Feed Budget & How Many Days It Lasts

A feed budget matches the feed you have in stock against what the herd eats, to tell you how many days it will last. It's how you plan ahead — so you buy or conserve feed before you run out rather than panic-buying at high prices later. It's vital in dry seasons, winter or any lean stretch when grazing or supply is short.

Daily herd demand = number of animals × intake per head. Days of feed = feed in stock ÷ daily herd demand. For example 30 animals each eating 10 kg a day demand 300 kg/day, so 6000 kg of stock lasts about 20 days. The tool also converts that into weeks so you can see at a glance how close the run-out is.

Then you have a shortfall. The tool shows the stock needed to cover your target period and the gap between that and what you hold. Act early — buy in the shortfall, conserve feed, or reduce numbers or intake. Securing feed before everyone else needs it is almost always cheaper than panic-buying when supply is tight.

This tool uses as-fed intake and as-fed stock, which is the simplest way to plan because it matches the weight you actually buy and store. For ration accuracy you can convert via the dry-matter percentage of the feed — but keep both intake and stock on the same basis so the days figure stays correct.

Use the typical daily feed each animal eats. On a dry-matter basis it's about 2–3% of body weight, more for lactating or growing stock; on an as-fed basis it's higher because of moisture. A 500 kg cow eats roughly 12–15 kg DM/day. Use the Dry Matter Intake calculator if you want to work it out precisely.

Demand rarely stays exactly to plan — cold snaps, poor grazing, extra stock or wastage all push it up, and feed can spoil. Building in a buffer (a week or two of extra stock) means a bad spell doesn't leave you empty. Plan to cover a bit more than the bare period so you're never caught short.

Yes — enter the target number of days you need to cover and the tool shows the stock required and any shortfall. That's exactly how to plan a dry season or winter: work out total demand for the period, compare it to what you've conserved, and arrange the balance well before grazing or supply runs out.

Yes — cattle, buffalo, sheep, goats or mixed stock. Just enter the number of animals and the right intake per head for them, in a consistent unit with your feed stock. The days-of-feed logic is the same across species; only the intake figure changes with animal type and size.

It's a solid planning figure based on steady intake. Real consumption shifts with weather, animal condition, feed quality and wastage, and stock can spoil or be measured loosely. Re-check your stock and animal numbers regularly and adjust — a feed budget is for steering and ordering ahead, not exact prediction.

By giving you lead time. When you know the run-out date weeks ahead, you can buy feed when prices are reasonable, source it from the best supplier, or conserve a surplus now — instead of scrambling for whatever's available at peak prices when it's already scarce. Planning ahead is the cheapest feed insurance there is.