FEBRUARY 08 NEWSLETTER

COMPOUND FEEDS AND BLENDS...

CHECK YOUR FORAGE...

FEED YOUR ANIMALS RIGHT...

ECOSYL...

ECOSYLER ULV APPLICATOR HAS A MAKEOVER...

WET FEEDS...

Market Update

Turmoil in the world market! The blue eyed boys in the city should try the agricultural market and find out what the real world is like. Rising feed costs and shortages of just about everything paints a pretty gloomy picture for the short term.

Shortages of phosphates has affected fertiliser prices, which has now moved onto the mineral market. For every 1% of phosphorous that you have in your mineral, the price could rise by £10 according to the mineral suppliers and all protected fats are affected by spiralling Palm Oil prices. So, you may think, why are we writing this doom and gloom.

Well there is always an upside to GP Feeds. If you want to try us out on our protected fats and minerals please give us a call as we have forward bought well and can offer very competitive prices up to the end of April 2008.

We have Sugarbeet below market price - call 01948 661602 to find out more.

Sugarbeet may be non existent for the summer, but we have tonnage for February, March & April still available at a price below the current imported market price. All you have to do is ring 01948 661602 to see what we can offer you.

We have heard lately of people trying to talk milk prices down! Why? As there is a shortage of milk both locally and worldwide, this seems short sighted at best!

As an example:

China currently contains 21% of the world's population with 30% of that population considered to be affluent. If every child belonging to this affluent population were provided with a glass of milk then the whole of the world milk production would be consumed on a daily basis! There is therefore, clearly an ongoing and sustainable market for the milk that our dairy farmers produce and we believe that far from the milk price coming down it should rise, as other on farm costs surely will.

We want to help as many farmers as we can be in a position where they and their herd can take the maximum benefit from current market forces. Call us on 01948 661602 - it may be the most productive call you make this year!

Compound Feeds and Blends

Just lately we have had quite a few customers coming to GP Feeds because their previous suppliers had changed their formulations without consent (sometime quite dramatically). The original blend or cake these customers had booked was nothing like the products they had recently received and this was affecting the performance of the cows to a detrimental effect.

  • Are your cows performing as well as they should?
  • Has your ration changed without your knowledge?

Remember to keep an eye on your declaration tickets, with the ever changing situation with raw materials - are you getting what you have asked and paid for?

Not getting what you asked for - call GP Feeds today to rectify this!

We stand by what we preach FIXED FORMULATIONS, NO SUBSTITUTIONS even in these volatile markets. We supply you what was agreed at the start of the winter and only change products when you ask us to.

Why not give us a go? What do you have to lose? Give us a call today on 01948 661602 to discuss your requirements and together take your business forward. All we ask is - Do you have a big enough milk tank?

Check Your Forage

With the ever changing markets it is more important than ever to ensure that your animals are getting everything they require. Below are a few questions for you to consider - if you are experiencing any of these problems please give the office a call as we are confident that with our many years experience in all aspects of cow feeding and nutrition we can work with you to sort out the problem.

  1. Are your freshly calved cows peaking to your expectations?
  2. Is overall milk production satisfactory?
  3. Are your cows losing weight?
  4. Are they bulling correctly?
  5. Are the P.D. percentages correct?
  6. Is milk quality satisfactory?
  7. Are your cows eating sufficient silage?
  8. Are you experiencing cow health problems such as milk fever?
  9. Is the percentage of lame cows too high?
  10. Are your dry cows calving down as you would wish?

Feed Your Animals Right

Before silage stocks get low and your animals lose condition. A few points for you to think about:

  • Have your silage analysed, then you can match compounds / blends to fit your needs.
  • Don't compromise heifer growth rates - make sure you have a ration that maintains & improves condition, not to save forage stocks.
  • Under-conditioned animals perform badly when they join the main herd - get it right from the start and save time and money later on.

