Yes, it is important to feed diets that are balanced for all nutrients. When diets are out of balance, excess nutrients will be wasted. This is most important when feeding protein (contains nitrogen) and phosphorous. It is impossible for all nutrients to be in a perfect balance in commercial or practical diets, but it is important to come close to meeting an animal’s nutrient needs. If the diet is balanced except for one underfed nutrient, then the entire production of the animal will be limited to the level of the “limiting nutrient,” and other nutrients may be wasted. For example, if protein is overfed, then excess nitrogen and/or other nutrients will be excreted. Phosphorus is required in the diet of animals, but if overfed or wasted, can contaminate the environment and water supplies. Phosphorous should be fed in a form most available for animal production since excesses will be lost. Research has shown that the proper feeding of nitrogen and phosphorus can result in a reduction of nutrients into the environment.
Wasteful feeding practices can also result in nutrient losses. It is common for animals to spill or waste feed. Some species will waste from several percent up to as high as 20% of their diet while eating. This wasted feed is often wet and covered with saliva, so it will spoil and rot if left, and animals will not consume it. Silage, fed to dairy and beef cows, left in the feed bunk and not consumed quickly, will spoil and not be eaten. Bunks and feeders should be designed to reduce wasted feed. They should be cleaned on a regular basis so spoiled or rotten feed can be removed. On some farms, it is often common for animals to be fed on the ground; there may be no greater source of waste than feeding an animal on the ground. Although this might be acceptable with beef cows or sheep on the open range, or even horses, it is not acceptable to feed animals on the ground near a stream. This wasted feed may also contribute to the creation of mud in pastures and paddocks. Even if a diet is perfectly in balance, feeding animals near a stream will result in nutrients entering the stream. It is wise to ensure adequate distance between these outside feeding sites and streams and/or wetlands. Check with your Natural Resources Conservation Service to determine what is a minimum distance. States may differ.
Productive, healthy animals fed balanced diets and provided with abundant supplies of fresh water will not only be the most productive animals, but they will also be the most efficient users of nutrients in the diet, and they will be the most profitable to the farmer.
Author: Michael Westendorf, Department of Animal Science, Rutgers, State University of New Jersey
