Cattle feeding: profit for the farmer

UCundinamarca News spoke with this expert in ruminant nutrition who works for the multinational Gowans Feed Consulting of Canada and who assures that many ranchers in the Ubaté region supply feed supplements to their cattle without knowing their nutritional needs.

UCundinamarca News: What did your presentation consist of?

Juan Carlos Alvarado (JCA) The presentation was based on research I conducted on strategic supplementation in Ubaté. Cows in that region don't reach their maximum milk production on pasture alone. Therefore, they need supplements to increase their output, but it's not a matter of just buying any product. First, you need to know the type of pasture, the average weight of your herd, and the amount of milk produced to determine what to buy.

UCundinamarca News: So, could there be dairy farms in Ubaté that are investing their resources in nutritional supplements that are not required?

(JCA). Correct. When we conducted the research with the support of the National University and the Cundinamarca Governorate, this was indeed happening, and I explained it in my presentation. For this purpose, we visited small dairy farmers. There, I saw small farms where they were excessively and unnecessarily administering supplements rich in phosphorus and protein, since the region's pastures already contain these nutrients. Obviously, they hadn't done a proper assessment. This leads to increased costs and soil contamination, as the cattle eliminate these elements through their urine.

UCundinamarca News: How would that herd diagnosis work to know for sure which supplement is the right one?

(JCA). The Ideally, you should request technical assistance to analyze the pastures, the cows' weight, and other variables. For example, if I have a cow that weighs 500 kilos and produces a certain number of liters of milk per day containing 31% protein and 51% fat, with those values I can determine how many kilos of dry matter it can consume. Based on what the pasture is providing, I can then determine the amount of energy, protein, and minerals that the cow requires.

So I know that if he's lacking energy, I should give him a supplement for that, or if he's deficient in minerals, I give him more minerals. That's why I say that giving supplements just for the sake of giving supplements isn't the right thing to do.

UCundinamarca News: What should a small cattle farmer who doesn't have the resources for that do?

(JCA). You can generate a small sample of several cows using a bovine measuring tape to measure their chest circumference and determine their actual weight. An average is calculated, and from that data, you can determine what type of supplement to give the cows. Unfortunately, in Colombia, the myth that a higher protein concentration leads to higher milk production has become widespread, and that's not the case. For example, in Ubaté, I don't need such a high-protein supplement, so it's important to know the pastures and the characteristics of the animal to then know what it needs, buy it, and in this way, my cows can produce.

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