Exciting opportunities at ANCC 2023
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.
Student Networking Event
Tuesday, May 9 – Afternoon
Students are invited to learn more about the diverse career opportunities within the Canadian feed industry. Representatives from different segments of the Canadian feed industry will discuss their career experiences in a live panel discussion. Afterwards, students will engage in small group discussions where they can ask questions and have further conversations with the panelists.
Welcome Cocktail
Tuesday, May 9 – Evening
Join us for an evening of networking and animated discussions with industry colleagues. Registration packages will also be available for collection.
Pre-conference Symposium
Wednesday, May 10 – Morning
The role dietary phosphorus may play in hypocalcemia and milk fever prevention programs: new research
Traditionally, milk fever prevention programs have attempted to directly alter Ca status of dairy cows at calving. Common approaches include feeding pre-fresh dairy cows diets containing anionic salts, restricting dietary Ca, feeding hyper-dietary Ca and administering Ca boluses. There is an abundance of research in regard to the mechanisms associated with dietary Ca alteration, dietary cation-anion difference as related to parathyroid hormone and vitamin D and the role they play in the prevention of hypocalcemia and milk fever in dairy cattle.
Over the past decade new research has also better-defined phosphorus homeostasis in animals. This research has defined a negative relationship between dietary P and blood Ca status at calving in dairy cows. Specifically, lower blood Ca has been observed when excessive or high levels of dietary P are fed. It is now understood that fibroblast growth factor 23 (FGF-23), a peptide hormone active in bone tissue, also regulates bone resorption of Ca and P and urinary retention of P. While research evidence is indirect, new feeding strategies, such as feeding Zeolite A, have emerged, which capitalize on P homeostasis as an alternative to improve Ca status of dairy cows at calving. This presentation will focus on supportive research and the practical aspects of this research.
Learn more about Patrick Hoffman.
Nutritional strategies to mitigate broiler breast myopathies
Woody breast (WB) and white striping (WS) in broiler breast meat are emerging issues in the poultry industry worldwide. These conditions are associated with high breast yielding, heavy broilers, and they have negative quality impacts and major economic implications. Nutritional strategies have been studied by researchers in efforts to reduce the prevalence of WB in broilers, without negative impacts on live performance.
Dietary inclusion of guanidinoacetic acid (GAA) has been evaluated as a nutritional intervention to reduce the incidence of myopathies. Recent studies have shown that GAA (0.06% or 0.12% GAA supplementation in diet) had no impact on live weight at processing and no negative impact on FCR compared to the control diet at 55d (P<0.05). Supplementation of 0.12% GAA reduced (P<0.05) WB compared to control and supplementation of either 0.06% or 0.12% GAA reduced WS severity compared to control. In a secondary study, GAA (0.08%) was supplemented in diets with reduced energy (control diet less 25 or 50 kcal/kg). At day of processing, no differences (P>0.05) were noted in final live weight due to energy reduction or GAA supplementation. In addition, no differences (P>0.05) were noted in breast yield. There were also no statistical differences in frequency of WB severity (P>0.05). Results of these studies suggest that GAA may reduce myopathies such as woody breast without negatively affecting live performance, but the level of inclusion is important. The inclusion rate should be optimized for effective reduction of myopathies.
Learn more about Dr. Casey Owens.
Formulating low Zn nursery diets: ABC-4 and other strategies
Pharmacological levels of Zn in early nursery pig diets reduce the instance of post-weaning diarrhea and improve performance. However, there are growing concerns with pharmacological levels of Zn and much attention has been directed toward strategies to lower dietary Zn without negatively impacting performance. Diet acid-binding capacity-4 (ABC-4) could be an option to formulate low Zn diets. Dietary ABC-4 is the hydrochloric acid required to reach a pH of 4. The young pig has a limited capacity to produce enough acid, therefore, incorporation of low ABC-4 ingredients can help maintain an acidic gastric environment and improve health status and subsequent performance. Several ingredients can influence diet ABC-4 such as minerals and acidifiers. However, protein sources utilized in early nursery diets can also impact diet ABC-4. Soy protein sources range in ABC-4 from -13 to 753 meq/kg. In a recent commercial research study, we found no differences between soy sources when ZnO was present in the diet. However, when ZnO was not present, pigs fed a soy protein with low ABC-4 (AX3 Digest) had improved growth performance and lower morbidity and mortality compared to a soy source with high ABC-4. Along with dietary ABC-4, several other changes should be considered when zinc oxide is removed from the diet in the areas of management (increased weaning age, sanitation, reducing other stressors), genetics (E coli resistance), water (quality and pH), and nutrition (lower crude protein, increase amino acid ratios relative to lysine, fiber sources, copper inclusion, increased phytase and other enzymes).
Learn more about Dr. Micheal Tokach and Ethan Stas.
