Performance of Young Nellore Bulls Grazing Marandu Grass Pasture at Different Heights

Brazil is one of the largest beef cattle producers in the world with approximately 200 M head. The Industry relies predominantly on warm-season grass pastures, with approximately 90% of animals finished on pastures. One of the main factors for the intensification of animal production systems based on pasture is appropriate management. Adjustment of stocking rate to maintain optimum forage allowance is essential. Studies on forage allowance have resulted in a better understanding of the response of forage crops and animals to changes in grazing intensity. The purpose of this study was to evaluate management strategies for beef cattle systems grazed at different heights (15, 25 and 35 cm) in Brachiaria brizantha cv. Marandu in terms of pasture production and animal performance

Effect of Grazing Height on Marandu Pasture Production and Performance of Soybean Grain-Supplemented Nellore Bulls

The Brazilian beef cattle industry is primarily based on the use of pastures. Grasses belonging to the genus Brachiaria are extremely important, regardless of whether the production system used is intensive or extensive. Appropriate management of the system is vital for obtaining a high efficiency of resource usage. Adjustment of stocking rate to maintain optimum forage allowance and feeding of supplements are strategies for achieving these aims. Feeding of concentrates on pasture can result in increased carrying capacity and higher weight gains over unsupplemented systems. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effects of 3 different grazing heights on pasture production and performance of young Nellore bulls grazing Brachiaria brizantha cv. Marandu. To enable increased pasture carrying capacity and support additional liveweight gains, the bulls were supplemented with soybean grain as an unconventional lipid source