Andrew Borland at Laigh Castleton has seen tremendous results since introducing alkaline ALpHA Barley to both its milking and finishing units.
The 160-cow dairy herd is fed a simple silage TMR with Alpha Barley and has seen a significant improvement in milk quality, with butterfat now at 5.1% and milk protein at 3.5%. Meanwhile, in the finishing unit at Warwickdale, cattle are fed a simple ration containing 90% Alpha Barley and they achieve impressive average liveweight gains of 2kg/head/day, over the total finishing period of 90 days.
Andrew attributes these results to ALpHA barley and its ability to improve rumen stability and dung condition, which gives him the confidence to feed higher levels of cereal for maximum performance and milk quality.
“These are the best milk butterfat and protein levels that we have ever had, and our milk quality bonus payments have made all the difference”, says Andrew. “I am also over the moon with how the finishers are performing on such a simple, low-cost ration. I used to sell cattle as stores, but now I finish everything which provides another valuable income stream to my business.”
