Exciting opportunities at ANCC 2026
The Animal Nutrition Association of Canada is honoured to host this event and provide the animal feed industry with this exceptional learning and networking opportunity. Read on to learn about the exciting offerings at this year’s event.
Tuesday May 5
Student Networking Event – Strathcona
3:00 to 4:30 pm
An opportunity for students to learn about careers in the feed industry and network with potential employers.
Welcome Cocktail – North West Foyer
4:30 to 6:30 pm
Join us for an evening of networking and animated discussions with industry colleagues. Registration packages will also be available for collection.
Wednesday May 6
Pre-conference Symposium – Ballroom
7:15 am to 12:00 pm
7:15 am – Breakfast
8:00 am – Opening remarks
Forage remains the cornerstone of ruminant diets, yet variability in quality and digestibility continues to challenge nutritionists. This session will examine how fiber digestibility influences energy capture, milk yield, average daily gain, and feed efficiency. It will review practical tools such as in-vitro fermentation models, NDF digestibility measures, and forage testing innovations. Emphasis will be placed on translating analytical data into feeding strategies that stabilize performance despite forage variability.
Learn more about Dr. Penner
Trace minerals play critical roles in enzyme activity, immune resilience, reproduction, and rumen microbial function. This session explores how mineral form and bioavailability affect nutrient absorption, health outcomes, and methane intensity. It will highlight emerging research connecting mineral strategies to microbial efficiency, while also addressing practical formulation considerations. Nutritionists will leave with a clearer picture of how minerals — often overlooked once requirements are met — can unlock hidden performance potential and resilience at the herd level.
Learn more about Dr. Koontz
Efficient protein and amino acid utilization is a cornerstone of profitable swine production and a key driver of environmental stewardship. This session explores strategies to improve protein digestibility and nitrogen retention while minimizing waste and emissions. The discussion will highlight current research on protein metabolism, formulation approaches, and the role of the gut environment in nutrient absorption, providing a framework for balancing feed cost, animal performance, and compliance.
Learn more about Dr. Soto
10:05 am – Health break
Modern poultry systems face growing regulatory and consumer scrutiny surrounding long-term resilience, welfare, and efficiency. This session explores how nutritional strategies can enhance flock performance while supporting transparent communication and market expectations. Attendees will gain both technical and practical insights to help them align nutrition programs with evolving industry pressures.
Learn more about Dr. Gutierrez
Sustainability frameworks are increasingly focused on carbon footprints, yet Scope 1–3 emissions remain complex and often misunderstood. This session provides a clear introduction to Scope 1–3 emissions, highlighting how nutrition decisions directly influence carbon intensity through digestibility, nutrient efficiency, and waste reduction. It will connect scientific principles to global realities, including communicating with farmers and consumers. By the end of the session, attendees will understand not only the terminology, but also the levers they can pull to influence communications and outcomes.
Learn more about Dr. Place
11:55 am – Closing remarks
12:00 pm – Lunch
Pre-conference sponsored by
Opening Plenary – Ballroom
1:00 to 5:00 pm
1:00 pm – Opening remarks from ANAC
1:05 pm – Organizing Committee welcome
The challenges faced by modern production animals have reached unprecedented levels of complexity. On one hand, genetic progress has propelled levels of production into unchartered levels of performance and efficiency; most production animals are fed and managed as professional athletes. On the other hand, the ever-changing environment in which these animals exist, including changes to climate, regulatory landscape, feedstuff availability, and emerging diseases have introduced a near constant state of flux. In short, today’s production animals are asked to perform intricate balancing acts even as changes around them often outpace their ability to adapt. In many cases, nutritional strategies fall short; novel solutions for supporting production animal resilience are needed.
At Nutreco, we look to plants. Plants have evolved with unique evolutionary pressures as they are rooted in the ground. Inability to run away from predators or disease necessitated the development of highly agile and reactive survival strategies. As such, plants have become unstoppable experts in chemistry. They demonstrate an incredible level of complexity at the genomic and molecular level, and they synthesize a variety of specialized metabolites for survival. They communicate with each other via these specialized metabolites to improve the health of their overall population. In countless examples, plants overtake any physical space when given the chance. The evolutionary capacity of plants, and the information stored in their secondary metabolites, is what we call Plant Genius.
