“If you’re an Illinois farmer and you’re not looking at byproducts, you’re missing the boat,” Hutjens said emphatically during the Illinois Dairy Days program held at Eureka College in Woodford County. “We’ve got some winners out there that may reduce the price of feed.”

Distillers dried grains (DDGs), wet corn distillers grain, corn gluten, and pork meat and bone meal are among the byproducts readily available in Illinois for dairy cattle diets that could be used to replace corn, which has doubled in price the past four months, according to Hutjens.

Distillers grains, which are high in protein, fat, energy content, and phosphorus, also could be complemented with cornstalks, which are high in fiber, based on research conducted at South Dakota State University, Hutjens said.

Other corn byproducts that may be available in some areas of the state include corn germ, bran, gluten meal, and modified DDGs, which contain only 3 percent fat.

“The question you have to ask yourselves (as dairymen) is do I have an opportunity in my herd to plug these inexpensive ingredients into my ration,” Hutjens said.

Those who use more byproducts to replace corn should work with a nutritionist to make sure the quality of the feed does not suffer, Hutjens said.

Source: Farm Week