Farm Contractor & Large Scale Farmer
    Twitter LinkedIn
    • FREE Email Newsletters
    • About Us
    • Advertise
    • Subscribe
    • Contact Us
    Twitter LinkedIn
    Podcast
    Farm Contractor & Large Scale Farmer
    • News
      • Arable & Agronomy
      • Dealership News
      • Environmental Land Management Scheme/Policy
      • Event News
      • Health & Safety
      • Machinery
      • People
      • World News
    • Farm Machinery
      • Amenity & Maintenance
      • Cultivations
      • Drilling
      • Grassland Equipment
      • Harvesting
      • Muck & Slurry
      • Sprayers
      • Telehandlers
      • Tractors
      • Tractor of the Year
      • Tyres & Tracks
      • Whatever happened to?
    • Precision Farming
    • Markets & Policy
    • Profiles
      • National Arable and Grassland Awards
      • Company Profiles
      • Reader Profiles
    • Livestock
      • Beef
      • Dairy
      • Sheep
    • Magazines
      1. June 2025 issue
      2. Cereals event guide 2025
      3. May 2025 issue
      4. April 2025 issue
      5. March 2025 issue
      6. 2025 Tyre Developments supplement
      7. February 2025 issue
      8. National Arable and Grassland Awards supplement
      9. January 2025 issue
      10. December 2024 issue
      11. November 2024 issue
      12. October 2024 issue
      13. September 2024 issue
      14. August 2024 Issue
      15. 2024 Drills and Seeds supplement
      16. July 2024 Issue
      17. Cereals Supplement
      18. June 2024 Issue
      19. May 2024 Issue
      20. April 2024 Issue
      21. Tyres and Tracks Supplement
      22. March 2024 Issue
      23. National Arable & Grassland Award – Meet the Finalists
      24. February 2024 Issue
      25. January 2024 Issue
      26. December 2023
      27. Agritechnica Preview Supplement
      28. November 2023
      29. October 2023
      Featured

      Cereals event guide 2025 available now

      By Matthew TiltJune 20, 2025
      Recent

      Cereals event guide 2025 available now

      June 20, 2025

      June 2025 issue available now

      June 2, 2025

      May 2025 issue available now

      May 1, 2025
    • Events
    • Podcast
    Farm Contractor & Large Scale Farmer
    Dairy

    Energy boost for high yielders improves feed efficiency

    John SwireBy John SwireOctober 16, 20193 Mins Read
    Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Email

    Cargill Animal Nutrition has introduced the energy boosting feed product Turbopro® to its range this autumn (2019). A blend of rumen protected B-vitamins and palatability enhancers, it has been shown to improve milk production by 1.8kg per day in early lactation and by 1.2kg per day in mid lactation.

    Turbopro is added to minerals or in feed and recommended for high yielding cows producing more than 29 litres of milk per day in early or mid lactation.  Its main function is to support glucose production in the liver.

    “Propionate is a fatty acid produced in the rumen that, in the liver, is synthesised into glucose,” says Cargill ruminant technical manager Philip Ingram. “We know that 85% of gluconeogenesis occurs in the liver, and that glucose is the main energy source used in milk production. So, if the efficiency of this process is improved there will be more energy made available for milk production.”

    A key component of Turbopro is the rumen-protected B-vitamins. This additional supply of B-vitamins is available in the intestine of the cow for key functions such as milk production, health, fertility and maintenance.

    “Unprotected B vitamins can be digested in the rumen, for example only about 2% of standard vitamin B passes through the rumen, as opposed to 60% of the supplemented rumen-protected vitamin B,” adds Dr Ingram. “High yielding cows can benefit from additional amounts of this vitamin.”

    Cargill trials on more than 1,000 dairy cows have shown improvements in milk production where Turboprop has been added to diets of milking cows from early lactation. Results have also shown that an improvement of 1.2kg per day of milk in mid lactation did not significantly affect fat or protein production.

    Turbopro can be fed to all lactating cows and it is a ideal follow on to Cargill’s LiFT™ that is fed to cows three weeks pre calving to prime the liver for better energy management and help to reduce ketone production – that affects intakes – and improve how the liver processes fat from body reserves.

    “Nutritionists and dairy producers are encouraged to look beyond the rumen when it comes to improving feed efficiency in our milking herd,” says Dr Ingram. “Improving how efficiently the diet is used by the cow, rather than adding more high value feed inputs, will increase feed conversion in the cow.”

    Turbopro has been shown to provide a return on investment of 5:1 based on a milk price of 25ppl, or 6:1 based on a milk price of 30ppl.

    Tweet
    Share
    Share
    Pin
    Share. Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Email
    Previous ArticleLower carcase weights are not an issue for Charolais users
    Next Article Discovery of diagrams after ten years boosts eastern European sales
    John Swire

    Read Similar Stories

    Funded vet visits to help farmers tackle endemic diseases

    June 26, 2025

    Spread-a-Bale launches new high performance spreader

    June 23, 2025

    Cereals event guide 2025 available now

    June 20, 2025
    Most Read Stories

    Pressure builds to reverse inheritance tax plans

    June 30, 2025

    Defra doubles funding to tackle agricultural pollution

    June 30, 2025

    Agrovista acquires Zantra Holdings Ltd

    June 30, 2025
    Farm Contractor & Large Scale Farmer

    The UK's leading agricultural machinery journal

    Twitter LinkedIn
    © 2024 MA Agriculture Ltd, a Mark Allen Group company

    Privacy Policy | Cookies Policy | Terms & Conditions

    • Farmers Weekly
    • AA Farmer
    • Poultry News
    • Pig World

    Type above and press Enter to search. Press Esc to cancel.