Characterisation of Silage Production and Utilisation Practices on Dairy Farms in Southeastern Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil

ABSTRACT

This study aimed to evaluate silage production and utilisation practices on dairy farms in southeastern Rio Grande do Sul (RS), Brazil. A structured 39‐question survey was developed using Google Forms to characterise farm profiles, dairy herds and silage production and utilisation practices. The questionnaire was applied by technicians across 97 dairy farms, representing 8.6% of the farms in the region. Corn silage samples were also collected from the silo face on each farm for chemical analysis. Based on average daily milk yield, farms were classified into four groups: < 100, 100–250, 250–500 and > 500 L/d. No‐tillage planting was not adopted by farms producing < 100 L/d ( p  = 0.046), whereas 36.4% of those producing > 500 L/d used this system. Higher‐producing farms used more winter forages for silage production ( p  < 0.001). Most forage harvesters (77.7%) lacked a grain processor. Pile silos were more common on farms with greater milk yield ( p  = 0.032) and the use of black‐and‐white plastic film increased with production level ( p  < 0.01). The use of bacterial inoculants was also more frequent among higher‐yield farms ( p  = 0.006). Farms producing more milk had corn silages with lower NDF concentrations ( p  = 0.043). The proportion of farms harvesting corn for silage within the ideal maturity range was low (< 37%) in all groups. This survey identified limitations in silage practices on regional dairy farms, highlighting the need to strengthen extension services to improve silage production and utilisation efficiency and financial/cooperative support to reinforce the dairy sector.