Economic conditions in livestock production have changed significantly over the past several months. Feed input prices are such that livestock producers and industry support staff have not dealt with major feed stuffs at this high of a level for almost a decade. Many questions are being asked and many actions are being considered to offset potential financial losses.
If this story sounds familiar, that’s because it is. 2021 is shaping up to be a repeat of 2012 and 2011. At the moment, higher market prices are helping to offset some of the huge upswing in feed input prices, but even so, producers and industry support staff would do well to objectively look at the economics of action plans being considered and recommended prior to implementation.
Doing the basics exceptionally well may be a very effective strategy for current economic times. When modeling the impact of sound basic action plans such as improving average daily gain and feed efficiency in wean to finish pigs and improving the efficiency of the sow herd, significant improvements in profitability can be found. Improvement in profits from $2 to greater than $5 per head marketed is realistic when modeling the modest performance improvements demonstrated by significant Micro-Aid® research conducted over many years. That improvement in profitability can have a similar bottom-line impact as would a reduction in complete feed cost by up to $15 per ton.
In many situations, identifying action plans that will “improve” profit still may not be enough to operate a business profitably. Reduction of losses will help businesses conserve equity. Conservation of equity is a critical action plan when profits are low or even negative.
The economic value of manure for land-application and nutrient utilization by growing crops makes it a means to reduce the cost of producing grain as opposed to the purchase of escalating commercial fertilizer prices. This is especially true for livestock and poultry producers looking for ways to increase their profitability.
The challenge during manure storage and application is that nitrogen compounds are volatile and when lost, the potential fertilizing value is diminished. Micro-Aid® in all feed, all the time will capture a significant portion of this lost manure value through its positive impact on reduced ammonia volatilization and a shift in manure nitrogen compounds from ammonium nitrogen to the more stable, organic nitrogen form. In summarizing 21 experiments, Micro-Aid® reduced ammonia emissions, on average, by 44.7%. Micro-Aid® supplementation also increased the organic N concentration by 28% compared with diets receiving no Micro-Aid®. Organic N is a more stable form that is less susceptible to volatilization and loss of fertilizing value.
DPI GLOBAL has invested significant effort in developing and enhancing a model that helps production systems identify those action plans that may best fit their unique situation with today’s economic conditions. The opportunities identified through working with the Micro-Aid® Value Proposition Model have been eye-opening. Please contact your feed representative or DPI GLOBAL to identify how you can benefit from this value. As always, DPI GLOBAL is anxious to personalize the approach to meet your unique business needs!
