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3 practical ways to drive dairy efficiency and

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Trouw Nutrition
Partner Profile

16-06 | Partner | Calves

Trouw Nutrition
Partner Profile

Trouw Nutrition a Nutreco company, is a global leader in

innovative feed specialties, premixes and nutritional
services for the animal nutrition industry. It provides
products, models and services to boost productivity and
support animal health through all life stages. With unique,
species-specific solutions, Trouw Nutrition has been
meeting the needs of farmers and home-mixers, feed
producers, integrators and distributors since 1931.
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Headquartered in the Netherlands, the company has
locations in 25 countries and employs about 3,000 people.
More about Trouw Nutrition

Photo: Trouw Nutrition

The efficiency of a dairy farm is affected by many factors and has a large impact on the carbon
footprint of the farm. Three farm practices where big efficiency wins can be made are in calf
rearing, transition cow health and feed management.

Milk production efficiency is highly correlated to both farm profitability and sustainability. Higher
production efficiency of dairy cows leads to increased profitability of the farm and decreased carbon
footprint per kilogram of milk produced (Figure 1).

Figure 1 – If milk production per cow goes up, the carbon footprint per kg milk drops.

Placing a heightened focus on young calves’ nutrition, managing the transition period, and
optimising feed efficiency can help minimise losses and boost herd productivity. Below, we will look
at how these 3 efficiency-focused practices can drive improvements on the dairy farm.

Practice 1: Nourish the calves

Providing pre-weaned calves with a rich diet provides many benefits to the animal, the environment,
and farm profitability. The first 12 weeks of a calf’s life has a big influence on her health, how quickly
and efficiently she can be bred, how much milk she will eventually make, and even influences how
many lactations she will have. These factors are the driving characteristics of how profitable this cow
will be. To set your calf up for sustainable and profitable lifetime performance, you can focus on these
5 critical control points.

· Colostrum: Calves need to receive 3 to 4 litres of high-quality colostrum as soon after birth as
possible, preferably within the first hour of life. An additional 2 litres within the first 6 hours and
another 1 to 2 litres within the first 12 hours is recommended to fortify the calf’s immune system.

· Cleanliness: Keep the calving area and calf housing area clean and dry. Feeding equipment must be
maintained with proper hygiene protocols.

· Comfort: Calves should be housed in a dry, bright, and well-ventilated environment with soft
bedding.

· Calories: Provide calves with a rich diet for optimal immunity, growth, and future performance.
Intensive feeding of a highly digestible calf milk replacer for the first 8 weeks of life followed by a
stepdown weaning period of 2 to 4 weeks will deliver the plane of nutrition required to optimise
performance.

· Consistency: Consistent feeding and cleaning schedules will improve calf performance, health, and
welfare. Provide a high quality and consistent source of water, milk replacer, grain, and forage.

Practice 2: Enable a smooth transition

Following early life nutrition, the next impactful period of a cow’s life is the transition phase in which
they move from the dry stage into lactation. This period will also have the largest impact on the cash
flow of the farm. During this process, cows experience metabolic and physiological changes.
Providing a digestible, nutritionally balanced diet and management practices that minimise metabolic
stress enable dairy cows to make a smooth transition. Smooth transitions mean less labour to care
for sick cows, higher levels of milk production, improved fertility, and a longer productive lifespan for
the cow. Focus on these 4 areas to help your cows experience a smooth transition.

· Crowding: Overcrowding cows during the transition phase adds stress and reduces feed intake, two
things that make for a rough transition. Provide your cows with at least 75 cm (30 in) of feed bunk
space per cow. This guideline will give her the opportunity to eat and is very likely to give her enough
space to lay down.

· Comfort: Effective cooling systems for warm months, good ventilation, and soft bedding will reduce
the metabolic stress on your transition cow. Remember that the dry period is in the transition phase
too.

· Cleanliness: The dairy cow’s immune system will be at its weakest during transition. A clean and dry
housing and calving area will reduce the risk of infections such as metritis and mastitis.

· Control inflammation: Nutritional strategies and functional feed additives can reduce
inflammation, particularly inflammation of the gastrointestinal tract. An inflammatory response in the
gut can further suppress the cow’s immune system and increase the chance that she will get sick.
Probiotics, prebiotics, and improved sources of zinc are some examples of functional products that
can limit gut inflammation. Consult with your nutrition advisor and veterinarian to find the
inflammation control strategies that are right for your farm.

Practice 3: Know what you are feeding the cow

Precision farming has improved the efficiency of crop production, delivering the necessary amount of
inputs that the crop needs at the right time. The first step is monitoring the feed and forage
components of what the cow will eat in order to formulate the right set of nutrients for the cow. Feed
analysis is key to managing changes in the nutrient content of forages (Table 1).

Testing of fresh grass (see box), silage or other feed ingredients can be done at the dairy farm. With
the use of mobile technology such as the NutriOpt On-site Adviser and the NutriOpt Mycotoxin
Adviser, the dairy farmer or nutrition advisor can quickly detect when new ingredients fall below the
specified quality thresholds in terms of nutritional content or mycotoxin level. Data from testing can
be used to reformulate the ration and address a challenge potentially before feed intake, animal
health, rumen function or fertility is affected. This brings a tailored approach to nutrition, ensuring
that animals’ nutritional needs are met and not over-supplied.

Checking the value of fresh grass, on the spot!

Fresh grass is different from grass silage. To better predict and manage dairy cow efficiency, it is
key to get a grip on what the cows are eating indoors, but also when they graze outdoors. Trouw
Nutrition has therefore developed an NIR calibration line for the analysis of fresh grass, available
as part of the NutriOpt On-site Adviser. The possibility of analysing fresh grass in the field allows
dairy producers and nutrition advisors to measure moisture, protein, crude fibre and sugar
content of the fresh grass, adjust supplemental feed when needed and identify the best moment
to start cutting the grass. The introduction of this new calibration line will be focused on Western
European countries first and will be rolled out to other counties in due course.

Conclusion
Improving the milk production efficiency of your herd will increase the profitability of the farm while
at the same time reducing the environmental footprint of the milk that you produce. 3 critical areas
where you can increase efficiency are by nourishing your calves, enable a smooth transition for your
cows around calving, and by measuring and monitoring what your cows are eating. These actions will
contribute to your farm’s profitability and environmental sustainability efforts.

References are available on request.

More about

calf management feed management milk production

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