Because animals and plants co-evolved, animals have the ability to decode and respond to the information stored in the specialized metabolites of plants; they respond to and can benefit from Plant Genius. When the right plants are utilized, the physiological response of the animal is manifested by improved organ health, metabolic efficiency, and with that, resilience. Based on extensive work with a variety of plants across different biological models, we now have multiple examples of this response and the value it brings to the animal. Herein, we focus on the power of biological models for discovery work to leverage Plant Genius and bring novel functional solutions to animal nutrition.
Keywords: animal resilience, phytotechnology, specialized metabolites, biological models
Learn more about Dr. Lancho Medina
The vast majority of modern monogastric formulations focus almost entirely on the nutrition of the target species with no consideration of the needs of the resident and evolving intestinal microbiota. Such a practice has limited consequence if prophylactic antibiotics are fed but with their progressive removal since 2006 it is apparent that microbiota management through “nutrient” delivery, where the nutrient is fermentable fibre, is a field which warrants far greater attention.
The challenge facing commercial nutritionists is that fibre is not defined or quantified in a manner which is meaningful with regards to its function. It is herein proposed that the most important fermentable fibre components of a feed are the soluble arabinoxylans and to a lesser extent the soluble mannans and pectins. The focus on solubility is driven by recent discoveries that the material that enters the caeca of the chicken is almost entirely soluble, with very few if any particulates entering. Even in the pig, the haustrae perform some degree of filtering which highlights the value of dissolved fibre over that of particulate. If such constraints are borne out, it means that the nutritionists should be striving to identify both the requirement and ingredient content of soluble AX, mannan and pectin. Moreover account should be taken of additives that can increase dietary soluble fibre content (e.g. NSPases) and those that elevate the fibre degrading activity of the resident microbiota (i.e. stimbiotics). Such data are not readily available at present, but it could be generated relatively quickly. Transition from the current crude and detergent fibre methods (which currently are the only metrics of fibre that are monitored by commercial nutritionists, if they monitor anything at all) to fermentable fibre metrics should enable nutritionists to minimise dysbiotic events and thus improve flock/herd performance and resilience.
Keywords: Fibre, diet, fermentation, intestinal microbiota
Learn more about Dr. Bedford
Transition cows often experience a negative energy balance around calving, promoting adipose mobilization which can lead to hepatic triglyceride (TG) accumulation. The objective of this study was to determine the effect of a rumen-protected choline (RPC) prototype on milk yield and composition, and liver TG concentration in early-lactation Holstein cows subjected to a feed restriction (FR) challenge. Sixteen cows were assigned to either a negative control (CON; n = 8) or a daily RPC supplementation (RPC; 27 g/d, providing 12 g/d of choline; n = 8) mixed with 1 kg of the TMR 30 min prior to feeding. The study included 14 d of adaptation to the RPC prototype or CON, 5 d of baseline measurements, 5 d of FR (40% of ad libitum intake), and 10 d of recovery. Milk yield did not differ by treatment (P = 0.35), but cumulative yield was numerically greater for RPC than CON. Milk yield was greatest during the baseline (49.4 kg/d), least during FR (34.0 kg/d), and increased during recovery (38.8 kg/d; phase, P < 0.001). Liver TG concentrations were lowest during baseline (141 nmol/mg), highest during FR (4866 nmol/mg), and decreased during recovery (413 nmol/mg; phase, P < 0.001) but there was no treatment effect (P = 0.93). Supplementation with the RPC prototype to cows exposed to a FR challenge did not affect milk yield or composition, or liver TG concentration. It is possible that the RPC evaluated could not overcome the metabolic stress imposed with severe FR.
