Corn gluten meal or dried brewers grains as partial replacement for soybean meal in the diet of Holstein cows.

Holstein cows (n = 24, 9 primiparous) were assigned equally to diets based on corn silage and high moisture corn supplemented with soybean meal alone or with either corn gluten meal or dried brewers grains. In diets with two protein sources, the protein quantity from each source was similar. Dietary CP and ADF averaged 16.3 and 18.8%, and undegraded protein as a percentage of CP was 33.6, 41.1, and 41.8% for the respective diets. After parturition, cows were fed the soybean meal diet for a 3-wk covariant period, an experimental diet for 10 wk, the soybean meal diet for 3 wk, and the experimental diet for another 10 wk. Milk production by cows fed those diets averaged 30.9, 31.7, and 34.9 kg/d; protein averaged .90, .94, and 1.02 kg/d; and DMI averaged 16.8, 18.8, and 18.2 kg/d, respectively, for the two 10-wk periods. No dietary differences occurred for 3.5% FCM, estimated DM digestibility, BW, BW gain, or percentages of milk fat, protein, or SNF. Ruminal isobutyrate and isovalerate differed by diet; isovalerate was highest in the diet containing soybean meal plus corn gluten meal, probably because of the high Leu content of corn gluten meal. Ruminal NH3 N did not differ. The favorable production response by cows fed dried brewers grains can be explained by a more favorably balanced AA profile in the ruminally undegraded protein than in other diets.