In light of rising feed costs, dairy farms can boost profitability by focusing on whole-farm feed efficiency, particularly by managing feed cost per hundredweight (cwt) of energy-corrected milk. According to data from the University of Minnesota, the top 10% most profitable dairy herds spent significantly less on feed ($9.58 per cwt) compared to the least profitable herds ($15.61 per cwt) in 2022, underscoring the financial impact of optimized feed costs.
Key factors affecting feed efficiency include feed loss due to shrinkage and cow digestive/metabolic efficiency. Energy loss can occur in several forms: waste in feces, urine, and gas emissions, as well as heat production. Methane emissions, a byproduct of rumen fermentation, represent up to 10% of total feed energy lost and are a focus for both environmental and efficiency improvements.
Reducing heat loss and minimizing energy use for non-productive processes, such as immune responses triggered by stress, are additional strategies for improving feed efficiency. High-producing cows are generally more efficient, as maintenance energy requirements remain fixed regardless of milk output.
The feed-saved trait, introduced by the Council on Dairy Cattle Breeding in 2020, offers a genetic approach to improving feed efficiency, identifying sires that require less feed to produce the same milk volume. Although this trait is moderately heritable, broader adoption is limited due to the need for data from research herds.
Improving feed efficiency on dairy farms requires a multi-dimensional strategy that includes effective ration management, stress reduction, and potential genetic selection for feed-efficient traits.
