As a farmer you know that animal welfare is important, because healthy and happy livestock grows faster and produces more. That’s why you want to create the optimal living conditions for your animals, and natural daylight in your stables is part of that. It doesn’t only increase the wellbeing of your animals and your own, it also has a positive effect on the environment and your electricity bill.
The positive effect of natural daylight on your cattle
Humans function better in daylight, compared to artificial lighting. But the same is true for animals. Agronomists have thoroughly researched the effect of daylight on animal husbandry. Let us list a few remarkable findings to make our point:
Dairy cattle produces more milk when exposed to daylight, but it makes them also less prone to disease. The more light, the better your economic results.
Animals detect seasons based on the natural light cycles. Artificial lighting can confuse their sense of the seasons and cattle could shed their winter coat too early, while they are still exposed to the cold.
The absence of daylight (lack of vitamin D) can generate rickets (soft bones) in pigs and poultry, unless you add vitamin D artificially to their feed, leading to extra costs.
Chicken are sensitive to the UV rays in daylight. There is less feather picking when they are exposed to daylight with UV.
In horse husbandry, the daylight cycle has an influence on the reproduction period of the mares.
Cows prefer light over dark places. Good illumination is vital for the visual contacts and social hierarchy between them. This helps to prevent traumatism.
And we can go on. It is clear that daylight is as important for animal welfare, on the same level as contact with animals from the same species. So it is important to provide as much daylight as possible in their stables, especially when they don’t go out (e.g. in the winter season).
Don’t underestimate the effect of daylight on your own wellbeing
Also for the farmers, working in daylight is also important. Research has shown that people who continuously work in artificial light, have higher levels of stress hormones in their blood than people who are exposed to natural daylight. And, we can imagine that running a farm already generates enough (positive) stress, so you don’t want to add any more.
Daylight motivates people. Experiments have shown that it enhances productivity and satisfaction about the job. There is** less absenteeism** because of sick leave amongst workers exposed to natural light in their working environment, compared to those who have to work in artificial lighting. This is good to know if you are working with employees on your farm.
Continuous lack of daylight can cause health problems such as sleep disorders, concentration and efficiency problems or even depression. So make sure you and your staff do activities in daylight regularly.
Smart solutions to let daylight into your sheds and stables
We have made the point how important daylight is. However, letting too much sun into your stables can create a greenhouse effect and raise the inside temperatures considerably.
That’s why Eternit developed E-luminate undulated roofing panels. They offer the same benefits as the regular fibre-cement profiled sheeting, but they let the daylight in. However, they come with a unique coating that reflects the sun. This effectively lets the light in, but keeps the heat out. As the E-luminate panels are totally compatible with the Eternit roofing panels and just as easy to install, you can opt to create elongated skylights across the entire building or spread the daylight panels over your roof surface.
The extra daylight you let in reduces the need for artificial lighting. This will have a positive effect on your electricity bill and on the environment.
- Ask your E-luminate roofing sample today.