MSU-led research shows how feeding dairy cows high oleic soybeans can cut feed cost, boost milk quality and spark economic growth — allowing one southwest Michigan dairy farm to add more than $1 per cow per day in income over feed cost.

EAST LANSING, Mich. — Since its inception nearly a decade ago, the Michigan Alliance for Animal Agriculture (M-AAA) has bridged a powerful connection between Michigan animal ag industries and Michigan State University faculty, creating pathways industries can use to communicate research needs and granting opportunities faculty can take advantage of to deliver results.

Formed by Michigan's animal ag and allied industries, MSU's colleges of Agriculture and Natural Resources and Veterinary Medicine, MSU AgBioResearch, MSU Extension and the Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Development, M-AAA has helped ag industries — such as Michigan dairy — grow and strengthen through MSU research and outreach, according to Sheila Burkhardt, chief corporate affairs officer of the Michigan Milk Producers Association (MMPA).
"Through the creation of M-AAA, it has really deepened the partnership among the dairy industry, ag industry and research arm of MSU," Burkhardt said. "Part of the M-AAA criteria in putting research requests out there is dependent on what the industry wants. I would say that's a huge highlight of where research used to be to where it is now. It's been a big change because of M-AAA in getting the highlights and topics that we'd like to see from the industry perspective addressed in research."

For one research topic, in particular, results recently shared by MSU have left many within Michigan dairy over the past year to say, "Holy cow!"

Dr. Adam Lock, a professor in the Department of Animal Sciences and interim chair of the Department of Large Animal Clinical Sciences, has long focused his research on the role of dietary fatty acids in dairy cow performance and sustainability. Since 2021, he's used funding from M-AAA, MMPA and the United Soybean Board to study if soybeans with high amounts of oleic acid could increase yields of milk fat and protein when fed to dairy cows — a result that would increase production (and paychecks) for dairy farmers.

After years of data collection and analysis, not only did results support the theory that high oleic soybeans can increase milk production when fed to cows, but they also showed promise that dairy producers could decrease their feeding cost when planting the soybeans themselves — so much so that Michigan seed suppliers ran out of the soybean seed last year due to demand, Dr. Lock said.

Additional studies have demonstrated how roasting the soybeans before feeding them can provide even greater benefits for milk production.

"High oleic soybeans offer a rare win-win: they improve milk components and reduce feed cost, while also supporting local crop production. That's the kind of integrated impact we strive for in our research," Dr. Lock said. "Continued support for applied research like this is essential. It's how we turn promising ideas into real-world solutions for Michigan farmers."

No one has seen the impacts these soybeans have had more than those feeding them to cows, growing them or providing consultation on and selling them.

As a former doctoral student in Dr. Lock's Dairy Lipids Nutrition Program and Laboratory who focused her research on oleic acid, Dr. Alycia Bales now provides animal nutrition technical support for Caledonia Farmers Elevator, a farmer-owned co-op that specializes in feed, grain, livestock nutrition and crop production and management, among other specialties. Charlie Kunisch, another MSU alumnus, is a dairy and beef cattle specialist with Vita Plus, an employee-owned company offering the latest in livestock technology, nutrition and management information.
Both Dr. Bales and Kunisch work closely with Michigan producers to guide them through decisions influencing how they operate their farms, including what to feed livestock. Working with his farm's nutritionist, Brian Preston, who today manages his family's fourth-generation 1,000-cow dairy farm in Quincy, Michigan — Preston Dairy — connected with Drs. Lock and Bales in 2023 to learn more about the potential benefits of feeding cows high oleic soybeans. In hearing them present their research on a topic that until then had been minimally studied in Michigan, Preston and his family decided to grow and utilize the soybeans in their operation, and the results they've seen have excited them.

Hear from Dr. Bales, Kunisch and Preston in the Q&A below on how high oleic soybeans are galvanizing the dairy industry and how MSU research has played a role in their success.

Michigan State University AgBioResearch scientists discover dynamic solutions for food systems and the environment. More than 300 MSU faculty conduct leading-edge research on a variety of topics, from health and agriculture to natural resources. Originally formed in 1888 as the Michigan Agricultural Experiment Station, MSU AgBioResearch oversees numerous on-campus research facilities, as well as 15 outlying centers throughout Michigan. To learn more, visit agbioresearch.msu.edu.