Learn more about Casey Bradford
3:00 pm – Health break
Adopting circularity is key to sustainable food production systems and delivery of ecosystem services. Livestock nutrition is the nexus to the development of circular bioeconomy and to the provision of ecosystem services. For ecosystem services, provisioning services include food and fibre production; regulating services including air quality control, climate regulation, water management, disease control, pollination and natural hazard mitigation; cultural services that provide recreational, aesthetic, educational, social and spiritual values; and supporting services that promote soil formation, photosynthesis, and water and nutrient cycling must all be considered. Livestock are increasingly scrutinized for their greenhouse gas emissions, contribution to land use change and extensive environmental footprint, with their positive contributions to a circular bioeconomy and ecosystem services often overlooked. To address this, the FAO Livestock and Environmental Assessment and Performance Partnership (LEAP) program convened a panel of 62 experts from 29 countries to develop guidelines to integrate circular bioeconomy and ecosystem services principles into the environmental assessment and sustainability of livestock supply chains. Life cycle assessment and food systems modeling can assess the circularity of livestock systems, but they do not consider all possible indicators that can influence the delivery of ecosystem services. Livestock promote circularity by utilizing plant-based by-products from food production, oil seed processing and biofuel production as feed. If not used as feed, many of these by-products would be combusted as fuel, bio-digested or landfilled. Besides milk, meat and fibre, livestock produce an array of co-products used in pharmaceutical, cosmetic, textile and chemical industries. Rendered co-products from meat processing are valuable sources of energy, protein, and minerals. Bioenergy technologies can capture energy from manure and other residues, and recycle organic matter and nutrients back to soils. Circular bioeconomy polices and regulations are key to ensuring that circularity practices offer an overall benefit to food supply chains and the delivery of optimized ecosystem services. These practices need to be assessed regionally, with consideration of available feed resources and stage of production so that livestock nutritional practices promote circularity and the delivery of ecosystem services in a manner that minimizes the environmental footprint and maximizes the benefits of livestock production.
Learn more about Dr. McAllister
Cattle production is facing significant challenges in terms of improving feed efficiency while reducing enteric methane emission. Ruminants have evolved to possess a diverse population of microbes in their rumen that enable them to convert forage into nutrients for animal growth. This symbiotic microbiota can degrade most complex plant polysaccharides to produce short chain fatty acids, proteins, and vitamins, which satisfy the animal’s energy requirement for maintenance and growth. However, this process also leads to the formation of enteric CH4. Methane (CH4) is the second most important greenhouse gas (GHGs) that contributes to climate change, and it is the most significant source of emissions from ruminants in the Canadian agriculture sector. There is growing evidence that composition and function of rumen microbiomes have both beneficial and detrimental impacts on cattle productivity, methane emissions, product quality and cattle health. This presents an opportunity for rumen microbiome interventions to improve productivity, health and reduce the environmental footprint of cattle production. This presentation will introduce the recent research advances in rumen microbiome and discuss the opportunities to develop novel and industry adoptable tools to improve feed efficiency and reduce methane emissions in beef and dairy cattle. Such manipulation solutions will lead to novel breeding and dietary supplementation strategies and targeted precision management to lower methane emission from dairy/beef cattle aligning with Canada’s goal of Net Zero emissions from Agriculture by 2050.
Keywords: Rumen microbiom, Microbiome solutions, Feed efficiency, Methane emission, Cattle
Learn more about Dr. Guan
Reception Dinner – North West Foyer
5:00 to 7:00 pm
Enjoy an evening of food, drinks and networking. Visit the Industry Partner Showcase and the Graduate Student Poster Exhibition, learn how to create the signature 10th anniversary ANCC cocktail/mocktail, and enjoy other celebratory surprises.
Thursday May 7
Monogastric Session – Ballroom (Manitoba/Saskatchewan)
7:15 am to 12:00 pm
7:15 am – Breakfast
8:10 am – Opening remarks and announcement of Graduate Student Poster Competition Winners
Grains, pulses and tubers may serve as feedstuffs but are also processed into human food, fuel, and bio-industrial products. Simultaneously, feed co-products such as distillers dried grains with solubles, canola meal and expeller, and wheat millrun and bran are produced. As omnivores, pigs are ideally suited to convert these non-human edible co-products into animal protein for humans. Thereby, co-products can reduce reliance on human edible grains to raise pigs and partially offset feed cost provided their price is less per unit of net energy, but also present risks, feeding challenges, and opportunities.
