While VAT is on the rise, there's at least a crumb of comfort for local farmers this New Year with news that a raw material used extensively in animal feed isn't to go up in price in early 2011.

"Molasses prices have not and will not rise this winter," the excellent news for farmers from David Malseed, Managing Director at Belfast based United Molasses, (pictured).

"Record price rises this winter for other raw materials such as maize, wheat and Soya means that using more molasses makes sound financial sense for local livestock producers," he explained, with daily feeding rates of molasses to dairy cows gradually increased from 0.5kg to one kilo a head to reduce the amount of costly cereals in the diet.

"Molasses typically includes 50% digestible sugars so is a superior source of energy at a reasonable cost and stimulates both starch and fibre digestion," he said, noting that it also binds and moistens the ration making the animal's diet much more palatable and dust free.

On dairy farms, for example, dry matter intake can be boosted by 10% when molasses levels in the ration are increased.

"Since early last January maize has risen from £142 a tonne to £215 per tonne with wheat firming over the past 12 months from £127 to £215 per tonne.

"Soya costing £311 a tonne in Belfast on 5 Jan 2011 was £296 a tonne the same week last year," he continued.

"By contrast molasses prices have not risen dramatically and will remain at current levels until at least April. A cost certainty dairy farmers in particular find very attractive when grain prices seem set to remain high for the foreseeable future."

(BMcC/GK)