NORTHERN IRELAND-CATTLE FEED.
A radical revolution in the feeding of cattle could provide vast improvements in the profit margins for livestock.
Nutrition specialist Professor David Beevor this week told a press conference in Newton Stewart that a new method of feeding both dairy and beef cattle could revolutionise the way cattle are fed in the future.
The factor making the difference, which Beevor said had shown up to 30% improvement in feed conversion efficiency in trial work, was entirely down to the way the forage was presented to the cattle.
Currently, he said that many rations went into the rumen with the fibre cut into too short a length. As a result, it often compacted and the cow’s digestive system was not able to make the maximum use of the nutrients which often went right through the animal.
The answer was what he described as "fluffy forage" which the cows could more efficiently chew the cud. This less dense feed which uses the farm’s existing forage is created by using a feed box made by Keenan a leading supplier of specialist livestock machinery. The new system has been patented by Keenan under the trade name of Mech-fiber.
There were also side benefits to this less-compacted forage, added Beevor. Cows were less likely to suffer from acidosis or other digestive complaints and they were generally more contented with this type of ration.
This latter statement was confirmed by Jan Vos, the manager of Coopon Carse dairy on the outskirt of Newton Stewart. This top-rated dairy with its 500 strong milking herd has been trialling the new type of ration and according to Vos, the difference was noticeable both in the nature of the cows and in their feed conversion rates within three weeks of starting the experiment.
So far, all the experimental work has been based on dairy cows as their outputs can be more easily monitored, but Beevor said he was sure that beef producers could look forward to massive improvements in their production if they moved to the new system.
"We could be looking at 20% improvement in feed conversion rates," he said. "A lot of cattle are being produced at rates of nine pounds of feed to one pound of live weight gain and this could easily fall to seven to one."
