Measuring True Forage Value: Beyond Cost per Acre
When it comes to evaluating the success of a silage program, one of the most common mistakes is focusing solely on cost per acre.
It’s a metric every farmer knows by heart — seed, fertilizer, fuel, labor — but it only tells part of the story.
In reality, cost per acre measures what you spend, not what you earn back. To truly understand forage profitability, you need to measure what matters most: how efficiently that acre turns into milk, energy, and profit.
At Prairie Estates Genetics (PEG), we rely on two university-backed tools that make that measurement possible — value-per-ton and Income Over Feed Cost (IOFC). Together, they connect forage quality and animal performance to financial outcomes, giving dairy producers a complete picture of their forage’s true value.
The Problem with “Cost per Acre”
Traditional metrics like cost per acre or cost per ton tell you how efficiently you grew a crop — but not how well it performs in the ration.
A field can yield 25 tons per acre, but if the fiber and starch digestibility are poor, much of that tonnage is lost to inefficiency in the rumen.
Simply put:
High yield doesn’t guarantee high value.
That’s why PEG focuses on quality and consistency — because digestibility, starch availability, and fermentation drive profitability far more than tonnage alone.
University Methodology: The Evolution of Forage Economics
The University of Wisconsin–Madison Dairy Forage Research Center developed one of the first standardized ways to connect forage quality to economic value. Their system, known as the Milk2006 and later Milk2016 models, predicts milk production potential based on key feed analysis parameters such as:
Starch (%)
NDF Digestibility (NDFD%)
Crude Protein (%)
Ash and Fat Content
Dry Matter (%)
These metrics are used to calculate Milk per Ton (how much milk can be produced from one ton of forage) and Milk per Acre (milk yield potential × yield per acre).
PEG’s Forage Managers and nutrition partners use these same principles to estimate real-world outcomes for every hybrid.
Step 1: Value-Per-Ton — Measuring Nutrient Density
Value-per-ton is a measure of the economic worth of a ton of forage based on its nutrient content and digestibility.
Here’s how it works:
Forage samples are analyzed for energy (NEL), starch, and NDFD.
The results are entered into a model that predicts how much milk can be produced per ton of silage.
That milk potential is multiplied by current milk prices to calculate dollar value per ton.
For example:
A hybrid testing at 40% starch and 60% NDFD might produce 3,500 lbs of milk per ton.
At $18/cwt milk, that’s a forage value of roughly $315 per ton.
Now compare that to a lower-digestibility hybrid producing 3,000 lbs of milk per ton — worth about $270 per ton.
On paper, they cost the same to grow. But the higher-quality forage delivers $45 more value per ton, purely through better digestibility.
That’s why PEG emphasizes fiber and starch digestibility in every hybrid. Those extra nutrients translate directly into more milk — without adding feed cost.
Step 2: Value-Per-Acre — Yield Meets Quality
Once you know value-per-ton, you can calculate value-per-acre.
Formula:
Value-per-acre = (Yield × Value-per-ton)
A field yielding 23 tons/acre of high-quality PEG silage worth $315/ton delivers $7,245 per acre of forage value.
A similar field yielding 25 tons/acre of lower-quality silage worth $270/ton delivers $6,750 per acre.
That’s a $495 advantage per acre — not through yield, but through quality.
It’s a perfect example of why PEG hybrids outperform on real economics, not just agronomics.
Step 3: Income Over Feed Cost (IOFC) — The Profitability Test
Once the forage reaches the bunk, IOFC connects feed performance to farm profitability.
IOFC = (Milk Income per Cow per Day) – (Feed Cost per Cow per Day)
This metric, developed and refined by universities like Penn State and UW–Madison, tells you how efficiently your feed investment converts into income.
PEG’s on-farm modeling shows that farms feeding PEG hybrids often see IOFC gains of $1.00–$1.13 per cow per day.
That improvement typically comes from:
Higher forage inclusion rates (less purchased grain)
More milk per cow
Stable rumen function and herd health
Across a 500-cow herd, that’s an additional $500–$565 in income per day, or over $180,000 annually — just from higher forage quality and digestibility.
How PEG Hybrids Drive Value
1. Soft Starch for Better Energy Access
PEG hybrids feature soft, floury endosperm starch, which breaks down faster in the rumen and provides steady energy. This improves starch digestibility and reduces the need for supplemental dry corn — a major feed expense.
2. Balanced Fiber Digestibility
Every PEG hybrid is tested for neutral detergent fiber digestibility (NDFD). Cows can consume and convert more of the forage they eat, improving milk yield without adding ration cost.
3. Consistent Agronomic Performance
PEG’s hybrids are tested for three years in 22+ research locations before release, ensuring consistency in yield, starch, and fiber quality. That consistency keeps feed predictable — and cows performing.
4. Optimized Harvest Flexibility
Stay-green characteristics and strong plant health give producers a wider harvest window, helping maintain feed quality even in variable weather conditions.
Together, these traits make PEG hybrids more profitable on both a per-ton and per-acre basis — and ultimately in IOFC.
Case in Point: Real-World Results
When one PEG customer switched from a grain-focused hybrid to PEG silage, they saw:
Tonnage increase from 21 to 23 tons/acre
Corn acreage per cow drop from 1.25 to 0.75
Forage quality improve enough to reduce purchased dry corn
That’s exactly what value-per-acre and IOFC calculations are designed to capture — the financial benefit of better digestibility and forage energy.
Why Cost-Per-Acre Misses the Big Picture
Cost-per-acre doesn’t account for how the feed performs once it’s in the ration. Two fields may cost the same to plant and harvest, but one can deliver thousands of dollars more in milk income.
As a result, cost-per-acre often penalizes high-performance hybrids because it ignores their downstream value.
Value-per-ton and IOFC reveal the true story: feed quality and consistency drive profitability far more than raw yield.
How PEG Helps Farmers Measure Forage Value
PEG’s Forage Managers help producers evaluate their silage through independent lab testing and on-farm data analysis. Using standardized university models, PEG provides:
Milk per Ton & Milk per Acre calculations
IOFC modeling tailored to each ration
Year-over-year forage quality comparisons
Nutrient digestibility tracking by hybrid and harvest
This data helps farmers make informed decisions about hybrid selection, harvest timing, and ration adjustments — all with profitability in mind.
The Takeaway: Quality Pays
Forage isn’t just an input — it’s an investment.
When you measure your success by value-per-ton and IOFC, you see the real payoff from PEG genetics:
More milk from every ton
More profit from every acre
More stability in every herd
Because at the end of the day, the goal isn’t just growing corn.
It’s growing forage that performs — in the field, in the bunk, and in the bank account.