Introduction of solid feeds in the ration of calves has<span style="font-family:Verdana;"> been</span><span style="font-family:""><span style="font-family:Verdana;&qu...Introduction of solid feeds in the ration of calves has<span style="font-family:Verdana;"> been</span><span style="font-family:""><span style="font-family:Verdana;"> shown to increase rumen size and stimulate rumen fermentation. With the initiation of bacterial fermentation in the rumen, the intermediary metabolism moves from a glucose-based to a volatile fatty acid-based metabolism, which releases methane. Mootral<sup>TM</sup> has been identified as a promising plant-derived feed supplement to reduce methane emission in dairy and beef cattle. Therefore, the present study aimed at quantifying and mitigating the methane emissions in calves until the slaughtering age of 28 weeks. The study consisted of 20 Holstein bull calves at a commercial farm, assigned randomly into 2 groups (control n = 10;treatment n = 10), for 2 weeks of adaptation and 8 weeks of sample collection. The calves were fed an increasing amount of milk replacer and </span><i><span style="font-family:Verdana;">ad libitum</span></i><span style="font-family:Verdana;"> wheat straw. Mootral was fed once a day to the treatment calves. Methane was measured using GreenFeed units where concentrate feed was offered as bait. The calves were weighed at the start and every four weeks during the experiment. The calves in the treatment group had lower methane emissions (54 g/d) compared to the control group (70 g/d), a reduction of 22.8%. In contrast, carbon dioxide emission and dry matter intake did not differ significantly between the study groups. Moreover, no negative impact on the average daily weight gain and carcass weight was observed in Mootral fed calves. Although the methane emission (g/kg body weight) was lower in treatment than in the control group, the absolute difference between the groups narrowed with increasing age of the calves. The results suggest a need to increase the dose in line with the increased body weight and intake of the calves. In conclusion, Mootral effectively reduced methane in calves. Further trials to determine the optimal dose for calves are warranted, and as well studies to investigate if interventions (such as Mootral) applied at an earlier life cycle stage would have an impact on methane emissions at later stages of cattle’s life, would be of scientific interest.</span></span>展开更多
Several in vitro fermentation studies had demonstrated the efficacy of Mootral, a patent-pending natural feed supplement, in reducing methane gas production. In order to test the supplement’s application in a commerc...Several in vitro fermentation studies had demonstrated the efficacy of Mootral, a patent-pending natural feed supplement, in reducing methane gas production. In order to test the supplement’s application in a commercial farm, Jersey (n = 121) and Holstein-Friesian (HF, n = 275) lactating cows received 500 g of pellets containing 3% Mootral powder for 12 weeks. Their enteric methane gas production was monitored using a hand-held laser methane detector. During 7 weeks of pre-Mootral supplementation period, dry matter intake (DMI), milk yield and milk quality (fat, protein, urea, pH, bulk tank somatic cell count (BTSCC)) were monitored for both herds and continued during 12 weeks of Mootral supplementation (Mootral period), and 4 weeks after withdrawal of Mootral (post-Mootral period). Feed samples were analysed during each period, and feed efficiencies (FE) for each herd were calculated. Compared to the baseline, the methane gas produced by the Jersey and HF cows during the Mootral period were lower by 38.3% and 20.7% (p < 0.05), respectively. DMI for Jerseys were greatest during the pre-Mootral period (p < 0.05), while no difference was recorded for the HF cows. Milk yield increased significantly (p < 0.05) for both herds during Mootral supplementation. FE increased significantly for the Jersey herd during the Mootral and post-Mootral periods (p < 0.05). Statistically significant changes were detected for urea in both herds, and BTSCC for HF cows, but these did not adversely affect milk quality. Results demonstrated Mootral reduces enteric methane production in lactating cows while increasing milk yield without affecting milk quality.展开更多
文摘Introduction of solid feeds in the ration of calves has<span style="font-family:Verdana;"> been</span><span style="font-family:""><span style="font-family:Verdana;"> shown to increase rumen size and stimulate rumen fermentation. With the initiation of bacterial fermentation in the rumen, the intermediary metabolism moves from a glucose-based to a volatile fatty acid-based metabolism, which releases methane. Mootral<sup>TM</sup> has been identified as a promising plant-derived feed supplement to reduce methane emission in dairy and beef cattle. Therefore, the present study aimed at quantifying and mitigating the methane emissions in calves until the slaughtering age of 28 weeks. The study consisted of 20 Holstein bull calves at a commercial farm, assigned randomly into 2 groups (control n = 10;treatment n = 10), for 2 weeks of adaptation and 8 weeks of sample collection. The calves were fed an increasing amount of milk replacer and </span><i><span style="font-family:Verdana;">ad libitum</span></i><span style="font-family:Verdana;"> wheat straw. Mootral was fed once a day to the treatment calves. Methane was measured using GreenFeed units where concentrate feed was offered as bait. The calves were weighed at the start and every four weeks during the experiment. The calves in the treatment group had lower methane emissions (54 g/d) compared to the control group (70 g/d), a reduction of 22.8%. In contrast, carbon dioxide emission and dry matter intake did not differ significantly between the study groups. Moreover, no negative impact on the average daily weight gain and carcass weight was observed in Mootral fed calves. Although the methane emission (g/kg body weight) was lower in treatment than in the control group, the absolute difference between the groups narrowed with increasing age of the calves. The results suggest a need to increase the dose in line with the increased body weight and intake of the calves. In conclusion, Mootral effectively reduced methane in calves. Further trials to determine the optimal dose for calves are warranted, and as well studies to investigate if interventions (such as Mootral) applied at an earlier life cycle stage would have an impact on methane emissions at later stages of cattle’s life, would be of scientific interest.</span></span>
文摘Several in vitro fermentation studies had demonstrated the efficacy of Mootral, a patent-pending natural feed supplement, in reducing methane gas production. In order to test the supplement’s application in a commercial farm, Jersey (n = 121) and Holstein-Friesian (HF, n = 275) lactating cows received 500 g of pellets containing 3% Mootral powder for 12 weeks. Their enteric methane gas production was monitored using a hand-held laser methane detector. During 7 weeks of pre-Mootral supplementation period, dry matter intake (DMI), milk yield and milk quality (fat, protein, urea, pH, bulk tank somatic cell count (BTSCC)) were monitored for both herds and continued during 12 weeks of Mootral supplementation (Mootral period), and 4 weeks after withdrawal of Mootral (post-Mootral period). Feed samples were analysed during each period, and feed efficiencies (FE) for each herd were calculated. Compared to the baseline, the methane gas produced by the Jersey and HF cows during the Mootral period were lower by 38.3% and 20.7% (p < 0.05), respectively. DMI for Jerseys were greatest during the pre-Mootral period (p < 0.05), while no difference was recorded for the HF cows. Milk yield increased significantly (p < 0.05) for both herds during Mootral supplementation. FE increased significantly for the Jersey herd during the Mootral and post-Mootral periods (p < 0.05). Statistically significant changes were detected for urea in both herds, and BTSCC for HF cows, but these did not adversely affect milk quality. Results demonstrated Mootral reduces enteric methane production in lactating cows while increasing milk yield without affecting milk quality.
