Well known for its fertility and health benefits, Lintec gives opportunity for herds to safely push milk yield.
Lintec is well known by many farmers as a feed for fertility and reproductive health, but Vincent Chatellier, technical and marketing director of Valorex urged for its use to be reconsidered on a recent tour of the UK.
Lintec has the ability to unlock extra yield if fed at the typical feed rate, he explained, and despite methane reduction not necessarily being a priority for farmers across Europe (with carbon taking centre stage), the pressure-cooked linseed feed will reduce the methane produced by the cow.
Produced by Valorex, this Linseed based product is manufactured via a patented technology which uses pressure, temperature and enzymes to drive the availability and digestibility of the nutrients. This process, coupled with precise seed selection and rigorous quality control, results in a linseed product in its most useful state.
On the Lin for the Future tour, which hosted an international group with Vincent, and included practical workshops, ForFarmers account managers were urged to reconsider this linseed product as a key to unlocking increased milk yield.
Vincent said: “We used to focus on the benefits Lintec can bring to reproduction, fertility and health but now there is more of a focus on milk production and efficiency, with increases of 1.5 to 3 litres per day experienced, depending on feed rate.
“The addition of Lintec to cows’ diets is important for the rumen, increasing its efficiency and therefore milk yield,” he said.
With optimal fat availability, Lintec provides the highest digestibility, making it a safe feed for increasing yield without acidogenic or ketogenic effect. Instead, it increases the level of propionic acid in the rumen meaning the energy of the ration can be upped without negatively affecting the pH, therefore minimising acidosis risk.
Vincent said: “You need to feed a level of rumen degradable protein alongside Lintec as well as fermentable fibre. These factors are key to get the best out of Lintec for dairy cows.
“Lintec can also be fed in higher quantities than a rumen bypass fat or a product containing high levels of starch, especially for early lactation cows which are more sensitive.”
Better cow health can be obtained by feeding Lintec and can significantly reduce incidences of metritis, ketosis, udder edema and mortality due to the inflammation-reducing balance of omega 3 and 6.
Feeding Lintec can also see increases in lying and cudding times while improving the overall thrive and shine of the animal.
Lintec can work to decrease the level of methane produced by cows while Visiolac can help to measure this decrease.
Vincent explains: “A 10% methane reduction can be achieved per kg of DM of Lintec added to the ration. Within this, 7% comes from driving propionic acid production which consumes hydrogen in the rumen, reducing methane production. The remaining 3% is due to an improvement in
milk yield.
“It is important to maximise the efficiency and avoid a drop in milk fat production. The less methane is produced, the more energy is available. Methane is a loss of energy.”
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