Targeted Liquid Energy for Dairy Cows

Maintaining sufficient energy intake is one of the main nutritional challenges in high-producing dairy herds. Energy demand increases rapidly after calving and may also rise during heat stress, periods of reduced intake or when forage quality limits the overall energy density of the diet.

Liquid feeds provide a practical way of introducing rapidly available energy through either an automatic milking system or the diet feeder. The correct product depends on the size of the energy deficit, the type of support required and the budget available on the farm.

Mazzoleni offers two complementary options: Energy EVO as a cost-effective liquid energy source for TMR and Rumen Juice as a premium liquid combining energy with additional functional ingredients dedicated to robotic milking systems.

Energy EVO: Cost-effective energy supplementation

Energy EVO is designed to provide an economical but quality source of readily available energy. It combines crude glycerine with glucose syrup, fructose, isomaltulose and sucrose.

These ingredients provide energy through complementary pathways. A proportion of the glycerine is absorbed through the rumen wall and transported to the liver, where it can contribute to glucose production. The remaining glycerine and sugar blend provide fermentable energy for rumen microorganisms.

Energy EVO is suitable where the primary nutritional objective is to increase energy supply without significantly increasing cereal starch. It can be used to:

Support fresh and high-yielding cows
Address a calculated dietary energy deficit
Provide additional sugar and fermentable energy
Support milk production during periods of reduced intake
Increase the energy concentration of the overall diet

Energy EVO can be dispensed through the robot for targeted individual-cow supplementation. It can also be added through the diet feeder where additional energy is required across the entire milking group.

The recommended feeding rate for lactating cows is 400–800 g per head daily. The final rate should be determined by the size of the energy deficit and the method of allocation.

Where Energy EVO is fed through the diet feeder, accurate mixing is essential to ensure consistent intake across the group. When it is fed through the robot, allocation can be adjusted according to milk yield, days in milk and individual energy demand.

Rumen Juice: Energy with functional support

Rumen Juice also supplies energy through glycerine and a pool of sugars with different fermentation characteristics. However, it additionally contains inactivated yeast products, and niacinamide.

Its formulation provides three complementary forms of support:

Glycerine supplies rapidly available glucogenic energy.
The sugar pool provides fermentable energy for rumen microorganisms.
Yeast-derived products and niacinamide provide additional rumen and metabolic support.

Rumen Juice is particularly relevant where the farm requires more than a straightforward energy supplement. This may include:

Heifers or cows requiring improved robot attraction
Fresh cows under elevated metabolic pressure
High-yielding cows requiring support around peak lactation
Herds struggling to maintain lactation persistence
Cows experiencing reduced intake or heat stress
Diets where rumen fermentation and fibre utilisation require support

Rumen Juice is generally allocated through the robot at up to approximately 500 g per cow per day. This allows the product to be targeted towards fresh, high-yielding or otherwise challenged cows rather than supplied uniformly across the herd.

Choosing between the products

The selection is based primarily on the nutritional system, level of energy required and the economics of the feeding programme.

Energy EVO is generally selected where the main requirement is to supply additional energy in the TMR at a competitive cost. Its higher recommended feeding rate also allows a more substantial quantity of liquid energy to be delivered where the calculated energy deficit is greater.

Rumen Juice is selected for AMS (automatic milking system) where energy is required alongside additional functional support from yeast-derived products and niacinamide. It represents the premium option and is most appropriately targeted towards cows where these additional ingredients are likely to provide value

	Energy EVO	Rumen Juice
Positioning	Liquid energy source for TMR	Premium functional liquid for robotic milking systems

Main objective	Increase energy supply of diet	Attractiveness and supply energy with additional rumen and metabolic support

Feeding system	Diet feeder	Primarily targeted through the robot

Dairy feeding rate	400–800 g/cow/day	Up to approximately 500 g/cow/day

Energy contribution	Higher potential daily inclusion	More targeted energy contribution

Functional ingredients	Glycerine and sugar blend	Glycerine, sugar pool, inactivated yeast products and niacinamide

Best fit	Larger or routine energy requirement	Targeted support for higher-risk or higher-value cows

Matching supplementation to farm requirements

Liquid feeds should be selected following an assessment of the full diet rather than on product composition alone. Factors to consider include:

Dry matter intake
Milk yield and days in milk
Forage quality and digestibility
Dietary energy density
Total sugar and starch supply
Body condition and stage of lactation
The number of cows requiring supplementation
Product cost and expected return

Where a substantial group-level energy deficit exists, Energy EVO can be incorporated through the diet feeder. Where individual cows require additional energy, it can instead be targeted through the robot.

Rumen Juice is more appropriate where the objective is to combine targeted energy supplementation with additional functional support.