First, processing of co-products adds variability in macronutrient profile beyond intrinsic crop variability. Thus, feed quality evaluation to regularly update nutrient profiles is important. Second, fermentation and heat processing impact nutrient availability. Overheating reduces lysine availability due to Maillard reactions, reduces heat-labile anti-nutritional factors, but combined with fermentation, may increase mineral availability. Third, co-products may possess fiber characteristics that benefit gut health. Fourth, co-products may contain chemical residues and mycotoxins such as deoxynivalenol that survive processing and reduce voluntary feed intake. Fifth, dietary inclusion of co-products generally increases excretion of P and N by pigs. Finally, dietary inclusion of co-product may impact carcass characteristics and pork quality. In conclusion, the feeding of co-products may reduce feed costs per unit of pork produced, but also provides challenges to achieve cost-effective, predictable growth performance, carcass characteristics, and pork quality. Feeding co-products in substitution of grains is seen as a piece of the puzzle to reach sustainable food production systems.
Keywords: co-product, feed evaluation, pig, sustainability
Learn more about Dr. Zijlstra
The highest mortalities in chicken production are recorded during the first week of chicken life. This status quo is a consequence of hatching chicks in hatcheries. Such chicks are colonised by microbiota of environmental origin and remain sensitive to pathogens of intestinal tract, e.g. Salmonella. However, if newly hatched chicks are colonised by complex microbiota of adult hens, they become highly resistant to enteric infections. Such experiments also showed that aerotolerant bacteria like Lactobacilli, facultative anaerobes or all spore-forming bacteria colonised intestinal tract poorly. On the other hand, strict anaerobes without any form of survival in aerobic environment efficiently colonised chicken intestinal tract after a single dose administration. Using this experience, we have introduced a new commercial product to the market in the Czech Republic. This product consists of 9 different strict anaerobes and increases chicken resistance to Salmonella. Despite this, it does not meet all expectations in field conditions. This has forced us to view chick production in a broader context. Currently we analyse and compare microbiota of dead chicken embryos, in hatchery environment at the moment of hatching and of chicks before and after access to feed. Many bacterial species were recorded but only Escherichia coli and Enterococcus faecalis accompany chickens from dead chicken embryos to gut microbiota of hatched chicks. Such knowledge can be utilised for an introduction of novel types of interventions or probiotics, to improve quality of one-day-old chicks, reduce the use of antibiotics and increase productivity in poultry production.
Keywords: chicken, gut microbiota, hatchery, probiotics
Learn more about Dr. Rychlik
Conventional gestation diets with constant nutrient levels may not meet increasing amino acid (AA) requirements associated with rapid fetal growth in late gestation. Effects of elevated versus average AA supply during late gestation on sow body characteristics and litter characteristics at birth were evaluated. One hundred Landrace x Large White primiparous and multiparous sows were randomly assigned to either a Control diet [0.55% standardized ileal digestible (SID) lysine] throughout gestation, or a twophase diet with elevated AA [HiAA; 0.77% SID lysine] from day 84. The HiAA diet was formulated by increasing soybean meal, field pea, canola meal, and synthetic AAs added to maintain other essential AA
at fixed ratios to lysine (first-limiting AA). At the end of gestation, HiAA sows were 2 kg heavier (P < 0.01) than Control sows across parities. The HiAA sows had increased (P < 0.01) body condition and caliper scores near farrowing, whereas Control sows declined, indicating greater maternal body reserve accretion with elevated AA intake. Changes in backfat depth did not differ between diets. Post-farrowing, HiAA sows were 8 kg heavier (P < 0.05), and tended to be 6 kg heavier (P = 0.07) at weaning. Diet did not affect total born or average piglet birth weight. Parity influenced litter size and birth weight (P < 0.05), specifically, primiparous sows had more but lighter piglets at birth than sows above 6 parities.
In summary, elevated AA supply during late gestation increased maternal body reserve accretion without compromising litter outcomes, supporting phase-feeding strategies during late-gestation.
