Holly McGill, Alltech Dairy Sales Representative

The science behind agriculture and dairy farming, in particular, continues to evolve and there are many new areas of focus to help producers achieve maximum health, production and reproduction in their herd. As one of the world leaders in agricultural research, Alltech takes great pride in focusing on innovation and technology. By scaling that technology to the farm level to teach farmers about their feed and how it affects their animals, we believe that we not only can save producers money in decreased health care costs and involuntary culls, but also increase production through improved health and reproduction. Alltech’s On-farm Program works with feed companies to ensure that from field to feed, the ration supports the cows completely. From focusing on how forages are stored in the bunks, to assessing the health of the animals on-farm through visual signs and screening of the manure and quality of the TMR, Alltech’s On-farm Program has the tools necessary to support the health and production of every dairy herd.

Feed storage on farm is a key issue, as a well-packed and sealed silo can be the turning point in determining the fundamental quality of a producer’s forages. If forages are of poor quality, the total ration’s quality may be decreased, resulting in decreased milk production, poor immunity and health, and impaired reproduction. Regular audits of forage storage systems can help to

decrease these risks by assessing bunk density with a core sampler or heating in bunk faces or tower silos with an infrared (IR) camera. Proper density in bunk silos ensures adequate fermentation by decreasing the presence of oxygen; tower silos are sealed to provide an anaerobic environment. Properly fermented feed is considered “pre-digested” by microbes in the silos in order to allow the cows easier access to the essential nutrients they need to support their health and production through gestation and lactation. When oxygen is allowed into a silo, mould growth can begin, and heating can be detected with an IR camera. As moulds grow, they can produce mycotoxins in the forages, which can have numerous negative effects on the dairy cow, including impairing reproductive function and decreasing dry matter intake and milk yield. If an IR camera is used and heat is detected, the producer can take steps to remove mouldy feed as it comes out of the silo and discuss the inclusion of a mycotoxin binder in the feed with a nutritionist and Alltech On-farm support. By utilizing these tools, a producer can ensure that the farm’s forages are of high quality and maintain herd health.

There are many physical signs that can indicate early threats to herd health. Alltech employees are trained in assessing the body condition score (BCS) and locomotion score of dairy cows and can utilize this information to determine how nutrition on farm may be adjusted to support better herd health. A cow’s BCS will vary throughout her reproductive cycle, and it is important to

Bringing Technology to the Farm Level with Alltech On-Farm Support

Fall 2014INSIDER

know the appropriate targets to achieve. For example, monitoring BCS during the transition period is critical in determining ease of birth and future reproductive success, and a smooth freshening and higher peak milk production to ensure adequate persistency through lactation. Similarly, locomotion scoring is important to help producers notice lameness earlier so that it can be dealt with quickly before drastic intervention needs to be taken, or the cow cannot make it to the parlour to be milked, or stand for milking in the stall.

In some instances visual signs of health may seem adequate, but production and reproduction are still dropping. The Penn State Particle Separator (PSPS) and the manure screener are two more tools that Alltech uses on farm to help a producer visualize the ration, and how the herd is utilizing it.

The PSPS is a series of sieves that stack together and, when shaken, separate the TMR into four sections of varying particle size. The PSPS helps producers to assess the processing level of their feed, whether it is the length of chop coming out of the field, how long it is mixed before being fed, or whether or not kernels of corn are being cracked open. By maintaining a level within each sieve as set out by Pennsylvania State University, producers can be sure that they are providing the correct amounts of physically effective fibre for proper rumen function as well as determining if the cow is receiving enough feed and forage.

The manure screener is used to assess the feed once it exits the cow. The manure screener provides a snapshot of the rumen health and overall feed efficiency of the

herd at any given point in time. Samples of manure are taken from several cows in the herd and then washed through three screens of varying size. Similar to the PSPS, there are set ranges for each screen as to how much manure should be left at each level. The end goal of nutritionists and the Alltech On-farm support team is to maximize the amount of manure left at the bottom of the screens. Too much manure on the top suggests that the cow is not digesting her feed properly and is therefore not maximizing her nutrient intake and production. A manure screen loaded with manure left at the top indicates a high level of potential for a producer to increase herd health and maximize production!

As the world’s population grows and economies go through recessions, producers must face the difficult challenge of feeding more and more people with less and less input costs. The ever-present question often on farmers’ minds is, “How can I produce more with less?” By utilizing the Alltech On-farm support tools detailed above, producers can stay on top of issues on their farm and deal with them before they cause damage to their bottom line. Early detection and subsequent prevention are key to getting the most out of your feed and maximizing your herd health and performance.

Alltech.com/Canada AlltechNaturally @Alltech

Alltech Ontario Canada20 Cutten PlaceGuelph, Ontario N1G 4Z7Phone: (519) 763-3331AlltechOntario@Alltech.com

A week of questioning, a week of exploring, a week of networking with peers from across the globe.

INNOVATION WEEK 2015MAY 16-22 | LEXINGTON, KY

May

2015

A week of questioning, a week of exploring, a week of networking with peers from across the globe. May 16–22

Continued on back page.

Bringing Technology to the Farm Level Continued...

SymposiumBrewing Academy

Presidents ClubCraft Brew Fest

Global Dairy and BeefHealth & Wellness Seminar

Entrepreneurial SeminarFarm Tours

a good decision for the European marketplace. It will be interesting to see how the dairy industry in Europe adapts to this policy change. Normandy itself has an average herd size of 50, with the largest farm being 450 cows, so one can expect these numbers to rise once the change is made.

