The effect of offering a brewers grains/treated straw supplement to grazing dairy cows

In a two-year study, set stocked dairy cows were offered a mixture of brewers grains and sodium hydroxide-treated straw (1:1 on a dry matter basis)for 1 h daily. The experiments lasted for 20 and 19 weeks, mean supplementary (buffer) feed dry matter intakes were 3·0 and 3·4 kg d^-1 and mean sward heights (rising plate meter) were 4·9 and 4·7 cm in 1988 and 1989 respectively. The control group received no supplementation. The buffer feed significantly increased milk yield (26·3 vs 24·6 kg d^-1 and 28·6 vs 26·3kg d^-1 in 1988 and 1989 respectively), increased liveweight gain (0·27 vs 0·13 kg d^-1 and 0·27 vs 0·17 kg d^-1) and increased effective stocking rate (5·17 vs 4·69 cows ha^-1and 5·10 vs 4·53 cows ha^-1). There were no significant effects on milk composition. The greatest responses in milk production were found in the late grazing season.