Learn more about Ashley Kok
9:45 am – Health break
A novel indirect calorimeter chamber system has been built at the University of Illinois (Urbana, IL, USA). Four experiments were conducted to determine net energy (NE) in diets containing different levels of starch, fiber, fat, and protein fed to group-housed pigs. Pigs were allowed ad libitum intake of feed and had free access to water. Feces and urine samples were collected for 6 days after 7 days of adaptation. Total and fasting heat productions and digestible energy (DE), metabolizable energy (ME), and NE in diets were calculated. Concentration of DE in diets tended to be reduced (linear; P = 0.069), but ME and NE in diets tended to increase (linear; P < 0.10) by increasing dietary starch and decreasing corn fiber. Concentrations of DE, ME, and NE in diets decreased (linear, P < 0.05) as soy fiber increased in diets. Concentrations of DE (quadratic; P < 0.013), ME (linear; P < 0.001), and NE (linear; P < 0.001) in diets increased by increasing dietary soybean oil. Concentrations of DE, ME, and NE did not change as dietary crude protein increased from 10 to 19%. As diets changed toward more digestible carbohydrates, NE increased, but increasing fiber linearly reduced NE in diets fed to group-housed pigs. Increasing added fat increased NE. Increasing protein did not change DE, ME or NE. These data will be used for a new NE system that better reflects energy utilization in modern pigs allowed ad libitum access to feed.
Learn more about Dr. Lee
Diets for monogastric animals are formulated to contain a wide range of feed ingredients that supply energy and nutrients to meet specific production goals. In addition to fulfilling this objective, many ingredients bring into the diet specific attributes with unique effects on digestive physiology and specific functions of the gut that are related to its health and function. This is particularly important in young animals, which tend to be highly susceptible to pathogenic infection with a clear link to growth performance and economic value. Furthermore, because of changing regulatory and consumer demands, there has been a concerted effort to develop nutritional interventions to support gut health and function within the constraints of regulatory and consumer expectations. In recent years, a specific ingredient component that has attracted considerable interest in managing gut health and function is fibre and its constituents. Dietary fibre from various feed ingredients has been shown to positively impact the gut microbiome and its associated beneficial effects on gut health and function. Using processing procedures or technologies such as enzyme treatment, fibre constituents with the ability to enhance gut health and function can be produced. Recent studies have shown that with specific enzyme treatment, plant protein can yield peptides with potential to confer gut health and function benefits. Similarly, other plant-derived phytogenic compounds, such as dietary polyphenols and essential oils, are widely used to manage gut health and function in monogastric animals due to their antimicrobial and immunomodulatory properties. The presentation will emphasize the progress thus far on the application of ingredient-specific components to modulate gut health and function outcomes in young poultry and swine. The mode of action underlying these effects will be discussed as will be prospects for future developments in these aspects.
Keywords: specific ingredient components, gut health, poultry, pig
Learn more about Dr. Nyachoti
This presentation category is intended for early-stage graduate students (both master’s and PhD level) who do not yet have research results to showcase their project motivation and the benefit their work will have for industry.
12:00 pm – Lunch
Ruminant Session – Ballroom (British Columbia/Alberta/Yukon)
7:15 am to 12:00 pm
7:15 am – Breakfast
8:10 am – Opening remarks and announcement of Graduate Student Poster Competition Winners
Liver abscesses (LA) are a major health and economic challenge for Canada’s beef sector, affecting nearly 30% of feedlot cattle and costing producers an estimated $61 million each year. These costs do not include the losses that occur due to reduced feed efficiency and growth in animals with severe abscesses. Current prevention of LA relies heavily on the antibiotic tylosin, but growing pressure to reduce antimicrobial use highlights the need for new, effective, non-antibiotic solutions. Recent research—including work from our team—has shown that LA are polymicrobial, and that liver abscesses consistently form two distinct microbial subtypes: those containing primarily Fusobacterium necrophorum, and those containing both Fusobacterium and Bacteroides. We recently isolated and sequenced the genomes of two Bacteroides species from abscessed livers which provided insight into how these bacteria may contribute to abscess development. Enhancing our understanding of the polymicrobial nature of LA, and the interactions between secondary bacteria and the primary pathogen, Fusobacterium necrophorum, may provide clues as to how these infections can be prevented. Identifying key microbial relationships formed during microbial colonization may shed light on why previous preventative technologies that targeted only Fusobacterium have not been successful. I will discuss some of the recent advances in our understanding of the microbial processes involved in LA development, and how understanding microbial interactions, and host responses to infection can help inform the development of novel methods to prevent LA in feedlot cattle.
