Many areas in Central Missouri are short of hay. I have received numerous calls about baling corn stalks and milo stubble. I recently sampled some baled corn stalks. Quality of those was not stellar: crude protein was 4.2 and 5.6 percent and TDN was 43 and 40 percent on a dry matter basis. Grazing these crop residues soon after harvest should provide much more nutrition than these baled samples indicate, but protein, phosphorus and vitamin A should probably be supplemented. Baling should be a last resort in utilizing these feedstuffs and a lot of additional supplementation will be required.
Fortunately, we have several by-product feeds at our disposal in this part of the world. Our primary supplement ingredients are corn, soybean meal, corn gluten feed, distillers grains and soybean hulls.
When comparing feed ingredients, we must take water out of consideration. Wet ddg’s are cheaper per ton, but may not be the best buy when compared to dry ddg’s on a cost per pound of nutrient supplied on a dry matter basis. The following example helps illustrate this point. Corn gluten feed contains 428 pounds of protein per ton on a dry matter basis. If corn gluten feed costs $105 at the plant, the cost per pound of protein is $0.245 per pound ($105 / 428 lbs protein per ton = $0.245 per pound of protein). This same process can be used to compare wet vs. dry ddg’s or ddg’s vs. other feed ingredients for both energy and protein. Be sure to figure in transportation and storage costs when pricing different ingredients.
A second point is that you must know what nutrient you need to supplement your animals with. Soybean hulls are an excellent, cheap energy source, but are a poor, expensive source of protein. The same is true for corn grain. On the other hand, corn gluten feed, and wet and dry distiller’s grains are excellent sources of both energy and protein. If energy is needed in the ration, you risk overfeeding protein if using these products exclusively in your supplement.
The best way to compare feeds is to have someone balance rations. That is the most accurate way to compare different feed ingredients or blends of ingredients. Be sure to include all costs when pricing your feedstuffs. Forage testing is also desired because that information allows us to fine tune the feeding program to the quality of feedstuffs that you have. It is also a good idea to sample the by-product feeds as well, since considerable variation can exist from one plant to another or from batch to batch within a plant. I would be happy assist you with ration formulation for your specific situation. University of Missouri Extension is an equal opportunity / ADA institution.