Feed efficiency key to business resilience and profitability

With feed shortages and forage loss making up two of the biggest challenges dairy farmers are facing as a direct result of extreme weather conditions, a focus on feed efficiency is crucial to both profitability and responsibility.

A new survey* reveals that over 95% of responding producers recognise that climate-related impacts will take a financial toll, yet less than 50% have a plan in place to prepare for it.

Feed shortage tops the list of most challenging impacts experienced by respondents, at over 65%, ahead of other major concerns such as forage loss (46.8%) and a shrunken grazing season (40.3%).

“While public focus has been on agriculture’s contribution to climate change, dairy farmers are facing very real challenges to maintain production,” says KW Feeds ruminant technical manager Charlotte Ward.

“The onus now needs to be on resilience, with a focus on feed efficiencies. Making the most out of grazed grass and home-grown forages will also be crucial,” she adds.

The essential ingredient to a high-performing, healthy herd is accurate nutrition, and the ability to achieve the optimum balance is the key to driving feed efficiency.

“Feed selection and profitability go hand in hand – the correct feeding regime makes a significant difference to milk output, milk quality and of course the resilience of your herd,” continues Ms Ward.

Nutritional and management strategies

Producers should review nutritional and management practices, using data available on farm to drive decision making.

An example is the use of handheld near infra-red spectrometers (HHNIR), enabling KW Feeds’ specialists to predict forage nutrient content quickly and accurately.

“Understanding your forage base and supplementing protein/sugar/starch/additives accordingly means you can focus on optimising forage digestibility and milk from that forage,” she says.

By looking to responsible product solutions, producers could extend or replace forage, or replace expensive compounds.

“A stronger focus on sustainably sourced feeds also gives rise to potential for both more home-grown alternatives and co-products,” says Ms Ward.

Co-products like the high-energy rumen-protected protein NovaPro, reducing or removing soya reliance, is a good example.

NovaPro is made from UK rapeseed and brings performance benefits, including improving intakes and yields, while removing soya from dairy cow diets.

Its carbon footprint is only around 1/7th of the carbon footprint of soya**.

“Fed alongside moist ingredients, such as C*Traffordgold, brewers grains or liquid feeds such as distillery syrups, NovaPro also supplies a cost-effective source of rumen degradable protein,” adds Ms Ward.

Trials

Trials run by Professor Phil Garnsworthy at the University of Nottingham found rations containing NovaPro produced an additional 1.7 litres of milk per cow per day compared to a soya and rape ration, with no significant effect on milk constituents.

“This was coupled with a significant reduction in milk urea, suggesting an improvement in nitrogen efficiency and less direct and indirect emissions from manure,” says Ms Ward.

Professor Garnsworthy has also published a paper showing UK wheat distillers can achieve a similar reduction in soya.

Vivergo wheat distillers, sourced from the bio-refinery in Yorkshire, is a palatable, high-energy protein feed, rich in digestible fibre, low in starch and providing a good source of bypass protein.

It provides a further sustainable alternative to soya.

From the use of data to drive decision making, such as regular forage sampling, to pre-treatments to enable better forage utilisation, and a focus on sustainably sourced or home-grown feeds and co-products, KW Feeds has everything you need.

Stay one step ahead. Future-proof your system against supply chain uncertainty and availability challenges, while in turn lowering your own carbon footprint.

Speak to KW Feeds today – call 01977 710946 or visit kwfeeds.co.uk.

* Survey compiled by Kite Consulting and AB Agri ruminant division with dairy and beef producers across the UK

** GFLI figure for soya coming into the UK including land use change, NovaPro figure submitted for review into GFLI-branded data