Having access, on a farm, to forages with a low NDF content and high energy and protein levels per kilogram of dry matter allows the production peaks to be better exploited, with positive effects on the economic returns of the farm and on the well-being of the cows. These results were in fact obtained in a work carried out by ABC-ITALIA on a dairy farm in the province of Cuneo, which raises 400 lactating Holstein cows. The inclusion of high-nutritional-value forages in the rations of the cows at peak lactation (80 DIM) led to an increase in milk production, that is, from 57.6 to 59.2 kg of milk per cow per day. This feeding strategy brought a twofold benefit to the farm: on the one hand, it positively impacted the welfare of the cows, thanks to a higher proportion of forage in the diet; on the other hand, it led to an increase in economic returns, with an IOFC (Income Over Feed Cost) increase of €1.51 per cow per day.

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