Whether it’s pasture or forage, cow-calf producers want the best, highest-quality nutrition to feed a healthy, productive herd.
Unfortunately, Mother Nature doesn’t always play along, throwing up challenges such as forage-damaging weather and uneven soil productivity which bring down the nutritional quality of cattle feed.
Managing the challenge of low-quality feed
Still, breeding-age beef heifers and mature cows must maintain an optimal body condition score (BCS) to be productive, support their metabolism for timely rebreeding, and produce enough milk to raise and wean the heaviest calf possible.
Cow-calf producers often task their herds with ‘upcycling’ low to mid-quality forages since they lack other options.
Farmers and ranchers do their best to compensate for this lack of quality by using rotational grazing methods, adjusting stocking densities, resting pastures, improving forage selection and seeding, supplemental feeding and adding gut modifier technologies.
Enlisting microbial allies to support rumen function
Lallemand Animal Nutrition is stepping up to help. For more than 25 years, BIOPOWER SC, based upon the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae CNCM I-1077, has proven effective to increase milk yield and drive rumen function – regardless of diet – in the dairy industry.1,2 However, new research suggests this viable yeast probiotic, validated by leading research centres and featured in more than 100 scientific publications, could change the game for cow-calf producers as well.2,3
BIOPOWER SC helps improve the fibre digestibility of forages, particularly with lower-quality forages. It also helps increase feed efficiency and contributes to more energy derived from forage, milk yield and heavier weaned calves.1,3,4
“The specific and unique viable yeast, BIOPOWER SC, encourages a better rumen environment,” says Melissa Jolly-Breithaupt, PhD, PAS, Beef Technical Services with Lallemand Animal Nutrition. “ It attaches to the different fiber bundles and puts down figurative roots, creating cracks in the internal fibers which allow access for bacteria and other microorganisms.”
“First, the yeast scavenges oxygen in the rumen from feed and water, boosting the low-oxygen conditions that beneficial microbes need to thrive. As a result, these ‘good bugs’ help keep rumen pH stabilized and aid in breaking down fibre so cattle get more out of their feed.”
Jolly-Breithaupt explains that Lallemand has developed a patented coating to protect the yeast to ensure that viable yeast gets to the rumen where it can deliver its beneficial effects.
BIOPOWER SC is a safe and naturally occurring product and is Canadian Food Inspection Agency-approved for lactating dairy cows and beef cattle.1 Using Lallemand’s micro-encapsulation technology, BIOPOWER SC is effective when fed in loose mineral, range cubes, tubs, licks, bagged and pelleted feeds and blocks.
The proof is in the performance
Recent research shows consistent use of the probiotic improved the BCS of grazing females by half a condition score on average at weaning.3 Calf ADG and weaning weights also rose by seven and five percent respectively.3
“Our analysis revealed that producers using BIOPOWER SC in their free choice mineral achieved impressive results: up to seven-and-a-half to one return on investment,” Jolly-Breithaupt says. “Calf prices have surged significantly since our trial concluded, so we anticipate producers could experience even greater returns.”
She recommends producers feed BIOPOWER SC at least 30 days before calving and continue through weaning.
“The cow’s nutrient requirement is the highest after calving and during peak lactation, so BIOPOWER SC is very beneficial during that time,” Jolly-Breithaupt says. “This specific gut modifier can enhance rumen function and improve milk yield, helping cows make the most out of even the most mediocre forage, converting that into better performance and high economic value for cow-calf producers.”
Full references available upon request from Lallemand Animal Nutrition. Not all products are available in all markets nor associated claims allowed in all regions. BIOPOWER is a trademark of Lallemand Inc. or its affiliates.
BIOPOWER SC products hold Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) claims under registration numbers 982800, 983776 and 982803 to: increase milk production in lactating dairy cows, Increase average daily gain in beef cattle.
Lallemand Animal Nutrition. 2023. Role of Live Yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae CNCM I-1077 in ruminant feeding: Research Bibliography.
Adams et al., 2024. Lallemand data on file.
Dataset based on eight scientific works and 364 forage samples. List of published work: Guedes et al., CECAV Portugal, 2008. Anim Feed Sci Technol 145:27-40, Guedes et al., CECAV Portugal, 2010. Proceeding from Wageningen Symposium, Netherlands pp 25-30, Gomez M.J. et, CECAV Portugal, Congresso de Zootechnica 2015. Chaucheyras-Durand F. et al., INRA France, 2010, J Dairy ScJ. Anim. Sci. 88 (S2)/J. Dairy Sci. 93 (S1): 145, Walker and Cintora, BRI, Canada 2010, Ding G. et al., China Agricultural University, China, 2014 J. Anim. Sci. and Biotech. 5:24, Souza D.O. Lallemand Internal report, University of São Paulo, Brazil, 2015, Souza D.O., University of São Paulo, Brazil, 2018, Anim Feed Sci Technol 236:149-158.
