The effect of rate of inclusion of processed, urea-treated whole-crop wheat on the intake and milk production and apparent digestibility in dairy cows

Abstract

The development of a forage processor that grinds the grains in whole-crop wheat (WCW) prior to ensiling has been shown to improve whole tract digestibility of the starch component and improve the efficiency of forage utilisation (Jackson et al. 2004). This allows wheat to be harvested over a much wider harvest window than was previously possible. Further work (Bond et al., 2004) demonstrated that animals fed processed, urea-treated WCW harvested at 700 g dry matter (DM) per kg had a significantly higher milk yield than those fed fermented WCW harvested at approximately 450 g DM/kg, or urea-treated WCW harvested at approximately 850 g DM/kg. Previously, processed, urea-treated WCW for dairy cows has been included at 0.67 of the forage DM intake, although, the optimal inclusion rate of processed WCW is unclear. The objective of the current experiment was to investigate the effect of rate of inclusion of processed, urea-treated WCW on the performance and apparent digestibility in dairy cows.

Intake, performance and carcass characteristics of beef cattle offered diets based on whole-crop wheat or forage maize relative to grass silage or ad libitum concentrates

“…Despite the maize silage having a higher in vitro DMD than the fermented WCW, their similar intakes can also be explained by the compensating effect of the higher DM concentration in the fermented WCW. Intakes of FWCW and UPWCW were not different, in accord with the results of Bond et al (2004) and Owens et al (2006). This reflects their similar fibre content and chop length.…”

“…The lack of an improvement in animal performance from the UPWCW compared to MS and FWCW, despite it being a high starch feed with a relatively high intake, is in general agreement with a number of other studies (Hameleers, 1998;Sinclair et al, 2005;Patterson and Kilpatrick, 2005;Burke et al, 2007). Although there is a lack of published literature reporting the feeding of UPWCW to finishing steers, in experiments with dairy cows, Bond et al (2004) found a lift in milk yield but not in milk solids with urea-treated, processed WCW compared to fermented WCW. Burke et al (2007) also found a disappointing response in performance (milk yield) relative to the increased DMI for urea-treated, processed WCW, particularly when compared to that achieved from maize silage.…”

“…Both the fermented WCW and urea-treated, processed WCW were harvested at the target DM contents of N350 and N 550 g DM/kg, respectively (Sutton et al, 2002, Bond et al, 2004. Despite having a similar proportion of grain in the plant, the urea-treated, processed WCW had a higher starch concentration than the fermented WCW.…”