Feeding strategies and feed self-sufficiency of dairy farms in the lowland and mountain area of Western Switzerland

The feeding strategy and the feed self-sufficiency of 34 commercial dairy farms in the western part of Switzerland were investigated throughout the year 2010. Feed ration composition of farms from the lowlands with relatively high proportions of maize were compared to farms from the mountain area with relatively high proportions of herbage in the rations. Dairy feeds were categorized into herbage, whole-plant maize and concentrate. The proportions of dry matter (DM), net energy for lactation (NEL) and metabolizable protein (MP) sourced from herbage, maize and concentrates were calculated. Dairy farms located in the mountain area had higher proportions of herbage DM in the ration than farms located in the lowland (70% vs. 51 %), as well as herbage-sourced NEL (66 % vs. 47%) and herbage-sourced MP (68% vs. 49%). In contrast, lowland farms showed a higher proportion of maize DM in the ration (31% vs. 17 %). The degree of self-sufficiency of the total feed ration of mountain farms was shown to be larger for DM, NEL and especially MP. A general negative relationship between the proportion of maize DM in the ration and the dairy herd MP self-sufficiency could be observed.