Additives, when used on your grass, maize or wholecrop, can help produce better-quality feed and improved animal performance amongst various other benefits.
However, additives are not a one size fits all solution. As stated by Dr Simon Pope, crop protection manager at Wynnstay, different additives are used for different jobs, but generally they “help to improve fermentation, reduce dry matter losses, ensure less protein breakdown and give you more palatable silage that is of a higher feed value”.
Dr Pope adds: “An additive should be expected to pay for itself many times over”. He suggests that the ‘costs of growing and ensiling forage are high and the use of an appropriate additive not only helps to protect the investment, but also produces good returns.”
In 15 independent dairy trials, cows fed a range of silages treated with Ecosyl yielded an average of an additional 1.2 litres of milk per cow per day compared with untreated silage.
Likewise, in beef trials, grass silage made with Ecosyl resulted in an average improvement in daily liveweight gain of 15.2%.
The benefits of using additives on their silage are considered “an important part of forage management” at companies like Wynnstay. The use of products like Volac’s Ecosyl and Ecocool at harvest can “help a fast and efficient fermentation, which reduces losses and produces high-feed value silage which improves animal performance” explains Dr Pope.
The crop protection manager goes on to explain Ecosyl’s main role is to “improve the efficiency of the fermentation by delivering one million highly effective lactic acid producing bacteria per gram of forage treated”.
Meanwhile, Ecocool contains “the same MTD/1 strain of lactic bacteria acid found in Ecosyl which dominates the fermentation, but it also contains a second species which improves aerobic stability of higher dry matter forages”.
Wynnstay currently has an offer on Ecosyl and Ecocool; until 31st January customers will get one bottle free with every 5 bottles ordered and the additive will not be delivered until the date specified on the order.
For more information go to www.wynnstay.co.uk
