Browsing by Author "Anttila, Anne"

The aim of this study was to investigate dairy cow performance on faba bean compared to rapeseed meal on silage based diets. Increasing use of grain legumes may improve selfsufficiency of feed protein. The study was conducted at the research farm of University of Helsinki. In the experiment, eight multiparous Finnish Ayrshire cows were used. Four of them were fitted with rumen fistula. In the beginning of the experiment, cows were 100 (± 51) days in milk. Replicated 4x4 Latin square design was used: the other square consisted of cows with rumen fistulas and the other of intact cows. Treatments of the study were concentrate feeds as follows: control (no protein supplement), rapeseed meal, faba bean and mixture of rapeseed meal and faba bean. Concentrates were fed at a rate of 14 kg/d and silage was given ad libitum. Concentrate feeds including protein supplement were isonitrogenous crude protein content being approximately 200 g/kg DM. Protein supplementation increased silage intake (2,4 kg/d) and milk production (1,6 – 4,9 kg/d). Protein supplementation decreased milk fat content (41,2 vs. 45,3 g/kg DM) but increased milk protein content (35,5 vs. 34,3 g/kg). Feed nitrogen utilization to milk, AAT and ME utilizations and ECM yield to feed intake -ratio were decreased on protein supplementation. In this experiment however rapeseed meal did not give responses of same level as was expected according to results of earlier experiments. Diets including faba bean increased silage intake and milk production compared to rapeseed meal diet. Rapeseed meal diet decreased silage intake 2,7 kg and milk yield 2,5 kg compared with faba bean diet. Mixture of rapeseed and faba bean resulted in the highest milk production being 2 kg more than on average on rapeseed meal and faba bean diets. Utilization of ME and ECM yield to feed intake –ratio were increased with rapeseed meal diet. According to this study rapeseed meal as a protein supplement can be substituted by faba bean in dairy cow diets on silage based diets.