How Do Calf Milk Replacers Differ?
Whilst most calf milk powders look the same the quality of ingredients vary enormously. It is very
difficult to distinguish between a quality product and a budget product made to a price. A wide range
of ingredients can be used including skim, casein, buttermilk, whey, whey protein concentrate, soya and
wheat, potato, pea protein concentrates together with a wide range of fats and oils. The cheapest milk
powders available are about half the price of the best quality products. The ticket declarations are
of little help and all product have a similar appearance - a creamy white powder.
Whey and vegetable proteins are much cheaper but skim, casein and buttermilk based products are digested much more efficiently. This is due to there ability to form a clot in the abomasum. The pH around the clot is at very low pH allowing pepsin to diet the milk very efficiently over 12 - 14 hours. Different sources of skim, or whey can vary enormously in feed value depending on how they were produced and how much was protein was denatured during the drying process. Generally the higher the level of milk products in the milk powder the better.
The
difficulty of distinguishing a quality calf milk powder from a budget product has meant that it has been
much easier for manufacturers to sell products made to a price. Not surprisingly then most of the UK
market is for whey and vegetable protein based products which contain no skim, casein or buttermilk.
Whey and vegetable protein products are generally lower in energy and are digested less well. This can
result in faster uptake of dry feed. These low cost calf milk replacers do have a place. However generally
we see better growth rates with far fewer health problems when 'high quality' milk powders are used rather
than calf powders made to a price.
Most Cost Effective for Rearing Calves?
So which is the most cost effective route? Well it depends. It depends on the rearing system that you are using and on your expectations. Are you producing a replacement heifer, the future of your herd? Are you producing a beef calf that you want to top the market? Are you producing a beef animal destined for slaughter? Are you contracting rearing to a price?
Our view is that whilst the best products are twice the price of some budget products, you largely get what you pay for. Higher quality products can be fed at higher rates earlier without causing nutritional scour. Thus higher live weight gains can be achieved. The better products give better results and can often be cheaper to use due to faster growth rates, lower mortality, lower vet bills, earlier weaning, lower powder usage per calf and higher lifetime yields.
I
have seen dairy units producing bull calves to sell at a few weeks old, halve their powder and straw
usage, halve their stocking rate, dramatically reduce labour costs, vet bills and mortality and improve
there sale price simply by switching to a better milk powder.
Equally there is no question that dairy heifer replacement calves which get off to a good start are capable of producing higher lifetime milk yields and that replacement cost per litre can be reduced by doing calves better.
Feeding top quality milk replacer is often costs less overall
RWN Calf Milk Replacers
Richard Webster Nutrition supplies a range of calf milk powders selected from several different manufacturers. We have a clear preference for using high quality milk powders, not the cheapest but which give exceptional results and which are extremely cost effective.
Shine Calf Milk Range
Shine
is the No. 1 calf milk replacer brand in Northern Ireland and the fastest growing brand in the UK. Shine
is backed by the most experienced calf nutrition personnel in the UK from Bonanza
Calf Nutrition. Shine
products are made with a wide range of milk ingredients including butter milk and skim milk powder. They
also use whey protein concentrate (wpc), concentrated milk lactoserum and whey. All ingredients are co
dried to ensure easy mixing, maximum protein digestibility and uniformity. Shine milk replacers also
contain yogurt powder, polyclonal antibodies and inactive yeast as MOS and are acidified.
Download the Shine Range Leaflet
SHINE the only milk replacer
to look after their long-term health
and your long-term wealth
Shine Once a Day calf milk powder
This is the 'Rolls Royce' of calf milk replacers and does not contain any vegetable proteins. It can be fed twice a day if you prefer and will give supreme performance in all situations. Ideal for rearing replacement heifers or where better than average performance is required.
The pioneer of once a day feeding and with butter and skim milk powder, it can be fed with water or milk to reduce your work-load but not compromise the calf.
Once-a-Day feeding is a system which can deliver performance benefits over twice-a-day feeding for much less labour and less cost.
Feeding Once-a-Day is simple. 200gms of powder is made up to 1 litre with water or 60gms - 100gms of powder made up to 1 litre with cows milk. 3 litres can then be fed straight through to start of weaning at seven weeks and then reduced by half a litre per day to wean at 8 weeks.
There’s plenty of research around that shows that calves can be fed successfully on once-a-day feeding systems. Once-a-Day feeding involves significantly less labour, uses less calf milk replacer and promotes earlier weaning, but to secure the cost savings from once-a-day systems. Provided you use the right calf milk replacer formulation, once-a-day feeding will be more cost-effective for many UK calf rearers. Switching from a twice-a-day milk feeding system to once-a-day could save UK calf rearers around £6/calf and cut labour input to as little as 23 seconds/calf/day.
This
milk powder will give live weight gains up to 12% higher than feeding twice daily whole milk in most
cases, and will reduce your work load by up to 40%. It contains 35% Skim + Butter oil and is designed
for mixing with water or with whole milk for once a day feeding. Once daily feeding is best suited to
calf milk replacers based on skim milk powder. This is because skimmed milk forms a cheesy curd or clot
in the calf’s
stomach that takes over 14 hours to be digested. This clot forms using casein protein produced in the
cow’s udder specifically
for the calf.
Calves do extremely well on this product and generally are not as prone to as many digestive upsets. Milk replacers that claim to contain milk, but make no reference to skim milk powder or buttermilk are unsuitable for once-a-day feeding because they contain no casein protein. These products are usually based on whey and vegetable proteins and are flushed through the calf’s digestive system in only a few hours, so are wholly unsuitable for a once-a-day feeding regime.
