Chopped wheat straw
^{Dairy and young stock rations}

Composition
Straw contains low levels of nutrients and minerals. Its low N and P content makes feed straw an excellent addition to the ration for farms monitoring their animals' excretion levels.

Dairy rations
Straw can be used as a source of fibre in dairy rations. The energy content of a dairy ration can be too much for dry cows. In many cases, wilted silage contains too many cations for an ideal dry cow ration. Supplementing with straw reduces energy and cation levels in the ration and guarantees optimum rumen fill.

Young stock rations
Rations for older young stock often contain too much energy, leading to a risk of over-fat calves. Restricted feeding is not an option because the animals need to learn to process as much roughage as possible and so develop sufficient rumen capacity. Straw is suitable as a low-energy component of the diet for older young stock. In the case of a roughage shortage, excellent results can be achieved by supplementing with straw or a straw/concentrate ration.

Features:
Feed straw has several positive features, including:

• Contains fibre
• Stimulates rumen fermentation
• Low cation content
• Low N and P content