FORFARMERS FOCUS
Mineral range relaunched to help address excess supply issues Minerals, trace elements and vitamins are essential for cow health, but research has shown that many UK dairy cows are oversupplied with minerals. ForFarmers, on the back of work carried out at its Nutritional Innovation Center in the Netherlands, as well as work with Trouw GB and data gathered from forage analysis, has revisited the mineral offering in its Mineline range. “Correctly balanced minerals can lead to improved performance, cow health and fertility,” says ForFarmers’ Bruce Forshaw. “But oversupplying dairy cows with minerals will increase costs, impact on performance and, in some cases, cause health issues.” Copper is required for good fertility and haemoglobin production but, if oversupplied, it is stored by the cow in the liver and can eventually cause copper toxicity. Phosphorus is essential for energy metabolism and fertility, but supply too much and the cow excretes it in dung. This can then leach into waterways and cause algae bloom. “ForFarmers’ account managers are trained to assess the complete mineral input on farm by collecting information from forage analysis,
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water analysis, feed content and via boluses or supplementation from the vet,” says Mr Forshaw. “They can then develop a mineral plan that works for each individual herd, meeting the cows’ needs but not oversupplying minerals. “We estimate that about 80% of the time we will have minerals in the Mineline range that will suit the herd,” he adds. “For the remaining 20% we can develop a bespoke product to suit their exact needs.” ForFarmers has also increased the amount of vitamins A, D and E in its minerals, to help boost the cow’s immune system. Vitamin E is an anti-oxidant that works in conjunction with selenium, which is part of glutathione peroxidase (GPX), an enzyme that reduces oxidative stress at a cellular level. “We’ve also concentrated minerals in the feed, making feed calculations simpler. The typical feed rate for in-feed mineral is 150g, while the new range is designed to meet requirement at 100g per head.” Talk to your ForFarmers account manager about your herd’s mineral requirements, or call 0330 678 1133 for more information.
Soil nutrition
When buying fertiliser, producers tend to opt for what they’ve always bought before, rather than looking at current evidence to support the use of fertilisers that improve crop yields and quality, to support healthier and more productive livestock. Fertilisers containing sulphur are often overlooked because they’re slightly more expensive, but evidence has shown the clear benefit of its inclusion and sulphur is now recommended by all the independent farm advisory bodies in the UK. Sulphur supports nitrogen efficiency and improves grass growth rates, as well as grass composition. Trials show that sulphur applications can improve grass yields, by an extra 750kg DM/ha. This offers a return of £7 for every £1 spent on sulphur. Selenium (Se) can be applied through fertiliser to fortify grazed grass or grass silage. Cows require 0.3mg of Se for every 1kg of dry matter consumed. But data from Yara shows that more than 90% of grass samples have selenium levels below 0.2mg/kg. Applying fertiliser containing selenium can ensure that enough dietary Se is supplied by grass. High cell counts and mastitis problems are associated with Se deficiency and feeding grass silage fortified with Se is a cost effective way to maintain good milk quality and minimise the incidence of mastitis. For more information contact your ForFarmers account manager or call 0330 678 1200.
cowmanagement JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2020
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