Bio-Sil sales take off ahead of silage season

A case in point is the commitment of Loughgall dairy farmer Kieran McGeough to use the product on first cut over the coming weeks.

“Approximately 100 acres of grass will be ready for the silo in about three weeks’ time,” Kieran confirmed.

“We take three cuts, all destined for the pit, each year.”

Kieran continued:“We plan to use our first cut this year as soon as possible. One of the benefits of using Bio-Sil is that the product delivers a stable fermentation within 15 days of the crop being ensiled.”

Bio-Sil’s Frank Foster was a recent visitor to the McGeough farm. He confirmed a growing

interest in the inoculant, adding:“Bio-Sil was launched in Ireland last year. The past 12 months have a seen a significant number of dairy and beef farmers using the product.

“All have confirmed that the feeding quality of the resulting silages was excellent.”

The most resounding confirmation coming back from farmers using the inoculant in 2021 relates to its ability in delivering a very sharp and immediate pH drop.

Frank Foster again: “We have had a number of forages analysed within days of ensiling. All were totally stable, at the required pH and ready for use.”

He continued: “All of the pits containing Bio-Sil silage have now been fully utilised. Significantly, waste levels were minimal while the forages had tremendous aerobic stability.

“Bio-Sil will work equally well on both grass and crop silages.”

Bio-Sil has a 25-year history of proven, on-farm use across Europe. In addition, extensive research and trial work has confirmed the benefits of using the inoculant to deliver improved forage quality.

“It all adds up to more milk, improved milk quality and enhanced daily liveweight gains when Bio-Sil treated silages are offered to cattle of all ages,” Frank Foster further explained.

He added: “Bio-Sil also represents tremendous value-for-money in terms of delivering improved performance from forage on all dairy and livestock farms.”

Bio-Sil has been officially approved by the German Agricultural Society (DLG) to improve fermentation in a wide range of forages, while also boosting forage digestibility and milk yield.

The inoculant promotes the rapid production of lactic acid in fresh forage to quickly produce a low pH and stable ensiled forage across a range of crops.

This rapid pH drop is achieved quickly, thus eliminating the growth of yeasts and moulds – which lead to the wastage of silage.

Frank Foster again: “Trials have confirmed that Bio-Sil acts to reduce dry matter losses; reduces protein degradation; increases energy concentration; increases forage digestibility while also improving forage intakes by between 0.5 and 1.5kgs per day.

“The end result is an improved milk output of up to two litres per cow per day.

“Bio-Sil is available in powder form and comes in 100g sachets. The inoculant is easily dissolved in water: it can be applied using a standard liquid applicator. Each sachet contains enough inoculant to treat 100 tonnes of forage.”

Frank Foster concluded: “In the right conditions, Bio-Sil will remain active for 72 hours after mixing. This is another benefit of the inoculant: providing flexibility if the harvest process is halted because of bad weather or a mechanical breakdown.”

For further information and sales inquiries, contact Frank Foster on 07841 954328.