While one part of Poland is facing drought, the other is battling floods. These phenomena are associated with huge losses in feed bases and difficulties in building them – in such cases, there is usually nothing left to do but use purchased feed.
However, this is fraught with considerable risk, as the probability of finding high-quality feed is relatively small, despite the often high prices. So we asked several farmers for advice on how to buy feed to have the best chance of obtaining a product that meets expectations.
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The basis is the feed test
– My experience with buying bulk feed is not very extensive, but when buying supplementary feed, the basis is to test the feed to see what is being given to the cows. I think this is the most important thing if you don't want to be ripped off, because unfortunately when buying you can find anything – said Ireneusz Jasiński, a dairy farmer from the Lublin province.
– Alternatively, we can consider by-products from the agri-food industry as additional sources of protein and energy in the feed ration, e.g. brewer's grain, which is a very good feed for dairy cattle – he added.
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When buying feed, you need to look at it carefully.
In turn, Wojciech Chrostowski, a dairy farmer from the Podlaskie Voivodeship, pointed out that only a wrapped bale can hide poor quality, so it is worth buying green bales.
– When buying feed, you have to look at it carefully. If someone has experience and does not buy wrapped bales, because only in a wrapped bale can you hide some poor quality products, if someone buys green bales, to wrap at home, then it is rather impossible to cheat. However, good goods cost a fortune – explained Chrostowski.
– Unfortunately, feed shortages are driving up the prices of bulky feed purchased, and transport costs are also taking their toll. Feed costs PLN 200-250 per bale of good quality feed, which, given the price of milk at PLN 2/l, puts the profitability of production into question – he added.
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In flood-prone areas, farmers are fleeing with corn. Humidity 40 percent.
There is not much that can be done about this.
Mroczkowski has a slightly less optimistic view of the issue, stating that such a purchase always involves some risk.
– Unfortunately, if you buy a shipment of feed, you can't determine its quality over the phone. After buying, first of all, you need to check the weight of the bales, and as for the quality, you need to unroll them and see what you got – he said.
– There's not much you can do about it. In our area, the price for a bale, at least at the beginning, was quite high and it was cheaper to import. It's different with purchased feed, so far I've imported one transport and the quality was adequate to the price – he added.