New research that proves how cows can increase milk production and cut methane by up to 10 per cent will be unveiled during a field days on a Cobrico farm next week.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
Terragen regional manager Peter Furphy said the free field days event on Thursday, May 16, 2024 would highlight the research which showed how bacteria can get better productivity results in the growing of calves and in cows producing milk.
"We're all about trying to reduce the use of antibiotics and get productivity naturally," Mr Furphy said.
He said the product - MYLO - worked similar to how humans who use probiotic products like Yakult to populate their stomachs with better bacteria.
"Animals have four stomachs and we populate the rumen with better bacteria species," Mr Furphy said.
"And when you have better bacteria species, you can convert all that food into milk or muscle mass that makes the animal much more efficient.
"But the real trick to it is by replacing the species of bacteria in the rumen, we can actually reduce the production of methane by an amount heading towards 10 per cent.
"For farmers, that's not a big deal at this stage but for the milk processors as they go net zero, that's a big deal."
Mr Furphy said almost $1 million had been spent on the research which had been peer reviewed and published in leading international animal journals.
Mr Monk's dairy farm manager Pieter van Heerden said he was excited about the dairy industry's future and the use of innovative products for animals.
He said company vets Dr Joss West and Dr Tom Bayes would be sharing the research with farmers at the field day, and Sam Monk - who uses the product - was opening his farm for the first time to visitors.
"It's a working farm that actually using the product," he said.
Mr Furphy said methane production globally was massive in animal production.
"We're not a silver bullet but we're certainly a very applicable management tool to use," he said.
"The real signs they see is credible growth rates of the calves and increased milk production in the cows and better fertility.
"The thing that farmers like is the increased fertility so we can present cows for insemination significantly earlier."
Also on the day JenTec will discuss its herd data management system.
Katrina Lovell
Katrina Lovell is a senior journalist at The Standard who covers council news and human interest stories.
Katrina Lovell is a senior journalist at The Standard who covers council news and human interest stories.
