Are You Creep Feeding?

ARE YOU CREEP-FEEDING?

Carly Steffensmeier, Livestock Advisor talks more about the benefits in the article below.

Looking to increase the weaning weight on your calves? Searching for ways to improve your bottom line? Creep-feeding calves is a great solution and one that is almost always a return on investment. Let’s take a look at why you should utilize creep feed, its benefits, and what options Central Plains Milling has for your calves.

In a cow/calf operation, gross income is partially going to depend on the weaning weight of calves. Typically, a lactating cow can supply about 50% of the nutrients that a calf needs to maximize its growth potential. Grass and creep feed is able to supply the other 50% that the calf is needing. Calves that are supplemented properly can convert on average 4 pounds of feed to 1 pound of gain. Creep feeding for approximately 100 days should add around 60-plus pounds of weaning weight. More pounds on a calf to sell equals an increase in revenue.

In addition to increased weaning weights, creep feed has many other benefits. Supplementing creep feed to calves can help relieve pressure on the cow’s milk production. Relieving some pressure off the cow can also make an impact on its overall body condition. When it comes time to wean, your calves will be used to coming to feed and typically transition to a feed bunk easier. This in turn will make the weaning process less stressful on your calves.

Central Plains Milling provides quality creep feeds that are superior to most on the market. We have two different forms of creep available: pelleted or meal. Our pelleted creep is called “CPM Calf Creep” and our meal creep is called “CPM 4000 Creep”. CPM Calf Creep (pelleted) is 14% protein and is formulated with Bovatec with the option of adding CTC if needed. CPM 4000 Creep (meal) is a 16% protein that utilizes the power of dried distillers grains and has options to have Rumensin, Bovatec, or CTC added. Both creep feeds have Availa-4 and Diamond V XPC in them. We utilize Availa-4 in our creep to help decrease the effects of stress, strengthen immune systems, and increase average daily gain in your calves. Diamond V helps support digestive tissue and promotes a healthy microbial balance for calf immunity and overall health. If you are interested in maximizing your calf’s potential on creep, contact our Livestock Feed Advisors today!

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HELPING TO SOLVE CHALLENGES.

Janessa Smola, Livestock Advisor talks about working with her clients to help solve some of the challenges they are up against.

Click the image to watch!

Click the image to watch!

MEET SHAWN.

Meet Shawn! He’s weighing micro ingredients at our Columbus facility.

Do you have questions about what you are feeding or the best approach? Contact us today and one of our Livestock Feed Advisors would be happy to answer any questions you might have!

SHOW SEASON.

Show season is upon us! Are you ready? We’ve got the products you need to get your animals in tip-top condition. To learn more about our options, please visit our website page specifically dedicated to our Show Products.

Show Products & Services

Welcome to our first newsletter!

Welcome.

We want to welcome you to our first monthly email! Each month we will share community stories, and tips, answer frequently asked questions, industry news, and information about new products and updates.

We promise not to abuse your inbox! You can unsubscribe from this communication at any time at the bottom of the email, simply by clicking the Unsubscribe link provided each time.

Congratulations.

We want to congratulate our long-time customer, Terry Wegner for his recent induction into the Cattle Feeders Hall of Fame!

We have some recent award winners on our CPM Team! Congratulations to you all and the hard work and dedication you have provided. Our brand is great because of all of you.

Ruth had let her manager know that she was going to be home with a sick family member, but when another member of the Mill Team called in sick, putting the Mill short on people, she made other arrangements and headed to work. She really showed support for her manager and her team and it was very much appreciated by everyone! Thank you, Ruth, for supporting the CPM/Frontier family!

There is not a single Frontier/CPM Core Value that Crystal has not blown out of the water over the past several months. We had a member of our team out on Maternity Leave and during that time Crystal went back and forth between locations helping in any capacity that she was needed. Within that time, she also spent time training a new employee on all of the inner workings of both locations.

We then had a team member working remotely for several weeks due to surgery and during that time, Crystal single-handedly ran the Howells location, not only performing all of her duties at the Feed Order Desk but also physically helping with the Financial Office duties. She came in early and stayed late, putting in a lot of time and effort without complaint. If she wasn’t there with her amazing can-do attitude, along with her tenacity and drive for success, coupled with her phenomenal skill set for time management, detail orientation, problem-solving, and customer service, we would not have made it through this. Crystal, THANK YOU for all you do for us every day in every single Core Value that we have! We appreciate you so very much!

Brandon was nominated for his dedication! He is never afraid to jump in and help out and is extremely reliable. We always know he’s going to get the job done! Brandon is willing to come in on a day off to help out a customer and has even dropped everything on Christmas Eve to take a load to a customer that was out of feed. It took him away from his family for multiple hours but he did what needed to be done. Brandon, you are a valuable member of our team and we appreciate you very much!

Congratulations to Carly who recently received the Frontier “Above and Beyond” award! The Above and Beyond award is presented quarterly to team members that live our core values. Carly has been with CPM for 5 years and has continued to grow her community of producers by creating the best experience for her clients. Congratulations Carly! You deserve it and we are so glad you are on our team!

Career Opportunity.

We have a position open for a Nutrition Advisor on the Frontier Coop Team! Is this you for someone you know? Please apply today or pass along this information. We’d love to have a conversation with you!

Apply Today

Cow/Calf Confinement.

With the current price of land and the decreasing availability of pastures, cow-calf producers are starting to look for other options. The traditional rotational grazing of stocks and pastures isn’t as profitable as it once was; since it requires a high capital in order to make it work. Not only is there a 6.3% decrease in grazable acres, but the prices of land and the market risk make it unsuitable for some producers today. The U.S. cow herds must continue to grow in the industry if it is going to preserve and regain lost market share. One way producers can do this is through a confined or semi-confined system.

Moving cows into confinement can increase efficiency, reduce land requirements, and improve herd management. With a confinement system, the producer will be able to change the feeding program to suit the nutritional and energy needs of the cow at different stages: breeding, lactating, or…

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