Surrounding the conference, attendees had the option to take part in farm and sightseeing tours organized by Alltech. Our group visited two dairy farms, in addition to a D-Day sightseeing tour, and a visit to the 2014 Alltech World Equestrian Games. The first farm on our tour was Domaine St. Hyppolyte, a dairy farm milking Normande cows. These cows are not known for high milk production, but for their fat and protein components (4.4% and 3.6%, respectively). This farm takes all their milk produced Monday through Friday and sends it to their on-site processing plant to be made into specialty cheeses. Milk produced on Saturdays and Sundays is picked up by a processor to make cheese off-site. The second farm was Earl Deaux Sabots, owned by Hermjan Darwinkel, where they milk 125 Holsteins with a herd average of 11,000 liters per cow per year. Their farm is very similar to one seen in Ontario, minus the opened faced barn – an option when the temperature rarely slips below 0 degrees! Darwinkel has plans to expand once quota is eliminated, however his main concern is finding a plant that will take their milk.

Travelling to France for Global Dairy and Beef was an excellent experience, especially with such a great group of producers from Ontario. The conference was jam packed with great information, tons of fun and many networking opportunities…not to mention beautiful scenery!

Want more information on this year’s event? Highlights and pictures, as well as video and audio recordings of the sessions, can be found at www.alltech.com/global . I hope that you can join us in May 2015 for Global Dairy and Beef in Lexington, Kentucky! For more information contact your local Alltech representative or call Alltech Ontario at 519-763-3331.

Nicole Dorcas, Alltech Dairy Sales Representative

In August I had the opportunity to attend Alltech’s 7th Annual Global Dairy and Beef Conference in Normandy, France along with a group of dairy farmers from Ontario. More than 700 progressive dairy and beef producers from 43 different countries attended the conference to learn about agriculture and food production around the world, network with fellow producers and discuss future challenges and opportunities.

The conference kicked off with Dr. Pearse Lyons, founder and president of Alltech, urging attendees to Dream, Dare, Desire, Decide and Dedicate on their farms. Topics covered the global market, finance, reproduction, lameness, the carbon footprint, mycotoxins, algae in animal feed, farm labour, social media and crop science, as well as case studies and producer panels.

Jack Corless (Rumsol) spoke on breaking the myth of poor fertility in high producing dairy cows. Corless stressed that in order to maximize profitability we need to focus not on the peak milk yield, but on days in milk and calving interval. Calving interval, he said, will vary between farms, while optimum days in milk will not. The most important factors influencing the calving interval are conception rate and heat detection rate (HDR); and HDR is something we need to look at improving on farm. This change of thought emphasizes the importance of fertility and if we focus on fertility, everything else like milk production will fall into place.

Dr. Mark Lyons (Alltech) and Hans Johr (Nestle) shared news on Alltech and Nestle’s partnership in developing the Dairy Farmer Institute in China, a centre which will aim

to develop future farm managers and professionals for the dairy industry. The centre will hold 8,000 dairy cows in large, medium and small training farms.

Steve Elliott (Alltech) explained how optimizing your mineral management program can dramatically reduce the incidence of lameness and mastitis, while decreasing your herd’s somatic cell count. Elliott noted that “we may need to consider optimal production needs rather than looking at minimal requirements.” He also explained that faster growing crops will not take up minerals as fast as slow growing crops, which is why we look at mineral supplementation more then we used to in the past.

Social media and educating consumers were other hot topics at Global Dairy and Beef this year. The message was that if we haven’t convinced consumers that milk is healthy and its production is environmentally friendly, we have failed. What can you do to educate the public? Make friends outside your traditional circle, share your stories, invite tours and school groups to your operation, or join Twitter or Facebook. Already on Twitter? Follow those you wouldn’t normally connect with.

Discussion dinners are a popular event held at Global Dairy and Beef. Attendees are given topics to choose from such as crop science, calf health and reproductive management. After dinner and discussing the topic with tablemates, the microphone is passed around for guests to share opinions and debate with the room. I happened to choose the “milk quota” dinner, which, to no surprise, turned into quite the debate! As you may be aware, milk quota will be eliminated in Europe in April 2015. The room was mainly filled with Europeans, Canadians, and Americans, which basically split the room in half regarding whether or not this was

What Goals Do You Have For Your Farm?

Adam Rae, Ontario Canada Manager

Goal setting is a crucial component for every business. Whether written down, or top of mind, the objectives need to be understood by all members of the management team. Dairy farming goals are no different. Whether the aim is to increase the revenue on the farm or decrease cost of production, all members on the team need to know what the goals are in order to meet those expectations.

At Alltech, we have the tools and expertise that can help each farmer attain his or her business goals.

Recently, at Canada’s Outdoor Farm Show in Woodstock, Ontario, our exhibit was focused on the tools that Alltech offers on farm. Every Alltech representative has a set of these tools, and the expertise to use them. If an Alltech representative is at your farm, they can be a second set of eyes to look at your operation. He or she can do a barn audit which involves looking at everything from forage quality in the bunk, to how it’s presented to the cows, to the cows themselves, their environment and even how well the feed is being digested. Depending on the farm’s goals, this audit can lead to several suggestions on how to attain goals. To learn about the Alltech On-farm support tools, read Bringing Technology to the Farm Level with Alltech On Farm Support in this newsletter.

The next time an Alltech representative is at your farm, share your goals with them and see what tools they have to help you achieve them.

At Canada’s Outdoor Farm Show we had numerous dairy farmers visit us to learn about Alltech’s On-farm Program. We are proud to announce the winners of our draws, Mario Vriens, who won the TSC Stores gift certificate and Gert and Gerda Bakker, who won the grand prize, the Gray Tools toolbox!

Experiencing the Alltech Global Dairy and Beef Conference