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Pillars of dairy feed and nutrition

A dairy expert is offering feed strategies for dairy farmers during times of tight margins.

Mike Hutjens with the University of Illinois tells Brownfield dairy farmers can’t control what’s happening in the global dairy industry or the U.S. market, but farmers can control what happens at the farm level.  “We’re looking at what are some of the strategies?”  He says, “Milk prices are marginally really pretty tight right now—feed costs help us a little bit—still the profit line is squeezed really tight here in the Midwest.”

Hutjens says there are four main pillars of dairy feeding and nutrition. He says farmers should never give up milk, build the milk check, remain economical in times of high and low prices, and know the cost of feed.  “Maybe we can’t clip all those coupons, but we’re talking 25 to 30 to 40 cents per pillar if it’s available out there on that dairy farm.”

He says at $16 milk the question for farmers is not only can they compete in times of low prices, but can they make the right management decisions that don’t sacrifice production and long-term performance.

Hutjens spoke with Brownfield during the recent Professional Dairy Producers of Wisconsin’s Business Conference in Madison, Wisconsin.

AUDIO: Interview with Mike Hutjens