An "Alternative" Feed?

[MikeC]

Sweet Potato Meal versus Ground Corn in the Ration of Dairy Cows1
Jennings B. Frye, Jr., John H. Thomason and Herbert B. Henderson
Dairy Department, University of Georgia, Athens

ABSTRACT

A comparative study of the effect of ground snapped white corn and sweet potato meal on the liveweight and milk and butterf at production of dairy cows was conducted during the spring and summer of 1946. Analysis of variance revealed no significant differences in the milk and butterfat production or in the liveweights of cows when the sweet potato meal or corn constituted 36 per cent of the concentrate mixture. The sweet potato meal was as palatable as the ground corn when each of these concentrates constituted 36 per cent of the concentrate mixture. No excessive or objectionable laxative effect upon the digestive system of the cows was noted when they were fed the sweet potato meal mixture. The cows fed the sweet potato meal had a sleeker, brighter hair coat than did those fed the corn ration.

Sweet potatoes produce TONS per acre, but I have questions of how expensive it would be to dry and grind sweet potatoes.

Anyone ever done this?

 

[somn]

Makes me wonder why there is that much white corn in Georgia that they feed it to Dairy cows in the first place.

 

[bigbull338]

your right the cost to dry the sweet taters will be pretty high.as for cutting them up.a TMR mixer might cut them up i dont know.i know this theres alot of cull sweet taters.i wonder if a chipper would chop them up.

 

[ALX.]

I wouldn't put too much weight on 1946 data.

 

[dun]

your right the cost to dry the sweet taters will be pretty high.as for cutting them up.a TMR mixer might cut them up i dont know.i know this theres alot of cull sweet taters.i wonder if a chipper would chop them up.

We used to grow mangles and run them throw one of the chipper shredder deals. Had to run them trough a couple of times to get the chunks fairly small. It was a mess and made a mash out of a lot of eat beet. It wasn;t a great solution, but it served the purpose of energy with P-poor hay.

 

[MikeC]

I wouldn't put too much weight on 1946 data.

1946 data is just as valid as research done today. This ain't exactly atomic energy research..... ;-)

I'd bet a silage cutter would chop sweet taters, you then could run them through a propane drier.

 

[Red Bull Breeder]

Just chopem up real good and don't worry about the drying. Old timers around here wood cut up turnips and feed them to cows.

 

[pdfangus]

Just chopem up real good and don't worry about the drying. Old timers around here wood cut up turnips and feed them to cows.

I have always tossed turnips to the cows. don't even need to cut em up. The cows learn how to bite em and pop em in half and then they are history.

I would think a sweet potato would be a simple matter for a cow as well. should not need any processing other than for equal distribution purposes.

 

[ALX.]

I wouldn't put too much weight on 1946 data.

1946 data is just as valid as research done today. This ain't exactly atomic energy research..... ;-)

Well, we'll just disagree there and leave it at that. :lol:
They appear to be an interesting alternative, I'd like to see a modern trial on them.

If fed to feeders what are the effects on marbling, taste, texture. Sorta like the corn versus barley finishing questions.

 

[TexasBred]

Might work very well...only problem is that I doubt there is a surplus of sweet potatoes to be found anywhere and even if you did it would be hard to come up with enough of them to feed them day in and day out. Hate to waste a good sweet potato on the cows anyway. Just too good baked and butter added. "Music Roots" my dad always called them.

 

[alabama]

Mike I bet the cost of waist sweet taters might be low but the cost of drying may be high with the cost of fuel. If you can find a way to store them without drying you may be on to something.
I guess you could sun dry them but that would be mighty labor intensive.
You may be able to chop them and dry in a peanut wagon with a blower?

 

[Dave]

I don't know about sweet potatoes but when regular old taters get cheap there are lots of them that get fed to cattle in the northwest. In fact there are large feedlots near all the French fry factories that feed lots of potato waste as their base for their ration.

A few years back a friend who has a dairy farm was getting a semi load of taters every week or so. He just put them into the mixer wagon and chopped them up that way. Said the cows loved them and it sure cheapened up his ration. That isn't happening now because tater prices are also at a record high.

If storage is the issue I think rather than dry them it would be cheaper to chop them and make sweet potato silage.

 

[ScottP]

here's a video on using alternative feeds(though not as alternative as sweet potatos ) and rationing to feed cattle:

http://www.24-7agtv.com/Joomla/index.php?option=com_seyret&Itemid=1&task=videodirectlink&id=75