One-third of supplementary feed is wasted on many Australian dairy farms, according to a recent report.

 

The Grains2Milk study, conducted in late 2009, involved 50 commercial dairy farms across South Australia, Queensland, New South Wales and Victoria, with a range of feed-out methods.

 

Dairy Australia Grains2Milk programme manager Dr Steve Little said this was the first time the industry had an accurate measure of how much feed was wasted on farm. "One of the key findings is that feeding out in the paddock can result in huge levels of waste, whether you feed on the ground or through hay rings," he said. "Yet this is the most common method used on Australian dairy farms, according to Dairy Australia's annual surveys."

 

Dr Little said there was a lot less waste with more permanent, feed-out facilities such as a feed-pad with a compacted gravel or concrete surface and purpose-built feed troughs. However these systems cost more to set up and may not suit every dairy business.

 

"The good news is that it is possible to achieve lower waste levels, even with the low cost systems," he said. "Our study showed that wastage rates vary enormously and some dairy farmers achieve quite low wastage rates even from low cost feed-out systems. We can learn from their management practices."

 

Wastage of hay, silage and mixed rations on dairy farms can add 20-30% to the cost of these feeds. "If you pay AUD200/tonne (US$182) for hay and waste 25% then you have actually paid AUD250/tonne (US$228)," he said. "So there's a lot of money to be saved from reducing waste."

 

Ways to reduce feed waste include:

 

* Pay attention to chop length when cutting hay/silage – if it is too long, the cows will sort through it and waste more.

 

* Protect hay and silage during storage to minimise dry matter and quality losses. If there is no shed space available, a simple tarp cover can cut losses in hay by about half.

 

* Offer cows fresh, palatable, high quality feed at all times; discard spoiled or mouldy feed ingredients.