Feeding the byproduct – called distillers’ grain – to cows could decrease their milk production or reduce the butter fat content of their milk, depending on what other livestock feeds it is paired with, said Herb Bucholtz, a Michigan State University professor.

Distillers’ grain contains less starch and a higher concentration of fat than corn. Ethanol production removes much of the starch from corn, but that nutrient helps cows make glucose, which increases their milk production, Bucholtz said. Farmers who want to increase their milk production may be better off feeding more corn to their herd, he said.

“It’s not just a simple substitution” of replacing corn with distillers’ grain, Bucholtz said. The two feeds contain different amounts of nutrients, he said.

Bucholtz spoke at a regional meeting of the Purdue Dairy Extension Team and the Indiana Professional Dairy Producers held for dairy farmers in Decatur on Tuesday. It was the first of four educational meetings the organizations are holding this month.

More distillers’ grain will be produced as additional ethanol plants are built. Developers are building 78 ethanol plants nationwide, according to the Renewable Fuels Association. More than 100 operating ethanol plants produced 12 million metric tons of distillers’ grain last year.

Dry distillers’ grain currently costs $125 to $140 a ton in the eastern corn belt, the region that includes Indiana, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Corn costs about $4 a bushel, or $157 a ton, according to The Associated Press.

FortWayne.com