SO.PR.E.D. is an agricultural cooperative that operates in the sector of alfalfa and dehydrated forages. Some 1000 associated growers each year contribute the production of over 5000 hectares cultivated with alfalfa in the province of Ravenna and surrounding areas.
Established in 1960, Società Produzioni Erbe Disidratate is today a modern enterprise that dehydrates and packages alfalfa and forages in its two production facilities: “Standiana” to the south of Ravenna (via Lunga, 81 Campiano -RA-) and “Cà Bosco” to the north of Ravenna (via Sant’Alberto, 339 San Romualdo –RA-), with a combined production capacity of over 80,000 tonnes per year. The members who contribute their product give the cooperative access to their alfalfa fields, and SO.PR.E.D. directly handles all the cutting, windrowing, collection, transport, drying, packaging and storage, as well as the ensuing marketing. SO.PR.E.D. is an officially recognized Producer Organisation (PO) for Forages–the only one in Emilia-Romagna Region.
With a GMP+ certification, it is able to trace its forages along the entire supply chain, as required by the regulations in force.

PROCESSES

Modern artificial dehydration methods make it possible to optimally harvest the leaf fraction (the most protein-rich part) and store it over time thanks to a residual moisture of less than 10%, avoiding the risks of mould and/or toxin formation, or the resumption of fermentation after processing. Compared to traditional haymaking, forage dehydration reduces nutrient losses and better satisfies the requirements of dairy cows, which need to ingest fibrous foods with a higher concentration of protein and nutrients. The quality parameters of dehydrated alfalfa vary depending on the cutting time, the maturity stage, and the climate conditions. For direct feeding of dairy cattle, alfalfa must be cut “young”, at the end of the 4th week of development (within 30 days, and in any case before blooming), chopped to 5/10 cm, carried to the natural-gas fuelled dehydrator with a residual moisture sufficient to guarantee collection of the leaves, and dehydrated in the drum at a temperature that is not overly high. For the compound-feed industry, which requires high protein content, the best cuts are the last ones (fifth and sixth), when the altered climate conditions (less heat, more moisture) cause the plant to develop less stem and more leaf. Pellets obtained from dehydrated alfalfa from the fifth/sixth cut normally have a protein content of more than 20% of the total dry matter. Forage pellets, which are instead less protein-rich, have in recent years attracted significant interest in the realm of biodigesters, is better and more economical than traditional field-dried alfalfa hay.

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As well as having superior nutritive qualities, dehydrated alfalfa is more advantageous than traditional hay from an overall economic perspective of the barn.

Some aspects to consider are:

• Healthfulness and safety of the product, dehydrated with only methane gas at a temperature of at least 100°C, which sanitizes the forage, eliminating the risks of fermentation or moulds.
• Removal of any foreign matter from the product (metal, sand, wood, glass or stones).
• Compression of the bales, which is much more effective in the processing facility, with consequently lower transport costs and less storage space required.
• Dehydrated alfalfa is already chopped, which makes it quicker and easier to formulate the rations in the unifeed cart.
• Traceability, which is a decisive control aspect for the production of high-quality meat or milk.
• Certified Italian seed NO GMO

We can therefore say that dehydrated alfalfa delivers better quality for the same price.