Agri News, MN
12-11-07
Midwest news and notes
Cornstalk residue is inexpensive alternative
Cornstalk residue can be a very cost-effective alternative to hay, says Wayne
Schoper, Extension educator in Brown and Nicollet counties in Minnesota.
Farm business records indicate that it costs 5 cents per day to have a cow a
graze on cornstalks compared with 60 cents to $1.20 per cow with hay. Even
when the additional cost of protein supplement is calculated, the cost of grazing
cornstalks increases to about 25 cents to 35 cents per head per day, Schoper
said. That's still a considerable savings.
Neither cornstalks nor feeding hay alone is sufficient as a stand-alone ration, he
said.
On another point, the physical impact of snow on grazing of stockpiled forage
isn't as great as expected.
Make sure air quality is good in barns
With cold temperatures apparently settling in for a while, many livestock
producers may be inclined to close up their barns in hopes of providing some
protection for their livestock, says Mike Boersma, University of Minnesota
Extension educator.
However, some producers may make the mistake of focusing on air temperature
instead of air quality, he said. While it's important to protect livestock from direct
wind and snow, closing off all fresh air supply can hurt air quality.
Without adequate air exchange, ammonia gases have no place to escape. High
levels of ammonia can lead to poor animal performance, reduced general health,
and more smell, Boersma said.
Strong corn demand scenario continues
The strong demand scenario for corn implies that U.S. corn acreage will have to
remain large in 2008 if supplies are to remain adequate to keep prices
"reasonable'' for users, says Darrel Good, University of Illinois Extension
marketing specialist.
"High wheat and soybean prices provide more competition for corn acreage than
in 2007, implying that corn prices will remain high in order to ensure adequate
acres,'' Good said.
The run-up in corn prices that started in fall 2006 has been driven primarily by a
significant increase in demand, he said. The demand strength continues.
"Ethanol production continues to expand, although at a slower pace than
expected a few months ago,'' Good said. "Ethanol production margins became
very tight in late September, but have rebounded over the past two months.''
ISU studying DDGs in poultry rations
Iowa State University researchers are studying the use of dried distillers grains
with soluables as a feed ingredient for poultry. A recent project showed laying
hen diets can be formulated with high amounts of corn DDGs without adversely
impacting egg production and egg quality.
"I think it's interesting we could feed a diet with very little corn or starch products
in it with such good results,'' said Kristjan Bregendahl, assistant professor of
poultry nitrition at ISU.
Corn DDGs typically contains about 27 percent crude protein and 10 percent oil,
making it suitable as a feed ingredient for poultry and livestock.