Old question - whole corn vs cracked

[Jeanne - Simme Valley]

Just got the following report from Cornell Extension:

Effect of Corn Processing on Feedlot Performance.

One of the most often asked questions is whether corn should be fed whole or cracked. Dr. Dan Loy, Feedlot Specialist, Iowa State University answered that question with certainty. Speaking at the New York Feeders Conference in Corning, Loy presented data that showed no advantage to processing corn in ADG, dry matter intake or feed efficiency. While seeing corn kernels in the manure is a concern of the feeder, it is obviously not a concern to the steer.
Therefore if the price of corn is increased by processing, cattle feeders are throwing their money away. In rations with low levels of forage (<15%), processing may actually decrease performance due to the effects of increased starch digestion and resulting acidosis.

This reconfirms what my husband has been saying for YEARS.

 

[Bez]

Jeanne

So, I am a cheap guy - low cost, low cost, low cost.

And I may have been correct all along?

:lol:

I am definitely NOT going to get into this discusion again from here on.

Stay well,

Bez

 

[mwj]

Glad you posted the study 8) The visual efect of corn in the manure usually stops most people cold in there tracks :shock: The down side to feeding whole corn is you have to rely on a pellet type suplement if you want to add protien,fat ect. to the ration.
your friend
Mike

 

[jt]

Glad you posted the study 8) The visual efect of corn in the manure usually stops most people cold in there tracks :shock: The down side to feeding whole corn is you have to rely on a pellet type suplement if you want to add protien,fat ect. to the ration.
your friend
Mike

dont know how good is really is, but i think it is ok... but i add whole cottonseed to get the protein up, and this brings up a question about cottonseed..

my cows usually eat them like they are going out of style, but yesterday when i put them out in a light rain, they started, but then would not eat them... could it be because they got a little wet?

baffled me the way they turned their noses up at the cottonseeds????

jt

 

[Tod Dague]

Glad you posted the study 8) The visual efect of corn in the manure usually stops most people cold in there tracks :shock: The down side to feeding whole corn is you have to rely on a pellet type suplement if you want to add protien,fat ect. to the ration.
your friend
Mike

I've added meals and mineral to our whole corn in the past with no problem. Of course I not a feed yard, just a back yard feeder. ;-)

 

[dun]

Our ration has a small % of whole corn, it's primarily corn gluten pellet, soy hull pellet, and whole cottonseed. Even when the pellets get smushy and wet they lick the feeders. I used to make a point of getting all of the puddles out of the feeders before dumping the stuff. With the weather as nasty as it's been all I do now is scoop out the snow and dump the feed.

dun

 

[Medic24]

Our local ag extension agent and I took a tour of a huge cattle operation just yesterday, and I asked the owner about his feeding whole corn, he told us if you start out slow feeding whole corn, in about 10 to 15 days, you will hardly see any corn passing through and into the manure, I assume because of the build up of the right enzymes etc...........any one care to comment?