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Ethanol byproduct shown to make effective cattle feed

Ethanol’s leftovers may help cattle producers cut their feed costs while maintaining the quality of their animals when it comes time for slaughter, according to preliminary findings of a study.

Associated Press

http://www.billingsgazette.com/index.php?id=1&ts=1&display=rednews/2004/05/29/build/business/40-ethanol.inc

Relatively small amounts of distillers’ grain have been fed to animals for years as a protein supplement. The University of Illinois study, expected to be completed next month, shows that raising the percentage of distillers’ grain in a cow’s diet can make the feed an effective source of calories too, said Larry Berger, a professor of nutrition in the Department of Animal Sciences.

"As we produce more and more of the distillers’ grain, the price relative to other feed stuffs may make it profitable to feed higher levels and use some of it as energy as well," Berger said.

The study should show how farmers can use distillers’ grain for protein and energy, and how to combine it with other feed such as soybean meal, corn or silage to give animals the best value at market, Berger said.

Distillers’ grain is the protein, fat, minerals and vitamins left after starch is removed from a corn kernel to make alcohol, according to the Distillers Grain Technology Council, an industry promotion group in Louisville, Ky. It’s the major byproduct in the manufacturing of ethanol, which is alcohol that is mixed with gasoline for automobile fuel.

More than 5.5 million tons of distillers’ grain were produced in the United States last year, an increase of 77 percent over the previous year, said Charlie Staff, the council’s executive director.

Eighteen more ethanol plants, including two in Illinois, are expected to begin production this year and next, bringing an estimated 2.2 million more tons of distillers’ grain to the marketplace, Staff said.

Most distillers’ grain is fed to ruminant animals, such as cattle or sheep, because they digest it easier, Staff said. But studies at the University of Minnesota and elsewhere have shown some benefits for swine and poultry as well.

Berger’s experiment varies the distillers’ grain in the diet of cattle at the university’s farms from 12.5 percent to 50 percent.

Distillers’ grain can replace corn and soybean meal at a lower cost, Berger said. Distillers’ grain sells for about $130 per ton, while soybean meal sells for about $300 per ton, he said.

It takes about 1.5 pounds of distillers’ grain to equal the protein in one pound of soybean meal, but even on that basis, distillers’ grain is cheaper, Berger said. Grain farmers also benefit because a bigger market for ethanol’s byproduct means its makers will pay more for corn, he said.

Copyright © 2004 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

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