Ruminant nutrition conference set April 20-21 in Grapevine

GRAPEVINE — The annual Mid-South Ruminant Nutrition Conference will take place April 20-21 in Grapevine, organizers said.

The conference will be held at the Embassy Suites Hotel, 2401 Bass Pro Drive.

The event is sponsored by the Texas Animal Nutrition Council and the Texas AgriLife Extension Service.

Events begin at 1:30 p.m. on April 20 with a tour of three Grapevine wineries. The cost of the tour is $60 per person. Conference registration will begin at 4:30 p.m. followed by a reception at 6 p.m.

Conference registration, excluding the wineries tour, is $80 before March 31 and $95 thereafter. Activities on April 21 will begin with registration at 7:30 a.m. and end after the final session, which begins at 4 p.m.  

“Presenters will provide nutrition consultants, veterinarians and nutrition allied-industry professionals with the most current research results,” said Dr. Ellen Jordan, dairy specialist with the AgriLife Extension in Dallas.

To register, make checks payable to the Texas Animal Nutrition Council and send to Dr. Ellen Jordan, Texas AgriLife Extension Service, 17360 Coit Road, Dallas, TX, 75252-6599. For more information, call Jordan at 972-952-9201.

Conference topics will include:
– Regional irrigation use and changes on the horizon.
– Environmental and management factors impacting corn-silage yield and feeding value.
– Increasing silage levels in dairy diets using starch and neutral detergent fiber (NDF) digestibility.
– Switching from corn to sorghum silage.
– Managing mortality losses in dairy herds.
– Impact of calcium and vitamin D on the immune system.
– The role of inflammation in metabolic disorders.
– Mycotoxins: Lessons learned from the 2009 Midwest crop year.

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