Why Higher Brix Readings in Forage Makes Animal Raising More Profitable?

The Brix reading on a plant is an indication of its nutrient content. Whilst the reading is often considered as the sugar content in that part of the plant being tested, it actually refers to the total amount of soluble solids, that is, sugars along with plant proteins, vitamins, and minerals. The higher the Brix reading the greater is the amount of nutrients.

A Brix reading lower than 10 tells the farmer that the plant lacks nutrients. It must be said that although there may be an abundant supply of nutrients in the soil, it is still common to get low Brix readings. The desirable reading is one above 12, which indicates a robust and nutrient-rich plant. In addition to high nutrient content, high Brix indicates a bigger specific gravity and less water in the plant fluids.

High-Brix plants have also been observed to demonstrate greatly improved resistance against the majority of insects that feed on plant sap such as aphids, cucumber beetles, white flies, potato beetles, leafhoppers and other sap suckers.

If people were to eat high Brix foods, they would obtain much more nutrition than from low Brix foods from equal quantities. It can happen that less amounts of high Brix food will be needed to provide the same level of nutrition they are getting now. The same thing would be happen among livestock and other animals.

Merlin Nussbaum, a farmer of 20 years’ experience and currently working as an agricultural consultant, has worked with many farmers rearing livestock and producing animal feeds. In his work, he has seen first-hand the more effective resistance to pests in high Brix crops. Nussbaum still remembers a crop of alfalfa that registered a Brix reading of 16 a few years ago (the consistent observation among savvy farmers is that plants with at least 12 Brix exhibit high pest resistance). In this particular alfalfa field, the consultant distinctly observed that there were many leafhoppers massing on the boundaries but the insects simply would not enter the field.

The absence of infestation in the alfalfa field resulted in a large yield and greater profitability for the crop. If this had been a forage crop, the farmer would have reaped a very nutritious and bountiful harvest. Such a harvest would have provided a lot of nutrients at a low effective cost when fed to livestock. The animals would achieve good body weights from a lower-cost feed input, making the enterprise much more profitable.

It has also been observed that when given high Brix grass, cows eat only half of the amount of grass they would eat when fed low Brix grass. The pasture, which had a high Brix, consisted of various grasses including fescue and timothy. In this case, the cost of forage fed to the cows was immediately reduced by half.

Dairy cattle fed with high Brix grasses increased the quantity of their milk production. The cattle were healthier because of the nutritious food, resulting in vastly lower veterinary bills for the farmer. In addition, the milk produced had a yellower, creamier colour, a desirable quality attributed to more carotene contained in the high Brix grass.

High Brix forage thus increases production in farm animals even as it lowers production costs. The combination of these factors adds up to more profits for the farmer.