Throughout Scotland, it’s been widely observed that 2022 silages have proved challenging.

Not only have they been difficult to feed but many farmers have struggled to achieve desired goals as a result. With milk prices having been high, focus has rightly been on efficiency and milk production, but now with falling milk prices, the emphasis on efficiency will have to improve further to make sure the cows are getting the most out of the feed and therefore keeping margins high.

Our research and many years of experience on farm tells us that the rumen should be at the heart of dairy farm efficiency. Creating a diet for dairy cows that is rumen friendly, or low in acid loading, leads to healthy milk production.

Latest Features:

One way of measuring this is by studying rumen rate. Rumen rate looks at how many kg of energy corrected milk (taking into account and adjusting for fat and protein) a cow produces per kg of dry matter intake. Rumen rate is a key performance indicator we study along with a wide range of other variables, and is a key factor that influences margin.

Nearly every farmer I have spoken to has had challenges with their silage. High neutral detergent fibre (NDF) and high lignin in some has meant that energy and digestibility have been low, affecting intakes and production.

In the 359 samples we have analysed through our lab, 60% have had an NDF value more than 45% DM (NDF average = 46.59% DM). In others, where the NDF is more like the norm, the DM has been exceptionally low, causing problems with fermentation and high acid load. Sugars and rapidly fermentable carbohydrates (RFCs) have also been low in quite a lot of the forages.

Nutrient 2022 Scottish silages average

Dry matter (%) 30.5

Protein (%) 14.4

DyNE (MJ/kg) 6.1

NDIP (g/kg) 59.3

NDF (%) 46.6

ME (%) 11.1

Sugar (%) 1.1

RFC (g/kg) 187.4

TFC (g/kg) 433.8

pH 3.8

Lactic Acid (g/kg) 88.2

Acid load 47.2

D-value (%) 69.4

Table shows averages of nutrients in 2022 Scottish silages analysed through Harbro lab.

Based on the amount of variation we’ve seen in 2022 forages, it is essential that rations are balanced correctly to get the most out of the forages; to increase efficiency and avoid health and fertility issues.

We have seen farms with both types of silage being fed together, so it is important to make sure we are being as precise as possible to avoid any rumen upset. At Harbro, we are fortunate to have our dynamic rationing software, NutriONics, which enables us to better understand how the feed interacts inside the cow and allows us to have greater confidence in our rationing.

High NDF forages can benefit from increased RFCs and sugars in the ration. Sugar ferments rapidly in the rumen and leads to an increase in rumen bugs and therefore microbial protein. This has an effect on how efficiently the rumen is working and therefore milk yield.

Stimulating the rumen bug population helps to digest the fibre and get more out of the forages. Sugars also increase dry matter intake of the ration through improved palatability. We have consistently seen positive outcomes when increasing RFCs in rations with high NDF forages.

As an example, one farm was struggling for milk yield, and despite the ration looking like it should perform, the cows weren’t producing as expected. By increasing the RFCs by feeding a bit more cereal it fired up the rumen and the cows saw an uplift in 1L of milk as well as improved milk protein.

Care does have to be taken though to avoid acidosis, especially when acid load in some silages is high. Our DairyPlus range of compounds and blends was formulated based on 2022 forage analysis using our NutriONics rationing software.

Understanding that silages were going to present a challenge, we made sure our compounds were energy dense, had good levels of RFCs and were highly palatable.

If you’re experiencing difficulties trying to achieve your contract requirements efficiently and effectively with these forage challenges, please get in touch.