Keywords: Beef Cattle, Liver Abscess, Fusobacterium, Infection
Learn more about Dr. Gruninger
Global agriculture faces a dual imperative: to increase food production to meet rising demand while simultaneously reducing environmental impacts and resource inefficiencies. Addressing this challenge requires repositioning rumen nutrition as the intelligent nexus linking crop and ruminant production within Integrated Crop-Livestock Systems (ICLS). In this role, nutrition becomes central to restoring the ecological, nutritional, and economic synergies that have been fragmented by decades of agricultural specialization. ICLS employs pasture-based rotations, nutrient recycling, and forage diversity to reconnect soils, crops, and animals into a coherent agroecosystem. However, moving from conceptual integration to operational sustainability demands advanced decision-support frameworks capable of managing biological complexity and uncertainty. Precision Livestock Farming (PLF), enabled by real-time sensing technologies, artificial intelligence (AI), and advanced data analytics, provides the technological foundation for managing the soil-crop-animal continuum at the individual animal scale. A key component of this framework is the development of Hybrid Intelligent Mechanistic Models (HIMM), which integrate mechanistic nutritional understanding with data-driven AI approaches. By overcoming the limitations of purely empirical or purely mechanistic models, HIMM improves predictive accuracy, interpretability, and adaptability, enabling dynamic nutritional strategies that enhance feed efficiency, animal health, and overall system resilience. Precision nutrition, supported by Internet of Things (IoT) infrastructures and satellite-based remote sensing, further enables the alignment of stocking rates, forage availability, and nutrient supply with ecosystem carrying capacity. Particular attention is given to methane mitigation strategies, which illustrate how real-time nutritional and performance data can support targeted interventions that reduce emissions without compromising productivity. Embedding nutrition within an intelligent modeling and monitoring framework allows livestock systems to move beyond static “net-zero” benchmarks toward adaptive sustainability trajectories consistent with planetary boundaries. Ultimately, this holistic perspective reframes nutrition not merely as an input to animal production, but as a systems-level integrator connecting soil health, crop productivity, ruminant performance, and human nutrition. Such integration is essential for advancing the Sustainable Development Goals and for ensuring that future food systems are productive, resilient, and environmentally responsible.
Learn more about Dr. Tedeschi
Protein adsorption with bentonite provides a cost and energy efficient method to dewater solids-non-fat (SNF) surplus, producing feed ingredients that reduce food loss and promote a circular economy. The inclusion of lactose and bentonite-separated whey byproducts were evaluated as a partial replacement for corn in lactating dairy cow diets, with objectives to observe milk production, composition, and performance. Ten multiparous mid-lactation Holstein cows were randomly assigned to a replicated 5×5 Latin square, blocked by DIM. Cows were assigned to five diets: 0% (control), 4, 8, & 12% of a 150 g/L lactose solution, & 8% lactose + 2% whey protein plus bentonite (WPB), replacing high-moisture corn. Treatments were designed to mimic byproduct streams of whey deproteinated with sodium bentonite clay before nanofiltration dewatering. Each period had 17 d adaptation and 4 d sampling to measure intake, milk yield and composition, BW and BCS, and serum metabolites. Results were analysed in SAS Studio using GLIMMIX with fixed effects of block, period and treatment and random effect of cow nested in block. Inclusion of lactose affected DMI quadratically (P < 0.01). Change in BW and BCS were not affected. Lactose linearly increased g/kg of milk protein (P < 0.01). In serum, dietary lactose linearly decreased urea (P < 0.01). Milk fat, milk yield, ECM, and kg/d yield of fat, protein, and lactose were not affected. Results suggest SNF byproducts could replace corn in lactating cow diets without affecting milk yield or milk fat, while increasing the protein percentage of milk.
