A picture book farm – cows, chickens, Fendt machines, and the Alps in the background. The Endraß family manages Makarerhof farm on the northern slope of the Auerberg in Germany's Allgäu, about 15 km from the Fendt plant in Marktoberdorf.

The conditions in the foothills of the Alps are perfect for grassland and grazing, where the Fendt Tigo is completely at home. One challenge, however, is the weather. Conditions can change quickly in the Alps and harvest time windows must be cleverly managed. “We have snow in May,” says organic farmer Markus Endraß. We have 1,200 mm of rainfall a year and the average annual temperature is a cool 7.5°C. “We had some concerns about full loads in wet conditions,” says Markus Endraß. Simon wanted to try it anyway and his hunch paid off. “Both machines have wide tyres, the 313 has 650 tyres and the Tigo has 710. So they don't leave tracks in the grass and the central gauge wheel behind the pick-up stops dirt getting into the feed,” explains the young farmer.

“I'd been looking to phase out high-performance production for a long time, and when the market for organic products surged, we took the step,” says Markus Endraß. The organic milk market has always been steady with slight growth, which gives the farm security for the future. “We never looked back after the changeover. In the first year I had my doubts because the milk yield and production fell, but the bottom line is that things are going really well,” he says proudly. “We are running a low-input farm with the lowest possible operating costs but it's still efficient,” says Markus Endraß, explaining the system. As such, they rely on efficient technology throughout the farm to incorporate economic and ecological factors. “We keep our feed costs as low as possible. It works well, with an emphasis on grazing in combination with barn feeding and efficient use of concentrate. And with the Fendt machines we can produce the highest quality basic feed. They are reliable, economical, value-retaining, and fit perfectly into the philosophy of our company.”

Pre-compression during loading is one clear benefit to the variable bulkhead of the Fendt Tigo. It also reliably stops the food from becoming mush. Another strength is the way it fully empties during the unloading process. “On the Tigo, you no longer have to remove food residues above the loading unit by hand,” says Simon Endraß. The swivelling bulkhead together with the fast-running scraper floor of the Fendt Tigo significantly reduces silage unloading time. The gap between the rotor tines is particularly narrow on the Fendt Tigo. “This is an advantage during the cutting process, because the stalks are better placed against the knife so they can be cut shorter,” says the young farmer. The Fendt Tigo is also fantastic as a forage harvester transport wagon, because it can take on considerably higher volumes than conventional loaders. The wagon is filled more evenly thanks to the variable bulkhead, making sure the weight is perfectly distributed between the tractor and loader wagon. “And the forage harvester driver has a greater area to fill the material into,” explains Simon Endraß.