Here you’ll find practical steps to balance feed, monitor dry matter intake, manage transition periods, and grow replacements for a resilient herd.
Summary:
Improve feed efficiency to boost milk, fertility, and cow health while reducing emissions and costs.
Balance feed supply and demand
Balance feed and stock, and keep checking your plan.
- Aim for 75–85 kg live weight per tonne of dry matter.
- Calculate CSR as live weight per hectare vs annual feed available.
- Use CSR to keep feed supply and demand in balance.
- Review your feed budget regularly.
- Adjust plans based on cow condition.
- Avoid spending money where it’s not needed.
What you can do
- Balance feed supply and demand.
- Use tools like CSR to support decision‑making to get the best outcomes for your cows.
Optimise dry matter intake (DMI)
Feed well, water often, give space, and keep cows in good condition.
- Offer fresh, leafy pasture or good silage/crops.
- Balance pasture intake with supplements when needed.
- Match feed to cows’ energy requirements.
- Ensure easy access to clean, fresh water at all times.
- Water helps cows digest feed and absorb nutrients.
- Allow space and time for feeding and rumination.
- Provide comfortable surfaces for lying down.
- Rest saves energy for milk production.
- Keep cows at a healthy BCS for better feed intake.
- Work with a farm advisor for feed planning and management.
What you can do
- Ensure cows meet their target body condition score.
- Aim for a BCS of 5, this supports better reproductive outcomes.
Manage transition
Keep cows eating, understand the factors, and plan with expert help.
- Focus on maintaining appetite during the 3 weeks before and after calving.
- Good nutrition and DMI in this period sets the season’s production, reproduction, and health.
- DMI intake depends on many linked factors, including:
- BCS and loss rates at calving
- Nutritional demand and appetite
- Feed allocation and efficiency
- Rumen health and capacity
- Cow comfort and management
- Metabolic diseases (milk fever, ketosis, immune issues)
- Talk to your vet or nutritionist for the best transition plan.
- Use expert advice to manage nutrition and cow health effectively.
What you can do
- Use DairyNZ’s tools to identify, monitor and improve BCS scores.
Manage replacements
Grow strong heifers, track progress, and plan for future success.
- Grow well-developed dairy heifers for a stronger, more productive herd.
- Heifers with good growth produce more milksolids and have better fertility.
- A healthy herd supports long-term farm sustainability.
- At 60 days before calving, aim for 90% of mature cow live weight.
- Match frame size to mature cows.
- Keep accurate calving and mating records to track Breeding Worth (BW).
What you can do
- Learn about the traits of highly efficient cows.
- Identify these traits within your herd.
- Understand the value of accurate animal evaluation for herd resilience.
Monitor and weigh
Feed well, track weights, and adjust as needed.
- Provide good nutrition and regular weighing.
- Monitor growth yourself or through your grazier.
- Include weight targets and weighing reports in grazing contracts.
- Adjust feeding plans based on monitoring results.
What you can do
- Weigh replacement calves and heifers every 6–8 weeks from birth.
- Check progress against target weights.
- Adjust feeding to meet mating and first‑calving targets.
Adapt feed to the season
Adjust feed for seasons and cow condition.
- Plan feed for every season – cows’ needs change throughout the year.
- Consider age and health when setting feed levels.
What you can do
- Monitor rising temperatures and adverse weather.
- Adjust cows’ feed requirements as conditions change.
What's the opportunity for your farm?
Productivity, Profitability and Sustainability.
Productivity
- Feed cows well to turn feed into more milk.
- Even a 1% improvement can add 25 kgMS per cow.
- Well-fed cows are healthier, live longer, and resist disease.
Profitability
- Improve feed efficiency to cut costs per kgMS.
- Use the same feed more effectively for better milk returns.
- Better nutrition means higher margins without extra feed.
Sustainability
- More milk per cow with no extra inputs reduces emissions.
- Avoid feed waste for environmental benefits.
- Healthier cows mean better reproduction and longer life.
Need help right now with nutrition? Talk to us
Customer Service Team
Our Farmer Support Team is available 24/7 for urgent help and immediate guidance.
Local support
The My Co‑op app has contact details for your local Farm Source team for more complex issues.
Chat in person
Your Farm Source store is there for local face‑to‑face support with our team. They’re always happy to help.