Learn more about Tatum Schooley
9:45 am – Health break
Traditionally, in western Canada cattle have been fed in a drylot system during the fall and winter months, however, research from McCartney et al. (2004) lead to greater adoption of extensive grazing systems. Recently, producers have been adopting integrated crop-livestock systems to reduce feed costs and extend the grazing season. Systems include grazing swathed whole plant cereals and crop residues which have the potential to improve soil nutrient profile and decrease winter feeding costs (Kelln et al. 2011). These integrated systems provide producers with several benefits such as reduced manure and yardage costs, increased manure nutrient deposition and reduced day on feed in drylot. Managing the pregnant beef cow during the winter-feeding season is an important management aspect for beef producers in Canada. Forage nutritive value must meet the animal requirements in these integrated crop-livestock grazing programs. If the forage is not sufficient to meet these nutrient requirements, then supplementation is required. Producers can manage several different warm and cool season annual crops in extensive grazing systems. Warm season annual crops include corn and millet, and cool season annual crops including pea, oat, barley, wheat and triticale. However, factors such as weather, location, and growing season will determine whether the crops can be successful in an integrated grazing program.
Keywords: beef cattle, extended grazing, integrated crop-livestock, soil characterization
Learn more about Dr. Lardner
This study compared the nutritive values and cattle growth outcomes associated with swath-grazing forage systems (FS) under cereal monoculture (OMC, CDC-SO1 oats) or polycrop (PC) comprising oats, brassicas (turnip and rapeseed) and forage pea. A twelve-hectare field was subdivided into six 2-hectare paddocks, where freshly weaned steers swath-grazed each paddock during the winter. Forage yield was assessed at pre-selected GPS points at the soft dough (SD) and hard dough (HD) stages of oats. Animal body weights were collected every 2 weeks, while body fat was measured by ultrasound at the beginning and end of the trials. Forage yield was greater (P < 0.05) at the HD (8903 KgDMha-1) for OMC than PC (6163 KgDMha-1). The CP concentrations did not differ (P > 0.05) between FS at grazing start, but NDF, starch, and calcium content did differ (P < 0.05). The development stage affected (P < 0.05) the ADF, NDF, TDN, starch, sugar, and fat content of the FS, while the grazing phases (pre-graze and post-graze) influenced the nutrient composition of the biomass (P < 0.05). Although swath utilization was lower (P < 0.01) in the OMC than in PC, there were no differences (P > 0.05) in DM intake, average daily gain, or body weight change of steers grazing either forage system. A trend was observed in final rib fat (P = 0.07), where steers grazing the OMC had a higher final rib fat. These results show that PC is a viable alternative to OM for backgrounding young cattle.
Learn more about Dr. Durunna
This presentation category is intended for early-stage graduate students (both master’s and PhD level) who do not yet have research results to showcase their project motivation and the benefit their work will have for industry.
12:00 pm – Lunch
Closing Plenary – Ballroom
1:10 to 2:45 pm
To achieve the genetic potential of modern meat-type birds, feed intake (FI) must be tightly monitored and maximised. Any strategy capable of increasing feed consumption and alleviating the FI stressors will improve broiler growth. Currently, majority of the feed used in the production of broilers is fed in pelleted or crumbled form. There are several mechanisms that underpin the advantages of pellet feeding over mash diets, but the foremost factor is simply the increased FI through facilitation of easy ingestion. Though the nature of digestibility response is dependent on the ingredient and the specific nutrient, recent evidence suggests that pelleting has no positive impact on the digestibility of major nutrients in cereal-based poultry diets. However, the efficiency of feeding pelleted feed to broilers in determining the actual performance responses depends on the dietary nutrient density, and nutrient availability which, in turn, is influenced by grain type, and processing variables such as particle size reduction and conditioning temperature. To maximise pelleting benefits, it is critical to decide which level of nutrient density should be used and to identify manufacturing techniques to create high quality pellets that are highly digestible.
Keywords: broilers, pelleting, particle size, conditioning temperature, nutrient digestibility
Learn more about Dr. Abdollahi
Round table discussion “Bridging crops and livestock in times of market uncertainty” with Dr. Olga Lancho, Dr. Obioha Durunna, Dr. Ruurd Zijlstra and Dr. Reza Abdollahi.
2:35 pm – Closing remarks
Please note all sessions will be presented in English.