Proteases benefits: What if they brought more than just releasing amino acids?
Additives are part of the strategies for adding value to food, and their interest, in the current context of raw material prices, is even more evident. Nevertheless, there is a tendency to simplify their action to stick to the primary logic of their nature and easily generate an economic advantage. In doing so, we are likely to limit ourselves by failing to fully consider the scope of their work. In the case of the increasingly popular proteases, this involves a “simple” recovery of the digestible amino acids that can be released from raw materials.
Rather than only taking into account their digestibility enhancing aspect, which certainly allows us to save money through the use of recovery matrices and the subsequent reduction of protein inputs, we would benefit from better understanding and exploring the properties of proteases and the related benefits. Exogenous proteases can indeed be used in combination with other enzymes. They can resist anti-nutritional factors, modulate the microbiota, participate in a better gastrointestinal health, and overall improve digestion. This goes beyond a simple gain in formulation and these positive impacts on health and the environment deserve to be taken into account in their added value. Additives in general will benefit from a more complete understanding and review of their nature and benefits in order to position them as valuable tools to bring the animal nutrition industry into the next era of precision gut nutrition.
Learn more about Dr. Ludovic Lahaye.
The benefits of tributyrin on intestinal function and health and subsequent performance response
Butyric acid is a short-chain fatty acid (SCFA) that is produced naturally by fermentation of fiber in the lower gastrointestinal tract (GI). Butyric acid has known benefits such as providing energy to colonocytes, intestinal barrier function, apoptosis regulation, control cytokine production, mucus synthesis, and intestinal cell proliferation, differentiation and maturation. Exogenous supplementation of butyric acid was initially developed by making a salt derivative, with either sodium or calcium to reduce the rancid butter smell, and included into fat matrix to allow the butyrate to get past the upper GI and into the intestines.
More recently, glycerol esters of butyric acid was developed to produce either mono- or tributyrins to further prevent the butyric smell and allow butyric acid to pass into intestine without the need of a fat coating/matrix. In this presentation published broiler and piglet research with tributyrin will be reviewed to demonstrate gut modification, such as morphology, and antioxidant responses.
Learn more about Dr. Jonathan Broomhead.
Opening Plenary
Wednesday, May 10 – Afternoon
Functional foods from animal agriculture in relation to nutrition and health
Functional foods can be defined as foods containing bioactives that provide health benefits beyond basic nutrition. Substantial research has examined phytochemical bioactives; however, there is also interest in bioactives from animals. Functional foods of animal origin are due to the bioactives present in foods such as eggs, dairy, meat and fish. This presentation will introduce and overview the concept of functional foods and outline the uniqueness of animals as a source of bioactives for functional foods. Specific animal-derived functional foods will then be examined and related to nutrition and human health.
Learn more about Dr.Alison Duncan.
Nutritional opportunities to elevate the socioeconomic values of livestock through decoupling greenhouse gas emissions
10 years of data from 168 primary crop products and 44 primary animal products from 240 countries summarized in a Bayesian learning network highlights that ruminant meat and milk are primary drivers of agricultural greenhouse gas emissions in food production systems globally. However, these same products, along with eggs and non-ruminant meat, are also linked positively to nearly every nutrient essential for human life, such that, irrespective of agricultural system studied, targeting emissions reduction through decreasing livestock production will have negative consequences on availability of many nutrients for human diets.
Animal products provide great socioeconomic value globally as dense nutrient sources, and in many cases generate net-positive effects on nutrient availabilities through producing more human-edible product than they consume. To maintain these socioeconomic benefits, the animal agriculture industries should focus on decoupling the tight associations between animal agriculture and greenhouse gas emissions. Nutritional strategies to facilitate this decoupling, including enhanced consumption of by-product feeds, use of feed additives, and supplementation approaches, each have strengths and weaknesses but collectively provide a flexible suite of technologies for use toward making progress on industry-driven neutrality pledges and amending system architecture to soften the linkages between greenhouse gas emissions and animal agriculture.
Learn more about Dr. Robin White.
Interactive effects of genetics and diet on carcass and meat quality traits
Canada is one of the largest pork and beef exporters in the world. The volume and value of Canadian meat exports have increased to ~$9 billion/year, and the export markets have expanded significantly from the traditional buyers. However, the meat export landscape has evolved during the last years, becoming more competitive, with major players trying to access the same import markets. Quality assurance and meat differentiation based on quality attributes contribute to meeting domestic and international buyers’ requirements. At the same time, concerns regarding the impact of meat production on greenhouse gas emissions need to be addressed by maintaining or increasing carcass lean meat yield content.
