Salt, trace minerals and fertility in beef and dairy cattle

Larry L. Berger, Ph.D.

Salt Institute

Salt and Trace Minerals newsletter

Summer 1994 (Vol. 26, No. 1)

Trace minerals are essential to maintain high fertility in beef and dairy herds. Fertility is 10 times more important for cow-calf producers than size, growth rate and feed efficiency and 20 times more important than the quality and yield of the carcass. Dairy producers lose $2 to $5 per day per cow for each day a cow is open after 100 days post-calving. Feeding trace mineral salt maintains high herd fertility.