A number of farmers have been asking about feeding meal this summer, having been told that summer/autumn is when the response to meal is best. With milk prices at a low point, achieving the best economic return from feed is key..
First things first, most people who talk about responses to meal all quote the responses in terms of kg’s of milk produced per kg of meal fed but we need to remember that in Ireland we don’t sell kg’s of milk - we sell kg’s of fat and protein - so we need to talk about responses in terms of grams of milk solids (MS) per kg of meal fed.
Let’s look at what the research says on the subject. Basically, the average response to concentrate in research trials, both here and elsewhere is in the order of 1kg of milk or 80g of MS per kg of meal fed. While there are differences in some trials based on genetic merit for milk, that’s the average across a range of experiments involving cows similar to the Irish national average cow.
However, in an analysis of costs of production in Ireland, UK and New Zealand, it was found for every €1 increase in feed costs, total costs increased by €1.50. Why non-feed costs also increased is hard to pin down – a combination of many things from reduced grass utilisation, increased mechanisation etc. What this means is that the extra milk solids produced needs to pay for more than just the kg of meal, they also have to pay for the extra other costs too.
On-farm performance
The next thing is that on-farm performance rarely, if ever, matches that of a research farm. Small herds, lots of labour, expert management, good land and only the healthiest cows on trial make it very hard for commercial farmers to match research results. In a paper on the topic, researchers Brendan Horan and John Roche say that on-farm studies show that only two-thirds of the responses achieved in research trials are achieved on farms at about 55g MS/kg meal.
So what’s the breakeven for meal feeding? At the breakeven level no profit is made but no money is lost. The researchers have come up with an equation to calculate how much farmers can afford to pay for meal based on milk price and their herd’s response to meal.
At 55g MS/kg meal they say that the breakeven price to be paid for meal is 3.5% of a tonne of milk solids. So with milk prices of €3 kg/MS, a tonne of milk solids is worth €3,000 and 3.5% of this is €105. So to break even, a tonne of meal needs to be purchased for €105 and any more than this and the farmer will be losing money as the costs are greater than the return.
With no meal available at such low prices, the conclusion is that there is no economic return to meal feeding at the moment.
Read more
Dairy management notes for dairy farmers
A number of farmers have been asking about feeding meal this summer, having been told that summer/autumn is when the response to meal is best. With milk prices at a low point, achieving the best economic return from feed is key..
First things first, most people who talk about responses to meal all quote the responses in terms of kg’s of milk produced per kg of meal fed but we need to remember that in Ireland we don’t sell kg’s of milk - we sell kg’s of fat and protein - so we need to talk about responses in terms of grams of milk solids (MS) per kg of meal fed.
Let’s look at what the research says on the subject. Basically, the average response to concentrate in research trials, both here and elsewhere is in the order of 1kg of milk or 80g of MS per kg of meal fed. While there are differences in some trials based on genetic merit for milk, that’s the average across a range of experiments involving cows similar to the Irish national average cow.
However, in an analysis of costs of production in Ireland, UK and New Zealand, it was found for every €1 increase in feed costs, total costs increased by €1.50. Why non-feed costs also increased is hard to pin down – a combination of many things from reduced grass utilisation, increased mechanisation etc. What this means is that the extra milk solids produced needs to pay for more than just the kg of meal, they also have to pay for the extra other costs too.
On-farm performance
The next thing is that on-farm performance rarely, if ever, matches that of a research farm. Small herds, lots of labour, expert management, good land and only the healthiest cows on trial make it very hard for commercial farmers to match research results. In a paper on the topic, researchers Brendan Horan and John Roche say that on-farm studies show that only two-thirds of the responses achieved in research trials are achieved on farms at about 55g MS/kg meal.
So what’s the breakeven for meal feeding? At the breakeven level no profit is made but no money is lost. The researchers have come up with an equation to calculate how much farmers can afford to pay for meal based on milk price and their herd’s response to meal.
At 55g MS/kg meal they say that the breakeven price to be paid for meal is 3.5% of a tonne of milk solids. So with milk prices of €3 kg/MS, a tonne of milk solids is worth €3,000 and 3.5% of this is €105. So to break even, a tonne of meal needs to be purchased for €105 and any more than this and the farmer will be losing money as the costs are greater than the return.
With no meal available at such low prices, the conclusion is that there is no economic return to meal feeding at the moment.
Read more
Dairy management notes for dairy farmers
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