Back Courses Webinars Handbooks. Back Blog Videos Gallery. Site Administrator March 21, Site Administrator March 22, Site Administrator March 20, Many producers choose to grow oats because they fit into most crop rotations, do well on a wide range of soil types and help protect land from soil loss. An important part of the cow's diet is small grains, which provide much of the protein.
For years, oats, shown below was one of the main grains fed to cows. Today, farmers often buy much of their grain stuffs. Corn is also becoming a larger and larger part of the diet of the "modern dairy cow". Late planting caused harvest to lag behind normal as the crop posted a 55 bushels per acre yield, 15 bushels below 's average yield. It wants more oats from Iowa and southern Minnesota growers, said Jessie VanderPoel, who buys grain for the company.
And that's the same for any milling company. Iowa farmers, unused to raising oats, are beginning to grow the crop with the required "test weights" — an indication of quality — that companies like Grain Millers and others want, Carlson and VanderPoel said.
It just takes a little education," VanderPoel said, adding that the company works closely with farmers interested in growing "good milling oats. And geographically, Iowa farmers have advantages, potentially supplying several mills in Iowa, Minnesota and Wisconsin. Over time, they have been replaced with soy protein and distillers dried grains — a byproduct from ethanol production — that get mixed with corn. Re-establishing oats as a common part of livestock feed is important to build Iowa's small-grains market, Carlson said.
Here's why: Farmers who fail to raise food-grade oats need a feed market that can use their crop. Carlson said Tyson, Smithfield and other big meat processors that call the shots on feed for Iowa livestock could make a dramatic shift in what farmers grow with even small changes. In , Canfield said he and his wife, Jane, began talking about ways to add diversity to their crops. Canfield, 48, said he's had to "learn how to farm again," relying on fewer fertilizers, herbicides, pesticides and fungicides.
With the introduction of oats, Canfield shifted to corn and soybeans that are not genetically modified, something that now appeals to his clients. In Canfield's shop, he, Jane and their year-old son Matthew move oats, corn and roasted soybeans through grain mills, then onto a large mixer, along with organic vitamins and supplements, before finally pouring the feed into pound bags.
Not all farmers are willing to invest the time needed to market products directly to consumers, Carlson said. Jane Canfield said her husband has spent many hours talking with customers and groups about their fledgling business.
And car trips take twice as long, because Canfield stops at each convenience store along the way to leave business cards and fliers on community boards, she said. He hopes to add cattle, pigs and other animals, selling meat directly to customers and eventually using all the grain he grows to feed livestock directly or through his customers.
Adding diversity to his crops and farm operation is the best way to provide an opportunity — and income — for his four children if they decide to join the business. Facebook Twitter Email.
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