In Holland the accountancy Countus has made an analysis of the differences between the 25 percent dairy farms with the lowest and the 25 percent dairy farms with the highest average lifespan of the livestock. There is a difference of 11 months in the average age of the dairy cows between the two groups. Both groups of farms have about the same average milk production per cow. With the same number of kilograms of concentrate per cow and per 100 kilogram of standard milk. Farms with the highest lifespan spend almost 50 percent less money on minerals and 25 percent less on fertilizer and seed costs. They have about a 100 euro higher feed balance, which is the difference between feed costs and milk yields. The animal health costs per cow on these farms are three euro higher than on farms with a lower lifespan. The higher costs for straw and litter (+30%) may contribute to the prevention of health problems. The allocated costs are three percent lower in the group with the highest lifespan compared to the group with the lowest lifespan. With regard to labour input, the farms with the longest lifespan have 1.5 cows per person more than average dairy farms in Holland. The group with the lowest lifespan has 6 cows per person more than average. However: the higher lifespan farms have 20 percent less youngstock than the group with the lowest lifespan.