Hopefully by the time you read this, cows that graze have been able to get some of the green stuff at least for a few hours to eat off winter grown grass. Our thoughts and reasons to use Planet Dairy range this spring are abundant!
Farmers and milk buyers are looking closely at how they can produce milk more sustainably whilst looking at their carbon footprint and feed efficiency.
The raw materials are encouraged to be sourced from as low mileage as possible mainly from UK and Europe. Planet Dairy cake contains no soya meal, no soya hulls, no palm oil, no palm kernel or C16. The main ingredients include…
Barley– high energy grain with good levels of starch which helps to encourage milk protein production.
Sugar Beet– good levels of rumen fermentable energy (R.M.E) in a palatable form. This helps to reduce risks of acidosis by creating a rumen buffer and encouraging acetate production, which helps with milk fat synthesis.
Wheat Gluten– good source of starch, highly digestible protein, and source of fibre.
Beans– an excellent source of plant-based protein with good levels of energy and starch.
Sunflower– excellent source of protein used as a non-GM alternative to soya, with a lower lysine than soya and high in fibre.
Rapeseed– good source of protein with excellent level of energy.
Novatan
Novatan is an essential oil which is included to help reduce the affects of high milk urea when high protein grass is being grazed. If milk urea levels rise the cow must use energy to excrete it, costing energy that she could have used for milk production. This can also influence fertility through changes in pH levels and fertilized egg implantation.
The low oil levels in the Planet Dairy range helps to lower the level in the diet on spring grass, when oil is high. High oil levels can depress butterfat percentage, as the rumen bugs cannot digest fibre in the rumen with excessive level of oil.
Planet Dairy range has the FiMLAC mineral premix which has been formulated to contain balanced levels of trace minerals with high levels of bioavailability (protected) which helps with fertility, health, and production. The Planet range has lower MPN (Microbial Protein Nitrogen) than MPE (Microbial Protein Energy) to help balance out excess MPN in the grass.
Our Top Tips
- Try to get the best from your grazing by entering at approximately 2700kg DM/ha, third new leaf stage and eating down to 1500kg DM/ha.
- Set realistic targets of 12kg to 14 kg DM grass and realise Dry Matter changes daily with the weather. 12kg @ 20% DM = 60kg fresh grass, 14kg =70kg. If it is a wet day, 12kg @ 15% DM = 80 kg fresh grass or 14kg=93kg fresh grass.
- Supplementation at grass helps to get the maximum total DMI/kg/day into your grazing cows.
- Keep your targets flexible as weather changes. Also keep time at grass consistent to maximise it, and remember the greatest intakes are at dusk and dawn.
Speak to your Feed Specialist to find out how Planet Dairy can help you get the most from your herd at grass.
(source: germinal.co.uk)
