by Dale Blasi, stocker, forages, nutrition and management specialist
Pasture and supplemental feed inputs represent the lion’s share of a beef producer’s annual expenses and are an ideal starting place for initiating hard-nosed cost control measures. When environmental variation is combined with ever-changing animal nutrient requirements and pasture quality indices, lower feed costs represent a moving target that can only be bulls-eyed with appropriate planning and constant evaluation. An excellent starting place for many operations intent on maximizing return on investment is an evaluation of the existing pasture mineral supplement program.
The primary objectives for providing mineral supplements to grazing cattle is to meet nutrient requirements, provide a vehicle for delivering feed additives and improve grazing distribution. Generally, mineral supplements are designed to meet approximately 50% of a grazing animal’s macro and trace mineral requirements when consumed in a two to four-ounce daily formulation and are specifically formulated for the nutrient requirements and intended objectives for various classes of grazing cattle (i.e. lactating beef cows grazing fescue vs stocker calves grazing native pasture).
The daily consumption of a mineral supplement provided free choice can be quite variable around the intended amount consumed of anticipated daily consumption. This is a consequence of environmental conditions, plant species and maturity, availability and palatability. Even more perplexing are the percentages of animals in a grazing group who, for whatever reason, do not partake in mineral consumption. For example, Bowman and Sowell (1997) summarized in a review article several studies that made direct comparisons between hand-fed (dry) and self-fed (block or liquid) supplements and reported an average of 5% and 19% non-feeders, respectively. Weibert et al. (2018) reported the weekly consumption of a complete mineral fed free choice with an intended daily consumption of three ounces per day ranged from a weekly average from a low of 2.33 ounces to a high of almost five ounces over the thirteen-week trial period. Over the entire 90-day trial, the average consumption was 3.27 ounces per head per day.
Mineral supplements are costly and may range in price from about $400 to $1,000 dollars per ton depending upon the ingredients and feed additives included. Obviously, any significant increases from the recommended daily intake may add substantial costs that will likely not benefit animal performance or health. Using the example above, while the average consumption was well within an expected range, the costs are increased by 10% or about 40 cents per head.
Producers are urged to follow the recommended guidelines to keep their costs in check while providing their animals with a mineral supplementation program.
- Read the feeding instructions label on the 50 lb. bag and estimate the number of servings that are provided. For example, if the recommendations are 4 ounces per head per day (50 lb. bag x 16 ounces/lb. = 800 ounces / 4 ounces per day) this translates into 200 available servings.
- For example, if there are 50 head of cattle in the pasture, this bag of complete mineral should last approximately 4 days. So, in this particular instance, one should plan to provide 2 bags of mineral per week.
- Upon initial introduction to the pasture, place the mineral in the vicinity of a water source or where cattle tend to congregate. This will allow the group to find the mineral offering.
- Allow for a few weeks to gauge where mineral intake is before determining if intake is satisfactory or if any actions are necessary to modify the intended intake.
- If mineral consumption is excessive, consider moving the mineral location further away from the original site or away from the water source.
- Cattle do not specifically choose which macro or trace mineral they are deficient in and do not adjust their consumption for this. Rather, the appetite for salt drives consumption of the complete mineral. With that said, consider providing a salt block adjacent to the complete mineral if consumption is excessive.
- If mineral consumption is insufficient, ensure that the mineral is fresh and not contaminated with water or debris. Covered mineral feeders will insure mineral is not contaminated. However, it is important to insure the flaps are initially hard wired up to facilitate the training of the cattle to the presence of mineral.
- If Monensin Sodium (Rumensin) is included in your mineral supplement, be mindful that expected consumption may be reduced by approximately 50%. To rectify this occurrence, the addition of flavor enhancers such as dried molasses may be used although this will increase cost.
