SEDALIA, Mo. – Last week, I wrote about differences in rate of gain and the importance of developing appropriate supplements when backgrounding weaned calves. But just because one supplement mix is the most economical today doesn’t mean it will be the most economical in one or two months. Perhaps some ingredients have changed price or are no longer available.
To help sort out changes in ingredient price or availability, MU Extension specialists have developed the MU Beef Supplement Comparison Calculator. The MU Beef Supplement Comparison Calculator is an Excel based spreadsheet designed to compare cost and nutrient composition between two different beef cattle supplements. It is not designed to be a ration balancing program, nor does it contain a multitude of feed ingredients.
The Comparison Calculator allows producers who are using by-product feed-based supplements to compare two supplement options based on various amounts of common grain by-product ingredients. It is to be utilized after a supplement has been formulated to meet animal nutrient requirements based on nutrient analysis of the forages being utilized in a particular feeding regimen.
The spreadsheet calculates the percentage of crude protein, total digestible nutrients, net energy maintenance, net energy gain, calcium, phosphorus and rumen degradable protein in a supplement on an as-fed basis as well as the cost per ton of each supplement option.
The current feed ingredient list is comprised of the following feeds: distiller’s dried grains, corn gluten feed, soybean hulls, wheat midds, corn grain, and 44% and 48% crude protein soybean meal. Additional ingredients may be added on request.
Users of the spreadsheet simply enter the price of each feed ingredient they have available and the pounds of each ingredient in the “Base Supplement Mix” section of the worksheet. Then in the “Optional Supplement Mix” section of the worksheet, producers can enter various amounts of each of the listed ingredient options until they match the nutrient content of the base supplement. A cost comparison of the two supplement options is calculated based on current ingredient prices.
The primary utility of the spreadsheet is to compare energy and protein content of the two supplement options. Ca and P levels for each supplement are calculated, but producers will need to adjust these minerals on their own based on the mineral supplements they have available in their local market.
As feed ingredient prices change, this spreadsheet allows supplement adjustments to be quickly evaluated without re-balancing the entire ration. For a copy of the MU Beef Supplement Comparison Calculator, contact me schmitze@missouri.edu or Dr. Eric Bailey at baileyeric@missouri.edu. We will then e-mail you a copy of the spreadsheet.
