Crystalyx lasts longer on NI farms

Grass and conserved home-grown forages are the cheapest feeds for livestock – but they are so much more valuable when digested more efficiently and supplemented to balance and cancel out any nutritional deficiencies.

Crystalyx does the job! Moreover, the extensive research, knowledge and experience is available to back up these products.

Crystalyx is a dehydrated molasses-based feed lick, which means it not-only balances the nutritional deficiencies in forages but makes the rumen bugs work a little harder and more efficiently at digesting the forage and releasing more nutrition for the farm livestock.

Crystalyx may not be the cheapest product per tonne on the market, but due to its hard physical structure, it doesn’t break up in bad weather and livestock can only lick it, not chew and bite it.

This means that Crystalyx intakes are lower than other products (up to three times’ lower), so whilst other products might be cheaper per tonne, their higher daily intake by stock means the cost per animal per day is actually higher than Crystalyx – and that is what matters!

Studies undertaken at Newcastle and Aberystwyth universities confirm that ewes flushed on autumn grass and supplemented with ‘Crystalyx Extra High Energy’ gained more weight faster and had 12-20% higher lamb numbers at scanning than control ewes on good grass alone.

Crystalyx intakes averaged 35-50g/ewe/day in the studies. This compares to some other feed licks that have recommended intakes of up to 150g/ewe/day.

The research further showed that with continued access to Crystalyx Extra High Energy throughout mid-pregnancy, ewes maintained better body condition right up to lambing, so they were able to milk better for improved lamb performance on spring grass.

A trial at Aberystwyth University with growing Holstein heifers on autumn grass, gave equally good results.

Heifers were initially 11 months old and weighed 240kg. Grass availability was tight, so both groups of heifers were fed 1.25kg/head/day of sugar beet pulp nuts.

With additional access to ‘Crystalyx Cattle Booster’, the Crystalyx-fed heifers had gained an extra 11kg liveweight over the controls by the end of the trial (+176g/day more) – a 27% increase in DLWG, with a Crystalyx intake of only 108g/heifer/day.

Comparable results were seen in Germany, with larger Holstein heifers (approx. 525kg) grazing adjacent paddocks of good grass. With access to Crystalyx Cattle Booster, the heifers gained 18kg more liveweight over the course of the 103-day study (mid-July to end of October), than the control heifers on grass alone – a 25% increase in DLWG, with a Crystalyx intake of only 106g/heifer/day.

So, how can such low intakes of Crystalyx give such good - and consistent - increases in animal performance?

By making the rumen bugs work a little more efficiently, Crystalyx enhances forage digestibility and intakes – so animals get more from what they eat. Even when forage availability is limited (as in the Aberystwyth heifer study) intakes are unlikely to be increased, However, the enhanced digestibility that Crystalyx brings about, still results in significant improvements.

Feeding Crystalyx to late-pregnant dairy cows is not about improving daily liveweight gain, but preparing the cows to calve down easily and provide for a healthy transition into lactation. Three studies undertaken in New Zealand, by the University of Auckland, with group sizes averaging approximately 200 cows, confirmed that access to ‘Crystalyx Pre-Calver’ maintained normal blood magnesium and calcium levels right up to calving. Significantly, this led to a reduced incidence and severity of any milk fever at calving whilst mitigating incidence of mastitis in early lactation.

Comparable results were recorded by Parma University. Research scientists there further reported that colostrum IgG yield of the Crystalyx-fed cows was double that of the control cows. When it comes to giving value for money, Crystalyx is not only one of the cheapest products to feed (from as little as 5p ewe/day and 13p heifer/day), it has been proven time and time again to deliver exceptional animal performance!