The most profitable farms all have 1 thing in common - they are really good at getting milk components from cows.

Making Every Bite Counts

• Great farmers recognised that the real value of the milk lies in the fat and protein component in order to get the best return on investment.

• They will focus on feeding their cows to get the most efficient component production, not just the highest milk production.

• They will ensure that every bite that goes into the cow is working towards the right goal.

How To Make Every Bite Counts

• Nutrition is the key to efficient component production.

• The cornerstone of most diets is the homegrown forage.

• Making sure that every bit of that forage count towards component requires careful care from seed selection to harvesting as well as storage.

• The nutritionist will formulate a ration based on the nutrients and dry matter in the homegrown forage and then supplements grain and other feedstuff to supply the nutrients that the forage is lacking.

• Every bite has to provide the exact nutrients that are required for health and productivity, or else, you are wasting bites.

• Formulating diet on paper seems easy compared to delivering it consistently to cow. However, there will be variation of dry matter (DM) percentage points within lots of both corn silage and haylage.

• These variation in dry matter can cause lost in production and wasted nutrients.

• Moisture present in dry matter can also have a serious impact on the health and performance of the cow.

• If the cows are not getting right nutrients for their stage of lactation, their body may decide to limit milk production, which in turn changes the milk's component.

• Hence, to combat this, it is important to sample dry matter consistently to adjust for the nutrient density in real time.