With current low milk prices and negative profit margins, dairy farmers and bankers are asking nutritionists to reduce feed costs. On some farms, all feed additives have been removed, which may save 30 to 40 cents a day, but leads to reduced fertility, lower milk yield and components, and poorer health status.

As nutritionists and dairymen, our goal when feeding dairy cattle is to provide each group of cows with the nutrients needed to support their milk production, maintenance, growth, health and reproduction.

Fatty acids are one of the last major nutrient categories to be truly “balanced” in our dairy cow diets. Several factors have come together recently to make now the era of fatty acid balancing. First, producers are getting paid more per pound of milkfat as a percentage of their milk check.

Milk quality matters beyond quality premiums. It can help secure your milk market and bring more money back to your dairy by reducing mastitis treatment costs and labor, along with milk withholding times. A healthier udder can also produce more milk.

Top producers have optimized two key parameters to generate significantly more milk revenue despite the long-running down dairy market, as shown in a unique database of milk processor records.

How do you use the mountain of information that is at your fingertips every month? How do you find the next opportunity or efficiency in the data you collect? Very few dairy farms have systems in place to measure more information than milk production. Looking at data once in a while will not lead you in a positive direction.

The Lord promised: “If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from Heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.” (KJV 2 Chronicles 7)

As you work to provide a consistent ration to your cows at the same time each and every day, the mixing operation is critical to your success. Today, I want to talk about getting the feed mixed and some of the factors that affect the quality of mix.

The National Mastitis Council’s annual meeting was held earlier this year in Savannah, Georgia. Three Progressive Dairyman contributors who attended the meeting offered their thoughts on the major themes and observations they saw from the meeting.

For the last three years, the word “Brexit” has dominated international headlines. Most Americans know that it deals with the United Kingdom (UK) leaving the European Union (EU) but, beyond that, the details get hazy.