FORT WAYNE, Ind. – The 32nd edition of the Tri-State Dairy Nutrition Conference is April 15-17 at the Grand Wayne Center in downtown Fort Wayne.

“The conference is a splendid opportunity to hear and interact with researchers (national and international) on current dairy nutrition topics, visit with industry personnel at the exhibits on new and time-proven technologies, and network with individuals working directly with dairy farmers for advancing the dairy industry,” said Maurice Eastridge, a conference organizer and professor in Ohio State University’s animal sciences department.

Last year’s conference drew 414 attendees, and organizers expect a similar number this year, said Eastridge, also the department’s senior associate chair.

The event is sponsored by Michigan State University, Ohio State and Purdue University. The intended audience includes feed industry personnel, nutrition consultants, veterinarians and dairy producers.

New topics and issues to be covered at the conference include dairy sustainability, calf and heifer feeding, and using new technology, Eastridge noted.

A speaker from Purdue will discuss potential new ways for feeding milk to dairy cows.

“(A producer) can use whole milk from the farm, milk replacer through two-to-three times a day feeding or automatic milk feeders,” Eastridge explained. “One speaker will address ways being considered to allow more dam and calf contact during early ages for milk feeding.”

A Michigan State researcher will address feeding high oleic acid soybeans to lactating dairy cows, and the impact of the acid on animal performance, Eastridge said.

“Soybean meal from high oleic soybeans is being fed as a protein source and high oleic soybeans can be fed to dairy cattle as a source of fat and protein,” he pointed out.

The topic for the first speaker on the 16th is complications of the ag supply chain. Eastridge said dairy producers are still impacted by problems with the supply chain, but less so than previously. Issues have arisen with equipment, specific feed ingredients and pharmaceuticals, he added.

The practical aspects of reducing the carbon footprint by dairy farms through feeding will also be discussed.

“There are opportunities (to reduce the carbon footprint) but the magnitude varies with technology,” Eastridge said. “Other issues are cost and will the reduction be sustained in the case of specific feed additives.”

Additional topics include major accomplishments in calf nutrition and growth, feeding management of heifers from weaning to calving, and methane in circular dairy farming.

Eastridge said overall, the health of the dairy industry is rather good, but profitability continues to be a challenge with rising costs of production and volatile milk prices.

The conference begins on the 15th with a mini-symposium on amino acid nutrition sponsored by Balchem. Later that afternoon, undergraduate and graduate student presentations are scheduled.

Fourteen continuing education units will be available to members of the American Registry of Professional Animal Scientists (ARPAS) at the conference: two for the Balchem mini-symposium, three for a pre-conference program on lifecycle feeding hosted by Novonesis on the 16th, and nine for the conference itself. The ARPAS exam will be given April 16th.

The cost to attend the conference is $225 until April 1, and $255 after. The fee includes refreshments during breaks, a breakfast, two lunches, and an online copy of the conference proceedings. Graduate and undergraduate students may attend for free.

For more information, including the agenda and registration form, visit www.tristatedairy.org.