Feed & Nutrition

“People haven’t seen things this bad since 1964.”

That is what University of Wisconsin – Madison Extension Crops and Soils Agent Kevin Jarek said, Sept. 25, at the “Meeting Tomorrow’s Feeding Challenges Today” seminar held in Kimberly, Wisconsin.

As nutritionists, we once thought adding the correct level of neutral detergent fiber (NDF) to the diet was all that was required to create a healthy rumen and thus allow the protein and energy contained within the diet to be used to produce milk.

Researchers are increasingly identifying the implication of microbial growth in dairy feed ingredients and feed. Not only does the growth of mold and wild yeast strains in these rations impact the nutritional composition of the diet, they generate heat, which impacts palatability, and certain mold species generate harmful toxins, which impact animal performance.

Having focus is a good thing, but being singularly focused to measure profitability is not.

We know with some certainty, herds which produce more milk or higher components have higher profitability.

Climbing a mountain is no easy task. It takes preparation, planning and hard work to reach the summit. And there’s added value in the rewarding trip back down.