ADDING AROMA IN A DAIRY CATTLE FEED – COMMERCIAL CASE

Improving the palatability of ruminant feeds by using aromas and sweeteners is a common strategy. Producers need to stimulate the intake and sort out the different challenges that hinder the target feed intake, such as heat stress. Aromas and sweeteners will act at two different levels to create a satisfying perception for the animals:

Directly offering an engaging smell and taste.Indirectly masking unpleasant odors and aftertastes from the feed’s own components.

This is the case of one of our clients who wanted to assess the impact on intake and milk production when a flavor is added in a cattle feed. On this occasion we used the Apetenzyma 20 Orange Anise at 750 g/ton of feed, which contains aroma and sweetener. This trial took place in a farm located in Spain with 135 dairy cattle (+/- 10 depending on reposition) milked by two robots. Daily data was obtained for three different “on/off” periods depending on the diet: unflavored (usual diet) or flavored (usual diet + Apetenzyma 20). The trial started in April and finished at the end of June, temperatures raised throughout the trial and feed consumption was expected to decrease.

The first “unflavored” period showed a negative tendency of both intake and milk production but the addition of aroma in the feed was able to stop the decreased intake. In fact, it was capable to even increase the average daily feed intake by 700g despite the rising temperatures. The extra consumption of energy and nutrients led to a higher milk production, from 39.43 liters/animal/day (unflavored periods) to 40.04 liters/animal/day (flavored period). When the unflavored diet was offered again the decreasing tendency was resumed. In conclusion, the addition of aroma + sweetener proved to be an efficient solution to keep a stable feed consumption and milk production.

It is important to point out that depending on the needs, the components of the feeds, the processing, the facilities, etc. some aromas will be more suitable than others. Feel free to contact our Technical Department to have your case studied.