“There remains a lot of uncertainty as to where milk prices are headed for the remainder of the year and for next year,” writes Bob Cropp. “Until the coronavirus comes much more under control and things return more to normal, the demand for dairy products will be depressed.”
A recent article by Dairy Herd’s Jim Dickrell reviewed the United States Department of Agricultural Research Report from July 2020.
“While not totally surprising, a new study shows almost a two-fold difference in the total economic cost of producing milk between the nation’s smallest and largest dairy farms.”
Abstract from Consolidation in U.S. Dairy Farming by James M. MacDonald, Jonathan Law, and Roberto Mosheim
“The number of licensed U.S. dairy herds fell by more than half between 2002 and 2019, with an accelerating rate of decline in 2018 and 2019, even as milk production continued to grow. As a result, production has been shifting to much larger but fewer farms. Larger operations realize lower costs of production, on average, and those advantages persist. This structural change also features shifts in the location of dairy farming and in the production practices used on farms. This report, following upon two earlier ERS reports on the subject, details how the dairy sector has been transformed, and assesses the financial and productive factors behind that transformation.”
With Fall just around the corner, do you have a harvest date on your schedule? Do you estimate your harvest date by calculating the days after pollination and running plant moisture samples, or another time-tested method?
“Proper harvest timing is key when it comes to storing high quality corn silage,” says Casey Guindon, an educator in field and forage crops at Penn State University. Guindon recommends harvesting at a moisture level of 65%, or 35% dry matter, depending on the type of ensiling system you plan to use. “At this moisture content, the silage can be adequately compressed, and the oxygen is removed more quickly,” she says.
Another way to estimate the timing at which the corn is right is to calculate the number of days after pollination, according to Emily Carolan, a territory manager for Pioneer Seeds. This can helpful in providing an idea as to when to run plant moisture samples.
“Harvest over as short a time frame as possible,” recommends Donna Amaral-Phillips, an extension professor at the University of Kentucky. “Quality and consumption drops off after [you reach] 40% dry matter.”
Click here to read the full article by Dairy Herd’s Taylor Leach.
“Milk pricing in the U.S. is incredibly complicated. One particular feature of milk pricing that always seems to rub dairy farmers the wrong way is negative producer price differentials – a line item on the dairy farmer’s milk check that reduces the mailbox milk price. Negative PPDs occur when the classified value of milk in the Federal Milk Marketing Order pool is less than the component value of milk, resulting in a reduced minimum regulated milk price. In June 2020, negative PPDs across the U.S. were expected to be record large because of COVID-19-related price volatility, a recent change to FMMO milk pricing formulas in the 2018 farm bill, and mass de-pooling of milk, i.e., Negative PPDs to Offset Milk Price Rally.”
John Newton, Ph.D. of American Farm Bureau Federation writes about how FMMO reform is long overdue, but even more overdue is giving farmers a say in how their milk is priced and pooled. Read the full article on Revisiting Record-Large Negative PPDs on Milk Checks at American Farm Bureau Federation’s website.
Cover crops are a great resource for helping to capture soil nutrients, preserve moisture and generally improve soil health, but they can also lend a huge hand in feed production.
“There are plants that we’ve considered as nothing more than a cover crop that we’re actually finding feeds really, really well for dairy cattle,” says Brendon Blank, a Certified Forage Specialist with Byron Seed. “I think there is a lot that has been overlooked when it comes to feeding cover crops because we have our tunnel vision focused on corn silage and alfalfa.”
Check out the full article from Dairy Herd’s Taylor Leach to learn more about the Environmental and Nutritional Benefits of cover crops.
If you aren’t using cover crops in your feed production, please contact us to see if it might be a good fit. We can help formulate a nutrition plan that fits your herd.
Dr. Mike Hutjens shares ideas and strategies for boosting dairy producers’ bottom line.
Managing the transition period can have a significant impact on future dairy cow performance. Check out this great article from FeedStrategy’s Helen Warren including a link to July’s Feed Strategy Digital Magazine and learn how nutrition can help reduce metabolic disorders in transition cows.
What’s been “eye-popping” about the current market rally, said Joel Karlin, market analyst for Western Milling in Goshen, is that prices for cheese in 40-pound blocks went from $1.60 a pound to a floor of $1, and then rebounded to a record $2.50 in the space of five weeks. Rarely have block cheese prices reached such high levels, he noted.
In a recent report by University of Guelph researchers C.D. Havekes, T.F. Duffield, A.J. Carpenter and T.J. DeVries it was determined that, “supplementing a molasses-based liquid feed in high-straw dry cow diets may improve feed intake and consistency in nutrients consumed during the dry period and in early lactation as well as possibly promoting better rumen health across the transition period.”
To learn more, check out this recent article by FeedStuff’s Tim Lundeen
