Licking Their Way to Success
By Chuck Bloechl, Assistant Product Manager, Ruminant Products
Webster defines success as a favorable or satisfactory outcome or result. Like most people, I prefer to be successful, but in doing so I must develop a plan to get there. Developing a plan is a major factor in accomplishing any goal you set, including the goals for your beef cow herd. There are some areas where we need to set a high standard in order to be successful. They include:
- Herd Health
- Marketing
- Proper Breeding and Genetics
- Nutrition
Of these, nutrition is one of the most critical areas to manage in a cow/calf operation. Nutrition costs may run as high as 60% of the total herd production expense.
The main management goal is to be efficient and cost effective. One way of accomplishing this is to consider a sound supplemental nutrition program. Nutrition is the key to building and maintaining body condition for optimum beef cow performance. Without proper nutrition, maintaining body condition is nearly impossible to accomplish.
So, what do we need from a good supplemental nutrition program?
It must:
- fit all stages of production
- account for the value of base feedstuffs
- interact among other feeds
- provide an effective method of supplementation
One of the best Kent supplemental nutrition products we offer for the brood cow herd is EnergiLass®.
What is EnergiLass®?
EnergiLass® is a hardened, crystallized blend of molasses solids, fat, protein, minerals, and vitamins. These are 240lb barrels of nutrition containing only 2-4% moisture and NO SALT, no chemical hardeners, and no intake inhibitors – EnergiLass® is 100% nutrition.
There are also cost advantages to using EnergiLass® versus a liquid program or other chemical blocks with hardeners and fillers. This is shown in the EnergiLass® Cost Comparison Calculator below.
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EnergiLass® Cost Comparison Calculator
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| |
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Liquid
Supplement
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Chemical
Block
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EnergiLass®
|
|
INPUTS
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Cost/Ton
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$190.00
|
$350.00
|
$500.00
|
| |
% Water
|
45%
|
25%
|
3%
|
| |
% Binders, Fillers, & Inhibitors
|
10%
|
15%
|
0%
|
| |
Daily Intake (lb/HD/Day)
|
3.00
|
2.00
|
0.75
|
|
RESULTS
|
Pounds of Water/Ton
|
900
|
500
|
60
|
| |
Purchased Dry Matter/Ton
|
1,100
|
1,500
|
1,940
|
| |
Cost/Ton of Dry Matter
|
$345.45
|
$466.67
|
$515.46
|
| |
Cost/Pound of Dry Matter
|
$0.173
|
$0.233
|
$0.258
|
| |
Binder, Fillers, & Inhibitors (lb/Ton)
|
200
|
300
|
0
|
| |
Net Nutrition Purchased (lb/Ton)
|
900
|
1,200
|
1,940
|
| |
Cost/Ton of Nutrition
|
$422.22
|
$583.33
|
$515.47
|
| |
Cost/lb of Nutrition
|
$0.211
|
$0.292
|
$0.258
|
| |
Dry Matter Intake (lb/Hd./Day)
|
1.65
|
1.50
|
0.73
|
| |
Approximate Cost/Hd./Day
|
$0.285
|
$0.350
|
$0.188
|
| |
Approximate Mineral Cost/HD/Day
|
$ –
|
$ –
|
$ –
|
| |
Approximate Total Cost/HD/Day
|
$0.285
|
$0.350
|
$0.188
|
| |
EnergiLass® Savings/HD/Day
|
$0.098
|
$0.163
|
|
| |
Total Saving to Feed EnergiLass®
|
|
|
|
| |
to 100 cows for 120 Days
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$1,176.00
|
$1,956.00
|
|
In conclusion, an overall supplemental protein program using EnergiLass® can be very beneficial to your beef cow herd.
If your cows are on medium-quality to lower-quality forages, consider using EnergiLass® 20 or EnergiLass® 32. With higher quality forages, consider EnergiLass® 12. If you have an interest in these products, please contact your local Kent Feeds dealer to see how you can help your cows lick their way to success!