GP Feeds are here to work with you to achieve better results

Dry Cows Ration faults

  1. Trying to slim dry cows in the dry period
  2. Low quality forage
  3. Poor cow comfort
  4. 'Roughing' it approach
  5. Low vitamin and minerals
  6. Mouldy feeds
  7. One dry group
  8. Wrong diet formulation
  9. The use of milking cow minerals in a dry cow diet

WHAT TO AIM FOR:

Two groups of dry cows with the far off dry cows fed at least a minimum of a high specification mineral tub and some starchy forage as well as ad-lib straw. All cows and heifers to have at least 21 days on a transition diet. Cows should have a body condition score of between 2.5 to 3.0. Thinner cows should be on a transition diet for longer.

Diets should contain similar forages to those fed post calving and either blend or EXCEL DRY COW ROLLS. A high specification mineral should be fed. Our EXCEL DRY COW MINERALS / BUCKETS cover all your mineral and vitamin requirements.

This transition diet should be formulated by a competent nutritionist to check it meets the modern cows requirement. Need advice with any of the above, feel free to ring the office on 01948 661602

Ecosyl

Book your Ecosyl requirements before prices are due to increase...

Ecosyler ULV Applicator Has a Makeover

Yorkshire based forage additive specialist Ecosyl Products has unveiled the new version of its popular Ecosyler ULV silage inoculant applicator ready for the 2008 silage season.

A major design modification is the bringing together of the various components onto a predrilled, robust, lightweight, stainless steel frame, resulting in a smart new appearance and making it even easier to fit and maintain. All electrical and plumbing connections are via quick connectors with most of them already in place when the unit is delivered so fitting, either to the railing or to the body of the harvester, is extremely easy and fast.

The new look includes redesigned molding for better tank shape and, in response to user preference, the control box and pump are once again available as separate units. The pump is now fitted securely into a watertight box attached to the frame to protect it from dust and the elements during operation and postharvest cleandown, while the control box is supplied on a metal backplate to simplify fitting in the cab. A convenient dial, on the side of the control box, allows significant changes in forage harvest rate to be dialed in so that the correct inoculant application rate is maintained. Tonnes or litres per hour and total tonnes treated or litres used can be monitored during harvest via the LED display. There is no danger of running out of inoculant either as the low level indicator will send you visual and audible alerts.

Inoculant application can be operator set to rates from 10 to 50 ml per tonne and the Ecosyler is supplied at a default setting to apply Ecosyl ULV at 20ml, allowing uninterrupted all-day operation with one 20 litre fill treating 1,000 tonnes of silage.

Developed specifically for self-propelled harvesters, the Ecosyler draws on aspects of both agrochemical and medical technology for precision delivery of droplets of inoculant into the up-draft of forage harvesters. Delivering relatively large droplets slowly into the high speed airflow created in the chute of self-propelled machines ensures the inoculant droplets are atomised, giving thorough distribution in the crop.

Wet Feeds

Both Brewers Grains and Supergrains are available again - very popular products which are always in demand.

Brewers Grains

Description: This nutritious feed material is fibrous and contains concentrated sources of protein and oil. It is moist, pale to mid-brown in colour and has a pleasant malty aroma. As with all feeding stuffs, introduce gradually over a 7-14 day period. Brewers Grains comprise an excellent feed for ruminants and contains a good source of digestible fibre and heat-treated protein. Although often used as a forage extender, it provides valuable nutrients, which can also replace concentrate feeds.

Supergrains

Description: Supergrains are a natural moist co-product from the manufacture of grain spirit at the Cameronbridge Distillery. It is a highly nutritious feed for all ruminant stock, being rich in natural protein, energy and yeast residues. Supergrains provide an excellent source of both energy and protein. An additional useful benefit is the oil content which further boosts the energy levels of Supergrains. This superior nutritional profile allows Supergrains to replace some concentrates in the total ration and is particularly useful in silage-based dairy rations. It will also provide great benefit when fed with cereals in beef rations.

Since there is a high level of copper in Supergrains, this product should only be fed to Sheep under professional advice.

If you are interested please contact the office on 01948 661602 to book your requirements, before they sell out again.

QUALITY PRODUCTS FOR QUALITY PRODUCTION

Contact

Gareth or Rachel (Office)
01948 661602 Fax 01948 871776

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