Rapeseed cake in dairy cow feeding

In a feeding trial with 58 dairy cows in different stages of lactation, including 14 primiparous animals, the effects of using a high proportion of rapeseed cake (70 %) in a protein supplement were studied in comparison with a concentrate based on soybean meal and sunflower seeds and meal. The basal ration was restricted hay and fodder beets and maize silage fed ad libitum. No significant effect on milk production and composition was observed, but daily intake of maize silage was 1.5 kg DM higher during the first third of lactation. The supplemental intake of plant lipids did not influence the fatty acid composition of the milk in the 9th week of lactation.