Feed is the largest cost center for dairy and livestock producers, and it affects animal health, productivity, and overall profitability

The catch phrase for the dairy industry in 2025 has been “7 pounds of components.” This term has been gaining traction as the new goal for milk production

University of Illinois Professor Emeritus Mike Hutjens was the presenter on the Hoard’s Dairyman May webinar, speaking on strategies to achieve a component goal of 7 pounds of milkfat and protein

In April, a group of dairy nutrition professionals from various parts of our industry gathered to discuss one topic — dairy ration optimization

Starch inclusion in the ration provides readily available digestible energy for dairy cattle

Mentors are gifts. I have many in my professional and personal life and I hope you do as well. If you don’t, you should find some

The word mycotoxin is often talked about in the same way that one would talk about bad news — and it can be for dairy farmers

It is now standard operating procedure for dairy producers to think about shrink in silages

Research telling us that long forage particles in the ration cause problems continues to accumulate

A few weeks ago, at the Penn State Dairy Nutrition Workshop, I asked the audience what their choice would be between Forage A containing a “fiber degradation rate” (Kd) equal to 2.6% per hour...

As the world population continues to grow, farmers are faced with the synonymous demand of producing more with less

Phosphorus feeding levels for transition cows has been a topic of discussion for some time now as our previous standards have been challenged with new research

In our industry, we often use the terms “diet” and “ration” interchangeably

In the Feeding Fundamentals column and throughout invited talks or seminars, we tend to cover a lot of ground

Depending on available sources of starch and sugar, diets for dairy cows might look quite different across the country

Strategies to mitigate greenhouse gas emissions have been widely sought after by many industry sectors

When a disease organism hitches a ride on an object, feed particle, another animal, bodily fluid, or the air to find and infect a new host, dairy farmers pay the price for that journey

With an improved All-Milk price and lower commodity prices compared to much of last year, dairy farmers’ pocketbooks are feeling less squeezed so far in 2024

In the 8th edition of Nutrient Requirements of Dairy Cattle, the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine (also known as NASEM) put more emphasis on forage neutral detergent fiber (NDF)...

Feeding cows in a way that maximizes production and income over feed costs starts with a healthy rumen