Animal nutritionist Chris DePew tends to farmers’ needs

High quality and large quantities are priority

By GINA KINSLOW

As an animal nutritionist, Chris DePew is charged with making sure dairy farmers’ herds produce the highest quality and the most milk possible.

DePew is one of two animal nutritionists on staff at Burkmann Feeds in Glasgow and one of several in Barren County. He helps farmers achieve those goals by suggesting a mixture of feed for their dairy herds.

“The biggest thing I take into consideration as a nutritionist is basically what the objective of the customer is out there,” he said.

Burkmann Feeds serves an area within a 150-mile radius of Glasgow.

DePew works with both small and large dairy cattle operations within that area. His work can require him to visit a customer’s farm.

“I’m not out there on a daily basis. There’s not enough time. There’s way too many. A lot of my customers, the larger ones, I see more often,” he said. “And some of them I may see once a week or maybe every two weeks. Some of these guys don’t require as much attention.”

DePew explained that the staff at Burkmann Feeds works as a team. While he is charged with developing the right mixture of feed for a particular farmer, it’s up to someone else to follow his instructions when mixing it. A sales team contacts farmers to see when they may need more of a certain type of feed or product and are in touch with farmers more often than DePew.

“Basically, what we build here is a protein energy, vitamin mineral mix,” he said.

Some of those qualities are not found in the hays or corn and wheat silages dairy farmers are known to feed their cattle.

At times DePew serves as a consultant.

“What you want the cow to do is produce the best quality, most amount of milk you can at the least cost,” he said. “But also with producing the most milk, you want the milk to be very healthy, very fresh and all those types of things. So that’s where the consulting comes in.”

As a consultant, he may give dairy farmers advice on cow comfort.

“A cow that is naturally out in the wild doesn’t like dead ends. You might be able to point out that cows are getting crowded in an area and maybe if we open this gate up and give them room, boom, it just relieves a little stress on them,” he said. “So that makes them do a little bit better. The healthiest cow produces the most milk.

“Just like the best runner is usually the healthiest runner. A cow that is doing what God asked her to do is the best producer and she will be producing the highest quality of milk but also the most milk. That’s pretty much what I end up doing.”

He also consults farmers on facility management.

“If they are building a new facility they will ask us to come or bring our representative to help them lay that out,” said Eugene Myatt, owner of Burkmann Feeds. “We also do some monitoring of milk equipment, monitoring of milk records. He can go to the computer and access all the information on these farmers’ milk if they want us to. If we see something creeping up, (such as bacteria) then someone will go to the farm and address that.”

In 2009, however, DePew took on a different role. He often served as an economist, helping farmers get more bang for their buck.

Very few dairy farmers statewide made money last year due to milk prices, due to the escalating price of feed and fertilizer and the number of cows that are exported to other countries.

“I did a lot more talking about economics, trying to be as efficient as we can. We’ve even brought out new ideas to them about taking a look at contracting their milk so they get a guaranteed price,” DePew said.

Burkmann Feeds brought in a dairy risk management firm that works with the board of trade on milk futures.

“Some of them are using it to put a floor under their milk ahead of time,” Myatt said. “We have several of our farmers who are using that now as a way to reduce risks. They can contract their feed and contract their milk and they know exactly where they are cost-wise and profit-wise.”

The things DePew likes best about his job, he said, is helping farmers make money and improve their farming operations.

“If they are making money, I’ve done my job,” he said.