SUSTAINABILITY 84 FEED & ADDITIVE MAGAZINE September 2024 FORMULATION STRATEGIES VistaPre-T can be easily formulated into the total ration to save cost. In dairy diets, it can generate approximately 10 MJ of additional energy (coming from 0.8 MJ energy uplift per kg of forage DM, given a cow consumes 12.5kg of forage DM per day on average). This extra energy is equivalent to 300g of protected fat per cow/day. A study was performed in the UK involving 147 Holstein-Friesian dairy cows. After assigning the energy uplift value to VistaPre-T, the least-cost reformulation allowed a reduction in the ground maize, molasses and protected fat usage, while adding more grass silage. In addition to a 9% increase in milk yield with no effect on milk composition, VistaPre-T usage resulted in a 15% reduction in the carbon footprint of fat and protein corrected milk. VistaPre-T can also be applied on the top of the ration to enable extra energy supply and improved performance. In a separate study, 350 milking cows maintained as one group were fed a maize and grass silage-based ration, with VistaPre-T applied on the top of the ration. The average milk yield (kg/cow/day) in the pre-trial period and after feeding VistaPre-T was recorded and indicated increased milk yield in every stage of lactation. CONCLUSION Improving feed efficiency is a viable route to reducing emissions from ruminants and supporting the sustainability of livestock production. Forage plays an important part here; its unique “upcycling” role allows for the use of resources that would not be consumed otherwise, thus reducing the competition for other energy sources, such as corn, wheat and barley. Additional supplementation, such as VistaPre-T, should be considered to enable greater fibre utilisation and increase home-grown forage usage – boosting efficiency and reducing emissions, for more environmentally friendly and profitable production. 1512 1550 1500 1450 1400 1350 1300 1250 1200 1150 1283 Control NET Grams CO2e/kg of milk Treatment Figure 3. Calculated net grams of CO2 equivalent per kg of fat and protein corrected milk of dairy cows. Farm Footprint model, by Sustain Intellync. About Virginie Blanvillain Rivera Born and raised in France, Virginie Blanvillain Rivera lives in Quebec, Canada. She developed an international experience in the animal feed industry by working in research and development, technology transfer, nutrition and quality assurance. Over the past years, she has been actively involved in the development and implementation of innovative tools and services for nutritionists, producers, integrators and feed mills. She provides training and technical support to the AB Vista network worldwide, while leading the development and continuous improvement of NIR, carbon emissions and lab services. Lactation stage Transition Kg of milk produced 43.5 41.5 39.5 37.5 35.5 33.5 31.5 29.5 27.5 Early +3.3% +7% +7% +4.7% Mid Late Before VistaPre-T After VistaPre-T Average milk yield increase with VistaPre-T per lactation stage. Transition: 0-50 days in milk (DIM), Early: 51-100 DIM, Mid: 101-200, Late: 201-400. Figure 4. Average milk yield increase with VistaPre-T per lactation stage.
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