New GMO alfalfa variety could be big boost to dairy ~ COBB_REPORT

The new variety, N-R-Gee, is highly digestible, is well adapted to the Northeast and is predicted to increase milk production up to 3.3 pounds of milk per day compared with an industry standard, said Julie Hansen, a senior research associate in plant breeding and genetics.

That bump translates to $181 more per cow, for a cow lactating 305 days per year and a farmer earning $18 per 100 pounds of milk. On a 113-cow dairy herd, the average size in New York, that would add up to an extra $20,000 per year.

The secret to N-R-Gee is a lower percentage of indigestible fiber -- which fills a cow's belly but passes through as waste -- and a higher percentage of carbohydrates and pectin, which cows can convert to milk. With less fiber taking up space in all those stomachs, cows can eat more of the high-quality alfalfa and produce more milk.

"More intake and more digestibility: those two things combined, we think, are going to make a pretty significant impact for the dairy industry," Hansen said.
N-R-Gee has already soared through one test, on 3-month-old lambs at the Cornell Sheep Farm. Unlike cows, lambs can be fed straight alfalfa, so the lamb test avoided the confounding effects of mixed feeds.
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