpark betreibt.
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