By
incorporating vegetable oils, along with the natural milk emulsifiers found in buttermilk, rather than
by pushing up fat levels fat digestion digestion is improved and dry feed intake is increased. Due to
the extremely high quality and digestibility of this product calves can be started on 3 litres fed Once-a-Day
at a week old. This would not be possible with lower quality replacers or with whole milk. Milk solids
need to be at 20% making whole milk unsuitable for Once-a-Day feeding unless calf milk replacer is added
to the whole milk to increase the solids content of the feed.
In reality it makes no economic sense on most farms to feed whole milk to calves, but where necessary cows milk can be incorporated into the system using a combination of milk and replacer.
With the right milk replacer, a once-a-day feeding system works fantastically well for both the calf and the rearer. Apart from the obvious labour benefits, calves eat more dry feed and their rumens develop more quickly. This allows weaning to occur a week or two earlier, saving the farmer even more time, as well as cutting the amount of milk replacer used. Most importantly calves actually do better.
Further Information Why Feed Shine Once-a-Day Leaflet Shine Once-a-Day Calf Testimonials
Shine Compumate
Shine
Compumate is the only powder designed for computerised machine fed calves. Bucket fed powders can contain
ingredients that absorb moisture from the air or can react to daily temperate changes. This will
effect the flow rate and therefore the milk concentration. This can cause stress, scour, bloat and
pneumonia.
Compumate contains anti bacterial agents such as Lactoperoxidase, Lactoferrin and organic acids to ensure disease levels are minimised especially around the teat and feed station. Compumate contains high levels of Vitamin C, E and organic selenium to increase calf immunity.
Bucket fed calves tend to be mixed in small groups of a similar age. Computerised machine fed calves are penned in large groups of differing ages all drinking from the same teat several times a day, which encourages disease to multiply. Calves with weak immune systems increase the disease pressure on all other calves.
Compumate
is a very high specification product. The additional cost of Compumate compared with standard whey
based calf powders such as Shine Extra can easily be justified by improved performance and healthier
calves especially on replacement dairy heifers where we are looking early calving and high lifetime performance
in order to reduce stocking levels, working capital, interest charges and overall replacement costs per
litre.
Download the Compumate Leaflet
SHINE Compumate the only powder designed for computerised machine fed calves
Shine Calf Milk Replacer
Shine
is a high quality product containing skim and buttermilk powders with a maximum of 2% protein from vegetable
sources. Recommended for twice a day and machine feeding where above average performance is required.
Designed for maximising growth with high index calves. Calves can be pushed to ensure high performance
from day one. This milk powder will more than compete with whole milk. Many people claim that the performance
of calves on this milk is equivalent to that of calves fed on a full skim based powder, but at a reduced
cost.
SHINE Complete
Shine Complete is an ideal choice for calf rearers to ensure maximum intakes of dry feed, high weaning weights and minimum problems- ideally suited to twice a day feed or through machines. 50% of protein from milk sources including buttermilk and whey but no skim.
Shine Extra (whey)
This calf milk powder is a whey based powder for twice a day, or machine, feeding, giving excellent mixing properties for the beef calf producer. This is a whey based powder with a blend of vegetable proteins and yogurt powder. Calves fed on this traditional milk replacer perform very well in most conditions and digestive problems are normally at a minimum.
SHINE the leading range of milk replacers currently available in the UK
Check out Shine Calf Milk Replacer feedback from farmers - Testimonials
Kalvolac Unique
Kalvolac Unique is not the cheapest but arguably one of the best and one of the most cost effective calf milk powders available in the UK today. Kalvolac Unique is manufactured by Europe's biggest calf powder manufacturer Nutrifeed. Kalvolac is technically very advanced and uses only the best of raw materials. Kalvolac is the 'Rolls Royce' of calf milk powders. It has been thoroughly tested on trial farms and represents a highly attractive proposition for farmers. Kalvolac Unique consistently produces increased growth rates and healthier calves than other calf milk replacers.
As well as significantly decreasing costs, results show both improved calf growth and improved calf health, along with reduced rearing problems and increased roughage and starter concentrate intakes which stimulate early rumen development.
The protein used
in Kalvolac Unique is casein or recombined skimmed milk powder produced by combining caseinate with high
quality whey. The use of recombined skim to form a clot in the abomasum which is digested slowly and
efficiently over 6 - 8 hours, avoids the problems associated with most calf milk replacers which are
based on whey powder or vegetable protein. Kalvolac does not include soya or other low cost raw materials.
Oils used are very high quality spray dried coconut oils.
The result is fewer digestive upsets and reduced mortality. The special qualities of Kalvolac Unique mean that as well as being the product of choice for use in twice day bucket feeding systems, it also produces superb results on Once a Day feeding systems.
The feedback on Kalvolac Unique from customers has been tremendous
Frank
Wright Trouw's Milkivit Denkamilk Calf Milk -
A comprehensive range of
calf milk powders manufactured locally at Ashbourne in Derbyshire. Denkamilk contains GREENLINE shown
to reduce the incidence of calf scour and to increase the calves natural immunity to disease. It stimulates
feeding, improves digestion and optimises growth potential.
Golden Maverick Calf Milk Replacers - This leading brand of Calf Milk Powders is now manufactured by Volac, and includes two high quality milk powder products in the Once-a-Day range, Once-a-Day-with-water and Once-a-Day-with-milk. The latter is designed to mix with cows milk where surplus milk is available.
For more information or for an in depth consultation contact Richard Webster.
Feeding Calves, Once A Day with Calf Milk Replacer offers clear advantages over feeding twice a day with waste whole milk from the dairy herd