Skip First Level Navigation | Skip All Navigation

Home > National Ag News > High Sugar Grazing Increases Livestock Productivity

High Sugar Grazing Increases Livestock Productivity

High levels of water soluable carbohydrates in HSG are responsible for these increases in productivity.

An Oregon-based company recently introduced a new line of high sugar grasses (HSG) that research suggests provide benfits to dairy, beef and lamb producers. SucraSEED™, is a new line of high-sugar grass seed products designed to increase dairy milk yield and livestock growth while reducing environmental pollution.

High sugar grasses have been around for nearly 20 years and are in wide use in Europe and New Zealand. Multiple trial studies have demonstrated measurable increases in livestock performance, including milk yield in dairy cows (up to 6 percent more milk for the grazing season), increased live weight gains in lambs and beef cattle (up to 20 percent) and higher dry-matter intakes (up to 4.41 lbs/head per day).

High levels of water soluable carbohydrates in HSG are responsible for these increases in productivity. The sugars, by providing extra energy to microbes in the animals’ rumen, allow the animals to digest more of the protein that they take in. As a result, more grass protein is converted to milk and meat, and less is excreted as unused nitrogen into the land.

The decrease in waste nitrogen is a significant environmental benefit. HSG studies in Europe and New Zealand, for example, reported a reduction in nitrogen pollution of as much as 24 percent. SucraSEED offers an additional advantage in the context of future farming practices, as well: the grasses were developed through traditional breeding methods, and therefore are not genetically modified organisms (GMO). This is of considerable market value since, according to the International Food Information Council (IFIC), consumers are increasingly reluctant to buy meat and milk from animals grazed on GMO grasses.

Grassland Oregon’s SucraSEED product line includes mixtures specially formulated for specific livestock: Beef Bank (for cattle) Cash Cow (for dairy) and Great Gains (for sheep and goats). For complete information about Grassland Oregon and SucraSEED, please visit: http://www.sucraseed.com.