One of the most important tools for livestock producers is a sharp No. 2 pencil.
The pencil and some basic arithmetic can help take the emotion out of desperate measures to find feed. When you do the math, buying grain or other alternative feeds may be the best bang for the buck, says University of Missouri Extension agricultural business specialist Wesley Tucker.
“Many people think their only options are to pay whatever they must to buy hay or sell their cows,” says Tucker. Not so, he says.
Producers actually have multiple options: 1) Buy high-priced hay; 2) Limit feeding of hay on…
