Research
Data
From the University of Florida
The Results are In:
Bio Cycle Plus group produced more butterfat!
The U of Florida, Gainesville, under the direction of Assistant Prof. Mary Beth Hall, Ph.D., Dep't of Dairy & Poultry Science, reviewed data collected at North Florida Holsteins, Bell, FL, for scientific research on Bio Cycle Plus. A group of 141 animals was fed Bio Cycle Plus for a 4 month period and the results were compared to a control group of 145 animals that were in similar stages of lactation. The 2 groups were analyzed at the beginning of the trial (December), 2 months later (February) and again in April for protein percent. Here are Dr. Hall's findings:
Fat %: The Bio Cycle Plus fed group made significantly more butterfat than the control group over the entire trial. The average difference reflected by the least square means was .28 percent units of fat.
Milk Production: Milk yield was not significantly different between the groups over the entire trial. However, there was a tendency for the Bio Cycle Plus group to produce more milk than the control groups at the April test.
Linear Score: The group fed Bio Cycle Plus had a significantly lower linear score than did the control group in February. The linear scores were not different between the groups in April.
Protein %: Overall there was no difference in protein the groups.
"We went on the Select Bio Cycle Plus trial in Dec. '98 because we were feeding some marginal corn silage and we were looking for some help. Even though the end results did not show a statistical significance, the feeling among the herd health supervisors, our Herd Health Manager Rick Silvia and me was that the Bio Cycle Plus did improve digestion. But the real reason we now feed the product to the whole herd is the fat test response. We continue to hold a much higher fat test throughout the 3,700 cow herd so we know the information from the trial was accurate.
The change in fat test response using Select Bio Cycle Plus is more than enough to pay for the product. The other benefits we feel we are getting are just extra!"
— Bill Swift, Feed Dep't Manager
North Florida Holsteins, Bell, FL
|
LINEAR
SCORE
|
MILK
PROD. LB/COW
|
FAT
%
|
|||||||
| Dec. | Feb. | April | Dec. | Feb. | April | Dec. | Feb. | April | |
| Bio Cycle Plus | 3.15 | 2.37 | 2.96 | 88.5 | 97.8 | 93.5 | 3.44 | 3.32 | 2.98 |
| Control |
3.17 | 3.08 | 3.02 | 88.4 | 96.5 | 91.3 | 3.38 | 3.08 | 2.67 |
| Bio Cycle Plus Advantage | .71 | .06 | 1.3 | 2.2 | .24 | .31 | |||