^^^ Illinois State Dairymen's Association. 



not many using skim milk in this district except during May and 

 June, and I would like to have you give us a composition includ- 

 ing the use of ground flaxseed meal. I had hoped when you 

 were speaking about blood meal you would say something about 

 the use of flaxseed, because of its high content of fat. Will you 

 give us a composition that will take the place of skim milk? 



Mr. Van Pelt: — At the Iowa experiment station we found 

 that ground corn meal supplied this fat that was taken out when 

 the butter fat was taken, cheaper and more efficient than even 

 flaxseed meal but you cannot begin with that. I looked this 

 point up and found some years ago a man by the name of Stuart 

 made a hay tea, and it seems very reasonable to believe that would 

 make an exceedingly good food for calves. He took hay, clover 

 or alfalfa would be better; he mixed in that a tablespoonful of 

 flaxseed and a tablespoonful of wheat middlings, then poured 

 water over it and boiled it. You can get that any strength you 

 wish up to a certain point by boiling it down. You take all the 

 nourishment out of the hay, the middlings and flaxseed, and by 

 boiling it down you get a certain specified strength. Later he 

 increased- the middlings to one-half pound, then to one pound ; 

 the flaxseed was increased to J^ pound, so finally he was making 

 a mixture of hay, ^ pound flaxseed and 1 lb. middlings, and he 

 found for the first six or eight weeks his calves made something 

 over two pounds daily gain, which is a larger gain than as a rule 

 we get with skim milk. That comes the nearest to being a sub- 

 stitute for milk that I know of, and it is a cheap substitute. 

 Flaxseed supplies the fats, the middlings supply what carbohy- 

 drates are necessary, and the protein is supplied by clover or 

 alfalfa hay, and most of this protein and fat is soluble in hot 

 water and is found in the liquid taken from the moisture after 

 boiling. I think that is the best substitute for skim milk for 

 feeding calves that I know of. 



Member: — Is it not a fact that in Denmark, England and 

 Scotland where they are famous for cattle, ground flaxseed meal 

 forms a large portion of their feed? 



Mr. Van Pelt: — Over there flaxseed would be cheaper for 

 them, but in this country corn is so cheap that it makes a differ- 

 ence. Most of the foods on the market sold as calf foods are 

 largely either oil meal or flaxseed, and the poorer ones have 

 flaxseed as their basis. 



