More alfalfa hay being fed to milk cows |
| By Seth Hoyt |
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The California Department of Food and Agriculture Dairy Marketing Branch reported that alfalfa fed to milk cows in California in the fourth quarter of 2016 was 8.64 pounds per head per day; this compares to 7.93 pounds the previous quarter and 8.53 pounds in the fourth quarter of 2015. Concentrate fed to milk cows in the fourth quarter of 2016 was 30.53 pounds per head per day, compared to 30.08 pounds the previous year.
While the price of Supreme alfalfa hay delivered to Central California was $25 to $30 per ton lower in the fourth quarter of 2016 versus the previous year, another factor for higher hay and concentrate usage appears to be the amount of corn silage available. USDA reported that corn silage production in California in 2016 was down 13 percent on 60,000 fewer acres. Corn silage fed to Holstein milk cows in California during the fourth quarter of 2016 was 24.89 pounds per head per day, compared to 27.17 pounds in the fourth quarter of 2015. |
