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    Grazing Fodderbeet

Grazing Fodderbeet

Fodderbeet as a species has been around for many generations though in recent years it has seen a resurgence in popularity. Farmers are taking advantage of its high yields, low cost and high quality feed to improve animal performance and farm profitability.

Perhaps fodderbeet can fit into your farming system?

The information within these pages are meant as an introduction only and we would encourage you to contact your local KWS representative before implementing a fodderbeet grazing system.

Why Grazing Fodderbeet is attractive

  • Low cost

    Grazing in-situ allows for a low cost management system. Animals are moved once per day. One person can manage 500-1000 animals alone in an outdoor system with no requirements for indoor feeding infrastructure. This means reduced need of tractors and other feeding machinery used for indoor feeding systems.

  • High yields

    Fodderbeet is a high yielding crop, 20-30 tonnes of dry matter (DM) per hectare is typical. High yields means low cost per kilogram of dry matter.

  • Animal performance

    As a high energy feed stuff, fodderbeet is uniquely placed compared to other forage crops in achieving high growth rates in dairy and beef cattle especially.

  • Flexibility

    Graze or harvest. Fodderbeet is generally grown to be grazed directly but when required, it can also be harvested and stored appropriately for future use. In addition, fodderbeet doesn’t "mature" so can be grazed/harvested anytime from autumn to the following spring.

  • High quality feed

    Fodderbeet is a highly soluble carbohydrate. This is an easily digested and available form of energy for animals. The leaf has high levels of protein and a well managed crop will supply enough protein for mature animals. Additional protein is likely to be required for younger animals.

  • High utilisation

    Feed losses with grazing fodderbeet are very low, typically between 5-10%. Animals will spend time grazing and regrazing areas of the field, utilising the whole plant with very little being wasted.

Which Animals can graze Fodderbeet?

BROCHURE Beet for Grazing
  • Dan Davison is milking 600 dairy cows in a family partnership . Dan has been using fodder beet for five seasons.

    With such high yields in fodder beet we only need 25 percent of the land area compared to other crops. The cows love it.

    Dan Davison, Culverden, New Zealand
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Your contact partner

Simon Witheford
Simon Witheford
Country Manager NZ
Tel.: 022 471 5582
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