Whoever said only athletes could benefit from spiked goods probably did not consider what animals as contenders. No more, for agricultural company Terragen Holdings (ASX: TGH) is making a case for the cows with MYLO, not to be confused with Milo, the chocolate powder that one takes with milk. 

Terragen undertook a study—the largest for the Company—to understand how MYLO, a liquid feed supplement for cows comprising live microbes, could improve the performance of cows. After conducting a dairy research study, it found that cows fed MYLO had a 3.3% increase in milk production. Plus, cows supplemented with MYLO had 10.1% higher average milk yield after calving. 

Terragen’s Managing Director, Miles Brennan, said, “We are looking forward to sharing these and other results with our colleagues at the Joint International Congress later this year. The findings enhance and expand the results we have seen previously in dairy cattle supplemented with MYLO. And, these recent findings will underpin and guide our future studies.” 

Terragen had its cowabunga moment following a longitudinal study over 16 months on an operational dairy farm in Harrisville, Queensland. This study was designed to further Terragen’s knowledge of MYLO’s benefit for dairy cows and calves and the potential of MYLO to reduce methane emissions, utilising a baseline dose of MYLO. 

It featured a significant sample size of 122 cows that completed the study. Two early findings arose from its longitudinal study of MYLO in dairy cattle on a commercial dairy property in Queensland.

Because of Mylo, even after calving, treatment cows had 10.1% higher average milk yield (an additional 2.3 litres per day) and 8.1% higher average peak milk production (2.6 litres per day greater peak flow). Both findings compare favourably to previous ones.

The study also found that the average number of days to first insemination was 9.6 days shorter in the treatment group (64.7 days in the treatment group) and the calving interval of the treatment group tended to be shorter. This result is great for farmers as they can get more from their cows, not just milk but also calves—the Company dubs this a major indicator of profitability. 

That is predominantly because of cost savings associated with reducing the “non-productive days” among cows and reduced operational costs of reproductive intervention, coupled with benefits of increased lifetime productivity and longevity in the herd (higher milk production capacity over productive life). 

What’s more, this profitability is not just a timely win for the farms. Given Terragen’s financials, it stands to gain tremendously from Mylo. In Q3 FY23, Terragen’s net sales were $447k, down 16% vs prior comparative period (PCP). Its Q3 sales of MYLO were $388k, up slightly by $9k (+2.3%) vs the PCP. Up till now in the financial year, the Company has experienced a cash burn of over $2 million, leaving it with cash equivalents of $4.2 million. 

The Company will be presenting these findings at the 2023 Joint International Congress of Animal Science in Lyon, France from 26 August to 1 September.