Latest News From Dairy Nutrition

The sooner calves eat enough dry feed to sustain themselves, the better equipped they are to bridge the nutritional gap between the fixed liquid ration and a weaned diet of solely dry feeds.

It is important to know that the success of the entire production will be based on determining a proper date to cut for the highest yield and quality.

Each Memorial Day weekend, a winning tradition unfolds in the midsection of the country. At the end of the biggest motorsports event in the world, all eyes will be on the winner's circle of the Indianapolis 500.

Milk prices have soared and producers are looking at each line of the milk check to learn just what the money maker is. The takeaway is that strong component prices easily help drive that price per hundredweight up.

Learn how two Ontario dairy farmers stretch their forage acres by sandwiching rye in between regular-season no-till crops.

Maternal colostrum is often considered nature’s “perfect food.” But does this “free” resource help calves achieve passive immunity as reliably as the guaranteed ingredients in a bag of colostrum replacer?

Michigan dairy farmer, Ashley Kennedy, grabbed the opportunity to have a front-seat voice to testify at the Senate Agriculture Committee’s first hearing committed to the upcoming Farm Bill.

Keep an eye on water intake and feedstuffs. Avoid vaccinations when heat levels are high. Address the environment for management steps you can take to improve cow comfort.

The demand for dairy is evident and the current robust milk futures market has taken notice. Mike North talks about the dynamic dairy market that both the domestic and global demand for U.S. dairy has created.

Lower hay supplies and to potential for lower acres and lower production this year could increase hay prices significantly.

Despite the U.S. winning its first challenge over dairy with the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement agreement in January, Secretary of Agriculture said he is not satisfied with the market access into Canada for dairy products.

A high incidence of sole ulcers in a dairy herd is probably not the fault of the ration.

Not long ago, New York City’s mayor Eric Adams was attempting to ban chocolate milk from being served in NYC public schools. Now he is backing off this proposition and turning his attention elsewhere causing pushback.

Farmers are the original recyclers, and a company called repurposedMATERIALS is matching creative users with expired industrial products that otherwise would be headed for the landfill.

With the return of whole milk back into schools sailing through the House, things are looking up in Pennsylvania. If passed by the Senate, schools in the state could serve whole milk and 2% milk to students.

Putting up wetter forages as fermented baleage has definite feed-value and harvest-efficiency advantages. But rats and mice love baleage as much as cows do, especially if it contains grain.

About one-fourth of the energy for milk production in high-producing dairy cows comes from digested fiber. But fiber comes in many different packages.

Narrow profit margins mean there’s no room for error when it comes to planting corn silage seed this spring.

Nearly a year ago, dairy farmer Jamie Bansen received alarming news that the creamery her family ships milk to was on fire. Thankfully the McMinnville, Ore., creamery has since dusted off the ashes and began rebuilding.

If any lessons were learned from the COVID-19 pandemic, it was how to walk on a tightrope while juggling various obstacles. Dairy CEOs spoke about how they managed challenges the last several years at IDFA Dairy Forum.

Simple mathematics doesn’t always add up. For example, producers get a higher milk check and then they pay all the bills. Now, factor in rising inflation, and a profit at the end of the month isn’t always guaranteed.

Krysta Harden, President and CEO of the U.S. Dairy Export Council, today called on Congress and the administration to support a number of specific policy proposals that will help grow U.S. dairy exports.

In the quest to find alternatives to antibiotics to fight disease in dairy calves, essential oils are the subject of a growing body of calf health research.

When dairy farmer Nate Chittenden learned that NYC’s mayor wants to ban chocolate milk in schools, he shook his head. Another politician pushing an agenda, but this time it touched home.

During a time when feed costs are eating away at farmer’s profits, ration consistency and proper feed management practices are more important now than ever before.

Ukraine produces half of all the sunflower oil on the world export market, along with 15% of the corn, and nearly 10% of global wheat exports annually.

Fecal pH monitoring is a logical tool to keep a handle on what’s happening in the digestive tract, and detect early signals of digestive disruption.

Prior to prohibition in the U.S. more than 80 years ago, hemp was a significant commodity crop in many parts of the country.

Top dairy leaders oppose the bill to legalize the sale of raw milk at dairy farms just passed by the Iowa Senate. If this becomes law, it would be legal to sell raw milk and unpasteurized products.

A protocol overhaul helped the team at Singing Brook Farms, Imler, Pa., up their game in colostrum delivery. Two of their key managers share how they now seamlessly deliver high-quality colostrum to every newborn calf.

Organic Valley has offered to purchase milk from as many as 90 organic farmers whose previous contracts with Horizon Organic and Maple Hill will soon be terminated.

Providing free choice water to newborn calves has been shown to deliver a wide array of benefits in terms of calf health and performance. But it’s also a huge challenge for some farms in the winter.

While the Badger State was home to the largest cheese competition in the world this week, the 2022 World Champion Cheese award went abroad to a gruyere from Switzerland, with a score of 98.424 out of 100.

Once regarded as the low byproduct of cheese making, whey was often dumped down drains or spread on farm fields. Whey has since made huge strides due the growing health awareness among consumers, fueled by the pandemic.

Entering a five-year partnership, the national dairy checkoff organization have teamed up with the Mayo Clinic to conduct research to improve public health and advance consumer knowledge of dairy’s benefits.

Distinct drawbacks make BMR corn silage far from the all-encompassing silver bullet it was once hoped to be.

TMR consistency and composition are important to efficient and reliable nutrient delivery in lactating cow rations. But the impact of those factors actually can span much further.

Joe Burrow might be best known for his strong arm that is leading his team to the Super Bowl. However, the NFL quarterback is also taking advantage of the spotlight to help draw much needed attention to food insecurity.

Habits formed early in life – whether good or bad – often carry through to adulthood. Like little children, calves, too, need to be trained on positive behaviors, including the way they eat.

More and more farms have made the switch from feeding calves individually to group autofed systems. However, disease detection in group-housed calves remains a challenge. Could autofeeders help detect sick calves?

With today’s high input costs, make every feed ingredient count.

Since day one on the new CEO job with DMI, Barb O’Brien has gone into every conversation with her notepad and her ears open to what farmers have to say. “I want farmers to feel ownership of this program."

Anti-caking agents make the pellet manufacturing process easier, and can help prevent ground feeds from doming, bridging, and sticking to equipment.

It may sound like the title of a middle-school science fair project, but the CowToilet is a real invention, and may soon be operating on commercial dairies around the world.

Dialing into greater ration precision can greatly enhance likelihood your calves are routinely receiving the ration you intend for them.

Incidence rates for displaced abomasum (DA) range from 1% to 6%, and up to 90% of DA's happen within the first 30 days in milk.

Alfalfa is the fourth most widely grown crop in the United States, and a primary livestock feed source.

As feed prices currently challenge U.S. livestock producers, Feedipedia can be a resource for incorporating non-traditional feedstuffs into innovative rations.

Drought throughout most of the country, severe weather, and even flooding in parts of the Northeast made the annual adventure of corn silage production an interesting one.

The intricacies of transition-cow nutrition and its role in lactation success may be made a bit easier with the Liver Functionality Index.