Delivery

Molasses is delivered on to farms in 10 tonne and 20 tonne loads.

Storage tanks must be installed in a convenient location to allow for delivery by large articulated vehicles.

Molasses is delivered on to farms in 10 tonne and 20 tonne loads.

Ensure the tank is fitted with the following;

7.5cm filling pipe

10 or 15cm outlet valve

Breather

Sight glass

Recommended Tank Size

 

Note:1 cubic metre = 1.4 tonnes molasses

 An additional 2 cubic metres are required to facilitate refilling before the tank runs empty.

 Feeding Rates

Molasses is an excellent feed for dairy, beef and sheep. For optimum conversion molasses blends can be included in the diet at up to 10-15% of the total ration dry matter. The following intake levels are for guidance only and we recommend they are discussed with the farm nutritional advisor to ensure the diet is correctly balanced.

 

For optimum conversion molasses blends can be included in the diet at up to 10-15% of the total ration dry matter.

Type of Animal

Daily Molasses Intake (Fresh Basis)

Cattle

 

Dairy Cow (600 kg)

1.0 - 3.0 kg

Young Stock (200 kg)

1.0 - 2.0kg

Store Cattle (350 kg)

1.0 – 2.0 kg

Finishing Cattle (450 kg)

1.0 - 2.0 kg

 

 

SHEEP

 

Light bodied ewe (Single)

0.20kg

Heavy Bodied ewe (Twins)

0.30kg

 

Note 1 litre of molasses weighs 1.4 kg

United Molasses (Ireland) Limited offer 4 products for the farm market depending on the application and preference of the customer. 

 

Product

Description

Feed Cane

High in sugars and fermentable energy making it an ideal energy supplement and sweetening agent for dairy, beef and sheep rations.

The product can be difficult to handle particularly in the colder winter months due to its high viscosity rating. This means it can be difficult to get evenly distributed in farm mixes.

The high sugar profile makes it the best product to be used as a silage preservative.

 

Export

Similar to Feed Cane but with a lower viscosity rating. More suitable for on farm mixing but can still be difficult to handle in cold weather. A good product for use as a silage preservative.

Molaferm

Recommended for on farm mixing Molaferm provides good energy value and significantly higher protein content. Ideal for use in a Total Mixed Ration it will encourage intakes by improving ration palatability and reduce ration sorting of less palatable feeds. Easy to handle in cold weather its consistent viscosity profile ensures a more even distribution through farm mixes. 

Addferm

Recommended for on farm mixing Addferm is a molasses based liquid blend that improves diet palatability while simultaneously offering a well-balanced combination of both sugars and protein at a cost effective price. Very easy to handle at all temperatures this free flowing product is rapidly absorbed into mixes and is a very effective de-duster..

 

Typical product Analysis (Fresh Basis)

Connecting the Pipeline for another Molasses delivery at the Port of Belfast.

 

PRODUCT GUIDE - Typical Product Analysis (Fresh Basis)

  Feed Cane Export Molaferm Addferm
Dry Matter %  74.0  72.0  71.0  69.5
Total Sugars as Invert  48.0 46.0  37.4  35.3 
ME Ruminants (MJ/Kg) 9.4  9.1  8.7  8.3 
DE (Pigs) 10.4  10.0  9.5  9.1 
ME Poultry (MJ/Kg) 8.9  8.67  8.1  7.8 
Crude Protein* % 4.0  3.9  7.2  8.8 
DCP % 3.2  3.1  5.8  7.0 
Ash % 9.9  9.6  11.6  12.4 
Sodium % 0.15  0.14  0.4  0.5 
Potassium % 3.5  3.4  4.0  4.2 
Calcium % 0.8  0.8  0.8  0.8 
Phosphorous % 0.08  0.08  0.2  0.25 
Salt % 0.4  0.4  1.0  1.3 
Sulpher % 0.5  0.5  0.4  0.4 
llbs/gallon 14.0  13.8  13.9  13.8 
Gallons/tonne 157  160  158  160 
Litres/tonne 714  727  718  726 
llbs/cu. ft. 87.5  86.3  86.9  86.2 
Viscosity (cp at 20˚C) 3500  1750  1500  1200 

 

The protein source is highly degradable and is particularly valuable to ruminant livestock.

This analysis can be used as a guide and viscosities may vary. 

Molasses and milk protein and quality

A delivery of Molasses arrives at Belfast Port

Generally, it is agreed that high energy feeds can lead to increased milk protein content. Carbohydrate, particularly in the form of rapidly fermentable metabolisable energy (FME), is required to optimise rumen microbial growth and nutrient metabolism. With more high starch containing ingredients included in rations, a greater proportion of the feed energy is coming from starch which, as a rapidly fermentable carbohydrate, can have influence on milk protein. This will be complemented by the rapidly fermentable sugars from cane molasses acting as an energy source A number of trials illustrate this effect.

