Abstract Dairy mountain farms are economically disadvantaged due to small farm size and high production costs. However, these farms are of importance for the preservation of traditional landscapes and biodiversity, especially when they are managed extensively. The present study compares the economic situation of mountain dairy farms in South Tyrol that differ with respect to the amount of concentrates fed (low-input vs. high-input) and the breed used (Tyrolean Grey vs. Brown Swiss). The calculations show that low-input farms have lower variable costs but similar fixed costs and lower revenues compared to high-input farms. As a result, high-input farms are economically superior to low-input farms in terms of income per farm, per ha and per kg energy-corrected milk. Regarding the breeds, farms using the local breed Tyrolean Grey can compete with farms using the high-yielding breed Brown Swiss when subsidies are considered because of special payments for an endangered breed. The dominance of high-input farms can be explained with economies of scale and the milk to feed price ratio of about 1.8. Thus, the currently paid high milk price makes it economically worthwhile to produce as much milk as possible. The results thus point to the risk of intensification or abandonment of small mountain farms. In order to improve their economic situation and thus maintain small and low-input mountain dairy farms, it might be an option to connect subsidies with the feeding strategy and farm structure, pay premiums for value-added milk products or use taxes for concentrated feed to support extensive farms. Highlights Low-input farms achieve lower farm income Only small differences in farm income between breeds Herd size and milk yield per cow are decisive for farm income

中文翻译：

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根据采食量和品种对南蒂罗尔小规模山区奶牛场的经济评估

摘要 山地奶牛场规模小、生产成本高，在经济上处于劣势。然而，这些农场对于保护传统景观和生物多样性具有重要意义，特别是当它们被广泛管理时。本研究比较了南蒂罗尔山区奶牛场的经济状况，这些农场在饲喂的浓缩物数量（低投入与高投入）和所用品种（蒂罗尔灰与褐瑞士）方面存在差异。计算表明，与高投入农场相比，低投入农场的可变成本较低，但固定成本相似，收入也较低。因此，就每家农场、每公顷和每公斤能量校正牛奶的收入而言，高投入农场在经济上优于低投入农场。关于品种，使用当地品种蒂罗尔灰色的农场可以与使用高产品种 Brown Swiss 的农场竞争，因为由于对濒危品种的特殊支付而考虑补贴。高投入农场的主导地位可以用规模经济和牛奶与饲料的价格比约为 1.8 来解释。因此，目前支付的高牛奶价格使得生产尽可能多的牛奶在经济上是值得的。因此，结果表明小型山区农场存在集约化或废弃的风险。为了改善他们的经济状况，从而维持小规模和低投入的山区奶牛场，可以选择将补贴与饲养策略和农场结构联系起来，为增值奶产品支付溢价或对浓缩饲料征税。支持粗放型农场。