Hay Feeders Featured at Ag Expo
7/2/09
Contact: Beth Stuever
517-432-1555, ext. 105
or
Dan Buskirk
517-432-0400
EAST LANSING, Mich. -- Improving wasteful habits can ultimately lower the cost of feed inputs for livestock producers -- especially hay.
“Hay is too expensive to waste,” says Dan Buskirk, Michigan State University (MSU) Extension beef production specialist. “Using a well-designed hay feeder can be the difference between a profitable feed management system and leaving money on the ground.”
Buskirk is one of a dozen expert speakers who will take part in Profitable Environmental Options for Livestock Producers July 21, the first day of Ag Expo at MSU.
“Managing hay waste can help keep feed costs in line while better managing forage nutrients and preventing environmental problems,” he says.
Buskirk will show examples of hay feeders as well as discussing which options are best for various types of farms.
Excessive round-bale feed waste increases feed costs, pests, pathogen loads and concentration of feed nutrients around the feeding site. Buskirk notes that purchasing new feeders is not always the best way of controlling costs and keeping depreciation expenses low, but the cost of hay waste can be substantial, especially when the hay price is relatively high.
Profitable Environmental Options for Livestock Producers will feature demonstrations at 10 a.m., 11:30 a.m. and 1 p.m. July 21 at the Beef Cattle Research and Teaching Center, at 3200 Bennett Road, Lansing, less than a mile from the main Ag Expo site. Transportation to the center will be available from Ag Expo, and parking is also available at the center. Other presentations include Improving Pasture and Hayground, Manure Slurry-Enriched Seeding, The Basics of Low-stress Cattle Handling, Grazing Management for Riparian Areas, Watering Systems for Grazing, Managing Beef Winter Feeding Sites to Protect the Environment and Save Fertilizer Dollars and Controlling Silage Leachate.
Ag Expo features commercial farm equipment from throughout the Midwest and several Canadian provinces on the 35-acre main exhibition site and the 40-acre field demonstration area, as well as educational exhibits from several MSU colleges and departments. It runs from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. July 21 and 22, and 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. July 23. Admission to the grounds and parking at Farm Lane and Mt. Hope Road are free. Because of the construction on Farm Lane, the Ag Expo parking area and grounds will be accessible only from Mt. Hope Road. For more information about Ag Expo, call 800-366-7055.
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