TMR Ration Cost & Per Cow & Per Herd
Costs dairy
“This tool gets better every time someone says what confused them.
Enter dry-matter intake and the concentrate:forage split to get the kg of each feed and the daily cost per cowand for the whole herd — so you can steer the feed budget.
Mix your TMR ration
Next: budget ₹4,464/day for feed; trim cost by lifting the forage share with quality home-grown silage if your concentrate is dear.
Concentrate + forage shares should sum to ~100% of dry-matter intake; balance the ration for energy/protein with a nutritionist, not cost alone.
TMR ration cost — key facts
- Concentrate/cow
- DMI × concentrate share
- Forage/cow
- DMI × forage share
- Cost/cow/day
- Σ (kg × price per kg)
- Herd daily cost
- cost per cow × cows
- Lactating DMI
- ≈ 18–24 kg DM/day
- Typical split
- 40:60 to 60:40 conc:forage
- Basis
- Balanced on dry matter
- Privacy
- Runs in your browser; nothing uploaded
One balanced mix, one clear cost per cow
A Total Mixed Ration blends concentrate and forage into one feed so every mouthful is balanced — the rumen stays steady, intake climbs and cows can't sort out the grain and leave the fibre. But a TMR only earns its keep if you know what it costs. From each cow's dry-matter intake and the concentrate:forage split you get the kg of each feed, and with prices, the real daily cost.
This tool gives the concentrate per cow, forage per cow, cost per cow per day and the herd's daily feed cost from your intake, split and prices. Use it to compare ration formulations, judge a price change, and decide how far to push concentrate against home-grown forage. Pair it with the Feed Formulation, Dry Matter Intake and Dairy Profit tools for a full feeding plan.
See cost per cow
Turn intake and split into a daily figure.
Cost the whole herd
Scale per-cow cost to your group size.
Compare rations
Test splits and prices side by side.
Steer the budget
Spot when a price change bites your margin.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is a TMR?+
A Total Mixed Ration blends concentrate and forage into one uniform feed so every mouthful is balanced. Instead of feeding grain and hay separately, the cow eats a single mix at a fixed concentrate:forage ratio — this steadies the rumen, lifts intake and milk, and stops animals from sorting out the tasty bits and leaving the rest.
How is the daily feed cost calculated?+
From each cow's dry-matter intake and the concentrate:forage split you get the kg of concentrate and forage per cow. Multiply each by its price per kg, add them, and you have the cost per cow per day. Multiply by the number of cows for the herd's daily feed cost. For example a 22 kg DM ration at a 40:60 split, priced per feed, gives a per-cow and per-herd figure instantly.
What is the concentrate:forage ratio?+
It's the share of the ration that comes from energy-dense concentrate (grain, meal, by-products) versus fibrous forage (silage, hay, green fodder). Higher-yielding cows need more concentrate; dry cows and low producers need more forage. Typical lactating-cow rations sit around 40:60 to 60:40 concentrate:forage on a dry-matter basis.
What is dry-matter intake?+
Dry-matter intake (DMI) is how much feed a cow eats with the water removed — the true measure of nutrient supply. A lactating dairy cow eats roughly 3–4% of body weight in dry matter, often 18–24 kg DM/day. Rations are always balanced on a dry-matter basis because feeds carry very different moisture levels.
Why balance on a dry-matter basis?+
Silage can be 70% water and grain almost dry, so comparing them as-fed is misleading. Working in dry matter lets you set the real energy and fibre balance and the genuine concentrate:forage split. The calculator works in DM so the kg per cow and the cost reflect actual nutrition, not water.
How do I find my feed prices?+
Use your delivered cost per kg of dry matter for each feed — purchase price adjusted for moisture, plus any milling or mixing cost. Forage grown on-farm still has a real cost (land, inputs, harvest). Entering accurate per-kg prices is what makes the per-cow and herd cost meaningful.
How can I lower the ration cost?+
Shift the split toward cheaper home-grown forage where milk yield allows, buy concentrate ingredients well, reduce sorting and refusals with good mixing, and group cows so high and low producers get rations matched to their needs. Re-run the calculator after each change to see the per-cow saving.
Does this work for buffalo or beef cattle?+
Yes — the dry-matter and concentrate:forage approach is universal. Enter the right DMI and split for buffalo, beef finishers or heifers, with their feed prices, and you get the per-head and per-group daily cost the same way as for dairy cows.
Are the figures exact?+
They're solid planning figures. Actual cost varies with intake on the day, mixing accuracy, wastage and changing feed prices. Weigh refusals, re-measure DMI, and update prices regularly — ration costing is about steering the feed budget, not predicting it to the cent.
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