Even though hard and soft wheats are given equal energy in Table 1, keep in mind that energy level is affected more by variety than by wheat type. Strong gluten wheats tend to be superior to weak gluten wheats for cattle, and cattle seem to consume strong and weak gluten wheats in the same amounts, though some feeders think gluten may be responsible for cattle reducing intake on wheat rations. Corn 86.0 10.1 91.0 103.6 67.3 0.02 0.29 Milo 89.0 12.5 83.0 89.1 59.5 0.05 0.35 National Research Council, 1976. The nutrient composition on a dry matter basis for corn, wheat and milo are given in Table 1. Notice the higher protein but slightly lower energy level of wheat compared to corn.
Wheat is credited with more protein and energy than milo.
Wheat ranges from 9 to 17 percent protein. In Table 1, hard red winter wheats have a higher protein content than soft red winter wheats. Full value can be given to the protein in wheat in ration formulation. Thus, wheat used for cattle feed should be analyzed for protein so the amount of supplemental protein needed can be determined. Since cattle can use nonprotein nitrogen to meet their protein needs, beef feeders probably should not pay much premium for high protein wheats.