The 2016 crop-growing season has resulted in some unique challenges when feeding lactating and growing dairy cattle.

Many dairy farmers across the U.S. continue to look to their pastures as a source of nutrition for their milking herds.

This is a story of bureaucratic bungling, a Nobel Prize, three brilliant scientists, two countries, moldy hay and rat poison. I am talking, of course, about the discovery of vitamin K.

The narrative surrounding the environmental cost of producing milk and beef often paints a bleak picture. Because it is more palatable to dictate a reduction in meat and milk consumption to enact environmental change than to reduce fossil fuel use for transportation, agriculture is tasked to solve global climate change and greenhouse gas emissions.

Nitrogen (N) utilization is becoming a central component in ration balancing as dairy producers try to maximize milk protein yields, decrease feed costs and conform to environmental standards. Previously, our nutritional models and research in dairy cows dictated that we feed higher crude protein (CP) levels to achieve optimal performance.

In layman’s terms, what does IOFC mean? Producers and nutritionists use this formula (income over feed costs) to determine the farm’s profitability and identify changes to help increase efficiencies. Feed cost can be up to 65 percent of a dairy operation’s cost of production.

Interest in reduced-lignin alfalfa has producers wondering, “Should I grow it?” and dairymen wondering, “Will it give me more milk? And how should I feed it?” David Weakley, director of forage nutrition research for Forage Genetics International, discussed reduced-lignin alfalfa at a World Dairy Expo 2016 seminar.

Most dairy nutritionists have different philosophies when it comes to dairy cow ration formulation. But we can all agree on one thing: It’s not just crude protein and net energy of lactation anymore.

Feeding fresh cows has been an ongoing challenge for the dairy industry for many years, especially since the national average for a single lactation is over 22,000 pounds and climbing.

Depending upon how much silage inventory carryover your farm has on hand, you may be looking at making the switch to new-crop corn silage very soon, if you haven’t already. When making these transitions, it’s important to keep a close eye on starch content and digestibility.