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Livestock farmers leave money unnoticed
Dairy farms that achieve the highest return invariably perform top in their roughage production. Accountants see differences of 15% to 20% in roughage yields within regions. Many livestock farmers therefore leave money unnoticed in their roughage cultivation.
These differences can be traced back to craftsmanship. Livestock farmers who, in addition to performing in the barn, also perform at their best on their land, need to purchase less feed and lower their cost price per kilo of milk. The variation from €0,08 to €0,12 per kilo means tens of thousands of euros in costs on an annual basis.
KVEM per hectare
The objective in roughage cultivation must be to obtain the highest possible kVEM yield from each hectare. Consider manure as the raw material for VEM and fertilize field-specifically according to yield. Make a smart choice of varieties for each plot and pay attention to cultivation.
VEM per kilo ds
KVEM per hectare is the sum of the dry matter yield X the VEM per kilo ds. In silage maize, the VEM comes from starch and the residual plant. Therefore choose varieties with a high cell wall digestibility: every 1% higher digestibility yields up to 15 VEM extra† More digestible maize varieties therefore contain 100 to 150 VEM/kilo ds more.
Roughage utilization
Roughage cultivation is the first half of the story, then it is about high roughage utilization. Harvest at the right time, limit storage losses and ensure that the ration is correct. Here too, digestibility is beneficial: maize varieties with a high cell wall digestibility are used better and ensure a higher feed efficiency.
Earn more with roughage cultivation in 2018?
- View the LG corn varieties overview en the new LG 31 generation;
- Contact your LG forage specialist