 

Molasses stimulates microbial growth: Molasses is a rapidly fermentable energy source for rumen micro-organisms. During the 1980’s, dairy cow trials at the Scottish Colleges and Irish research institutes showed that including molasses in the diet increased both microbial efficiency and microbial nitrogen utilization. Indeed, the effect was greater than that of a starch supplement. (ref: Chamberlain et al, 1985; Newbold et al, 1987; Thomas and Rae 1988 and Mayne 1989)

The effect of molasses compared with barley on milk protein and its constituents

A study conducted at The Scottish College’s Crichton Royal Farm (Wood, SAC Expt. CD/6, 1990) directly compared barley with molaferm fed to late lactating dairy cows. Molasses replaced 60% of the starch in isoenergetic diets.

Milk protein yield was the same for both carbohydrate sources, but the milk from the molasses-based diet had lower NPN content and higher true protein level i.e. casein plus serum proteins. It was reported again that molasses blend increased rumen microbial nitrogen flow and efficiency of ammonia/urea utilization (Table 1). 

 

Table1. The effect of type of carbohydrate in the proteins in milk

Protein Component

Barley (Starch) %

Molasses (Sugars) %

Casein

78.0

77.2

Serum Proteins

16.6

17.8

NPN “Protein”

5.4

5.0

 

A series of three further diary cow trials at the Scottish Colleges from 1992 to 1995 again showed increased protein content of milk following dietary supplementation with Molaferm. The first (Yan and Roberts, Animal Production 54:476,1992) showed that increasing levels of the molasses blend in a 16% protein grass silage-based diet gave a statistically significant increase in milk proteins. An increasing proportion of serum proteins were also seen with each stepped increase in the molasses blend level (Table 2).

Molasses undergoes strict Quality Control testing.

 

Table 2. The effect of increasing dietary molasses content on milk yield and quality

Diet Molasses Level

13%

25%

38%

Milk Yield (kg/day)

15.5

17.4

17.6

Fat %

3.96

3.97

3.99

Protein %

3.16

3.27

3.35

Casein %

2.52

2.57

2.65

Lactose %

4.43

4.39

4.39

 

Their second study (Yan and Roberts, Animal Production 56:424, !993) also showed significant increased milk protein content and milk yield (up 11%) when higher levels of protein in the complete diet mix were fed. This was as a result of better utilisation of rumen degradable protein and NPN (Table 3).

 

Table 3. The effect of increasing dietary protein content on milk yield and quality 

(molasses-based diet)

Diet Molasses Level

13%

25%

38%

Milk Yield (kg/day)

19.2

20.6

23.0

Fat %

4.87

4.88

4.88

Protein %

3.36

3.43

3.44

Casein %

2.6

2.62

2.66

Lactose %

4.77

4.79

5.00

 

This confirmed general observations seen in feeding dairy cows that there must be sufficient rumen degradable protein in the diet to support this increased energy source for rumen microbes, and that they should be provided together “in synchrony”.

In 1995 (McKendrick SAC Report CD35, Reported at BSAS 1996) feed cane molasses was fed in conjunction with concentrates and good quality grass silage balanced to give the same dietary protein (18%) as the compound plus silage only diet. Dietary dry matter intake was increased with a consequent increase in milk protein and yield (Table 4). 

UMI offers a constant supply of consistent products from state of the art storage facilities able to hold 29,000 metric tonnes of molasses..

 

Table 4. Comparison of concentrate plus silage plus silage with the same diet and molasses

 

Concentrates plus silage

Concentrates plus silage 

plus molasses

Silage DM intake (kg/day)

12.7

13.5

Concentrate DM intake (kg/day)

7.6

5.7

Total DM intake (kg/day)

20.3

21.0

Milk Yield (kg/day)

26.2

27.5

Fat %

4.72

4.65

Protein %

3.51

3.55

Protein Yield (g/day)

908

963

 

In Ireland, studies to evaluate supplementary energy sources to combat low milk proteins when cows are predominantly fed grass silage and concentrates, Moorepark Research Centre looked at both sucrose (Kealy and Murphy, J. Dairy Sci.77, Suppl, 114, 1994) and various level of molasses (Murphy and Younge, 1995). 

In the molasses trial, a balanced, Latin Square design of four periods of four weeks looked at 5 to 15% molasses in grass silage (100% silage control, to 85% silage 15% molasses) fed with concentrate supplements of beet pulp, soyabean meal, rapeseed meal and maize gluten feed. Silage was of good quality and the protein content of the diet was maintained the same throughout. The researchers concluded that there was a significant increase in milk yield, protein yield, protein concentration, casein yield and total dry matter intake with increasing levels of molasses inclusion (Table 5) 

 

Table5. The effect of increasing molasses content in grass silage-based diets on milk production and composition.

 

0% molasses

5% molasses

10% molasses

15% molasses

Milk (kg/day)

22.1

23.2

23.3

23.7

Butterfat %

3.81

3.74

3.73

3.61

Protein %

3.06

3.09

3.10

3.14

Casein (g/kg)

3.45

3.49

3.51

3.58

NPN (g/kg)

0.27

0.26

0.25

0.25

 

SUMMARY

Incorporating molasses in concentrate/silage diets can increase milk protein yield, with the higher protein figure arising from true milk protein and not NPN. There can also be an improved protein to fat ratio in the milk and the milk yield is optimised by supplying adequate rumen degradable protein.