Consider Alternatives for Feeding Cattle, NDSU Expert Urges

Just because you grow a crop on your farm doesn’t mean you have to feed it to your cattle, says a North Dakota State University livestock specialist.

"Producers need to weigh the alternatives to determine what’s going to be most profitable," says Karl Hoppe of the NDSU Carrington Research Extension Center. "Why feed corn that’s selling for $54 a ton when you can feed harvest-damaged grains that are selling for $30 a ton and have almost the same feed value?"

Barley, durum and hard red spring wheat in many areas of the state were damaged by weathering and sprouting during this harvest season and can be purchased at bargain prices, Hoppe notes. Although the damage makes the grains unsuitable for human food products, they retain most of their nutrient value as a livestock feed.

Co-products and by-products of the state’s agricultural processing industry may also make economical feed alternatives. Co-products refer to a feed, like wheat midds, that is fairly consistent among loads. By-products are feeds, like potato waste, that may vary considerably in their physical characteristics and nutrient content among loads.

"The key is to know what you are getting, in terms of nutrients, and calculate prices and rations based on that information," Hoppe says. That means adjusting nutrient values to a dry matter basis and calculating costs per pound of nutrient, such as total digestible nutrients or megacals of net energy per pound of gain.

"There’s good research out there on using these products," Hoppe says. "Educate yourself and consult with a livestock nutritionist so you make good decisions."

NDSU research on feeding co-products and by-products can be found on the World Wide Web. The Carrington Research Extension Center Web page, http://www.ag.ndsu.nodak.edu/carringt/, includes links to information on the Center’s livestock research program and beef and bison research reports. The NDSU Extension Service maintains a number of livestock publications online at http://www.ext.nodak.edu/extpubs/livestoc.htm. Of particular interest is publication AS 1182, "Alternative Feeds for Ruminants" and AS1180, "By-Products and Regionally Available Alternative Feedstuffs for Dairy Cattle." Those publications are also available in paper form through county Extension offices.

"In the course of processing grains for human food products, most of the starch has been milled out of them," Hoppe says. "The products that are left are high in fiber and high in crude protein which makes them good feeds for ruminants."

Hoppe cautions that there are some storage and handling considerations with some of the products. Some, especially those with a high moisture content, have storage life of two weeks or less before spoilage becomes a problem. Extended storage with almost any alternative feed will result in some nutrient loss. Some of the products may be difficult to handle and mix with traditional feed-handling equipment. Transportation must also be considered.

"Make sure there will be enough of the product available to avoid frequent adjustments in the diet," Hoppe cautions. "Also make certain that prices are competitive with other feedstuffs." He notes that prices for many by-product and co-product feeds are lowest in the summer, and as demand for feed increases into the winter, so do prices.

Hoppe says producers should have a nutrient analysis conducted on feed samples or request an analysis from the supplier. That analysis will be a key to calculating the value of the feed and for balancing rations.

For by-products where products may be highly variable, frequent tests may be necessary. Those products can also be blended with silage or other feeds to make them more uniform in nutrient content. "Producers could also feed the by-product as a small percentage of the diet so that variations would have a limited impact on the ration," Hoppe says

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Source: Karl Hoppe, (701) 652-2951
Editor: Tom Jirik, (701) 231-9629

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