A group of top poultry and dairy feed producers from Pakistan came to Fargo to attend the Dairy Feed Manufacturing Technology Short Course at the Northern Crops Institute on June 8-12. “This team is here to learn more about the manufacturing of pelleted dairy feed using U.S. hi-pro soybean meal and the quality of dehulled soybean meal, and to participate in field trips to learn about the dairy technology and practices,” says R. Shahnawaz Janjua, technical director for the U.S. Soybean Export Council, Pakistan.
“Productivity per unit animal in Pakistan is low, due mainly to poor and inadequate nutrition and other challenges. Pakistan is the fifth most populous country with more than 171 million people. Milk is the most important livestock product in the country and its value exceeds the combined value of wheat, rice, maize and sugarcane,” Janjua said.
The U.S. Soybean Export Council and the American Soybean Association are sponsors of the group. The North Dakota Soybean Council hosted the team at a dinner where council board members learned more about the market potential in Pakistan and India.
The team toured the South Dakota State University Dairy Unit and Processing Center, where they learned more about dairy feed production. Tours of several dairy farms and processing centers included the South Dakota Soy Processors, Volga, S.D., hosted by general manager Rodney Christianson; Qual Dairy, Lisbon, N.D.; and Five Star Dairy, Milnor, N.D.
Kim Koch, manager of Northern Crops Institute's Feed Production Center, is the course coordinator and a lecturer in the course. Additional speakers in the course include Greg Lardy, J.W. Schroeder and Todd Molden, all from the NDSU animal sciences department; and Ramesh Thaper, consultant for the American Soybean Association/U.S. Soybean Export Council, India, also is escorting the team.
Topics covered in the course included nutrient requirements of dairy cattle, feed types and feeding systems, feed manufacturing technology, role of soybean meal in dairy nutrition, combinatorial ingredient selection, managing feed costs and pellet manufacture.
June 15, 2009