Corn silage has a risk from multiple mycotoxins, with type B trichothecenes being the greatest risk. Stored corn grains may be at greater risk due to damaged kernels and a higher percentage of foreign matter.

We’ve all seen it. Top-layer spoilage – a rind of discolored, decomposing feed often laden with yeasts, molds and mycotoxins on the top of your silage bunker or pile.

While there are no proven vaccines or products for the control of the highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI), sound immunity is a core component of the cow’s physiology and ability to produce efficiently and economically. A sound nutrition program supports immunity in both the long and short term and certainly will have positive effects on reducing HPAI incidence. 

Cows that consume feed contaminated with mycotoxins – which include natural toxins made by various species of molds – may suffer a host of various metabolic disruptions that lead to a loss of milk production, hormonal imbalance and reduced reproductive performance. 

Elite athletes are resilient, and your cows need to be that way too. For them to perform at a high level, they need all barriers to productivity removed so they can devote as much energy as possible to fully expressing their genetic potential.

Cows crave consistency, and it’s imperative that we provide them with a consistent ration, using clean feed mixed properly and delivered at the same time every day.

The 2023 corn crop was challenged by a wide variation of environmental challenges. Drought in the Southwest and western Corn Belt to late-season rainfall in the Ohio Valley and eastern Corn Belt, the weather challenged the crop.