Dairy farmers since 1933

Near Barcelona and Costa Brava, in Riudellots de la Selva, there is Mas Gener: a familiar dairy farm lead by simple, creative and pionner people in their territory, as regards the technic to transplant embryons.

The farm began its activity in 1933. Today, it’s leaded by the fourth generation of dairy farmers, Marc and Quim Xifra and Sala, on the front line, convinced of following the well-known footprints of past generations. All of them, visioners of future.

Milk production. A teamwork

Actually, Mas Gener owns 480 animals and produces 1,8 milions of litres of milk per year: 200 cows destined at milk production and 180 heifers. Further, there are 30 bull calves destined at artificial insemination or natural copulation.

Mas Gener has a 360 days natural production above 12.000 liters at 3.60% fat and 3.20% protein, an average morphological classification above 80 points and a 2020 ICO points which makes it be among the best farms in Spain.

The farm has 100 hectares of crops combining, depending on the season and in rotation, corn, ryegrass, oat and fescues, oat and ryegrass and sorghum to feed the animals.

Mas Gener count on the veterinary team of Vilobi, Joan Gali from GTV as responsible for the global driving and feeding, Santiago Fuentes from ABEREKIN for the transplant of embryos and the genetic improvement program, students from various nationalities and specialities (farmers, veterinarians, agronomists, ...) in practice since 1970; and, Albert, Modi and Sire. We all make a team to produce milk of proximity which, through the Cooperative of Campllong, reaches all homes throughout the well-known brand LLet Nostra.

A piece of history

From that 1933 up to today, Mas Gener has seen working full time a first generation of farmers, a second and a third one, since nowadays, where Marc and Quim Xifra and Sala, the fourth generation, lead the footprints settled by their father, Josep Xifra and their grand father and uncle, Joaquim Sala and Sabel Sala.

Josep Xifra was a pioneer as a farmer and as a breeder. He started making control reproduction with the vet Josep Maria Vila Vidal on 1970 and introducing holstein american ABS bulls in its own program of artificial insemination. He incorporated a dug well while storing corn and ryegrass in 1972 and installed an electronic collar system per portion in the 1980s; later on, he used the uneefed system; and, in year 2000, with his two sons, he established the very first milking robot in Spain and one of the first in South Europe.

In the dairy sector, Josep Xifra envisaged new models of governance as the system of cooperatives in founding with other dairy farmers, the Cooperative of Milk Producers of Girona where he was the treasurer; he also was member of the board of the dairy group of Vilobí d’Onyar and of the Cooperative of Campllong, one of the founders of Lleters de Catalunya Llet Nostra.As founder and president of AFRIGI (Association of Holstein of Girona), he did not hesitate in challenging the project of Union with ABEREKIN.