Carcass and meat quality, as any phenotypic trait, depends on the interaction between the genetic background of a given animal and the environment in which it is raised. Among the many environmental factors interacting with genetics, many studies have identified animal nutrition as the most influential component. However, many studies independently evaluate the impact of either genetics or nutritional strategies, with few studies exploring the interactions between these two major factors. Emerging fields, such as phenomics, nutrigenomics, and integrative approaches, such as livestock precision farming and systems biology, may help understand these interactions and manipulate key attributes.
Learn more about Dr. Manuel Juárez.
Current feeding challenges for dairy and beef calves
In Spain, the beef fattening system is an intensive system where calves are commonly housed in partially open barns with straw bedding and 40% of the calves, mainly males, are from dairy origin (surplus calves). These calves are transported by road for long hours (up to 3-5 days) from their dairy origin farms to the rearing farm where these calves are fed low amounts of milk replacer for 6-8 weeks and concentrate and straw ad libitum in separate feeders from very young ages with a resulting concentrate to straw ratio around 90-80 to 10-20%. These calves are not castrated and slaughtered around 12 months of age. In Europe the use of hormones or growth promoters are not allowed.
This dairy beef production system needs to face mainly 3 challenges and need the design of nutritional strategies to:
i) reduce the incidence of BRD and the antimicrobial use of unweaned calves upon arrival, mainly focusing on the nutrition and management before arrival to the rearing farm and transportation and the recovery from the negative energy balance, the increased gut permeability, the oxidative stress, the anemia, and the drop of feed intake
ii) reduce the bulls aggressive and aberrant oral non-nutritive behaviours based on the modulation of inflammation processes to reduce the incidence of DFD meat; and finally to face one of the main challenges
iii) reduce the environmental impact of this dairy beef production by decreasing the methane and N emissions, and to find alternative feed ingredients with low LCA impact.
Learn more about Dr. Maria Devant.
ANAC Graduate Scholarship recipient: Presentation title to be announced
Reception Dinner
Wednesday, May 10 – Evening
Enjoy an evening of food, drink and networking. Visit the Industry Partner Showcase and Graduate Student Poster Exhibition.
Monogastric Sessions
Thursday, May 11 – Morning
Towards integration of nutritive and functional attributes of feedstuffs in feeding programs for monogastric farm animals
Pressure on feed cost is and will remain a decisive factor for profitability and sustainability in pork and poultry production. In the backdrop of soaring inflation, other production costs have escalated. Corollary minimizing the costs associated with production has never been of greater importance. Arguably, feed formulation is a precise science that seek to compute combination of feedstuffs to meet the requirement of an animal at least/best cost. Traditionally, the two primary factors that influence the selection of feedstuffs and relative proportion in a formulation are digestible nutrient content and cost.
However, feedstuffs are exceedingly complex as they not only supply nutrients but also functional attributes with implications on animal performance and health. For example, anti-nutritional factors (ANF) such as phytic acid and indigestible components are recognized constraints in efficient utilization of feedstuffs that have led in wide acceptance of exogenous feed enzyme technologies. However, feed enzymes not only degrade ANF but ensuing hydrolysis products such as xylo-oligosaccharides, myoinositols can modulate gastrointestinal ecology and metabolism. Utility of highly digestible protein sources and specialty feedstuffs in starter feeding programs in alignment with immature gastrointestinal tract is a well-accepted concept. However, there is evidence to suggest implications extends through to grower and finisher phases linked to lifetime modulation of gut health and metabolism. The presentation will cover recent investigations in our laboratory and elsewhere on functional attributes of feedstuffs and highlight considerations for integration in wholesome feeding programs.
Learn more about Dr. Elija Kiarie.
High dietary levels of zinc oxide modulate the metabolism of trace minerals and may be detrimental to post-weaning piglet health
Despite environmental and public health (bacterial resistance) issues, supranutritional levels of zinc oxide (ZnO) are still commonly used to prevent diarrhea in post-weaning piglets. In Canada, these levels represent more than eight-fold the CFIA proposed maximum levels at 300 mg/kg. The limited knowledge of their consequences for the metabolism of trace minerals has hampered the replacement of this strategy without compromising piglet health. Our laboratory has performed a series of studies to better understand the impact of dietary Zn levels on trace minerals metabolism. In a bioavailability study, Zn concentrations of 200 mg/kg impaired Cu (20 mg/kg) intestinal absorption whereas in a metabolism study using supplemental Zn at 100, 1000, 3000 mg/kg and Cu at 130 mg/kg, Zn provision at 3000 mg/kg as ZnO was inadequately regulated by the organism with the potential induction of Cu and Fe deficiency under long-term supplementation during the post-weaning period.
These results indicated that optimal dietary ratios among these minerals are needed to improve their homeostasis, and this was confirmed in another bioavailability study where a Zn/Cu ratio of 15:1, within nutritional levels, optimized the absorption of Zn and Cu. In a long-term metabolism study using different dietary Zn/Cu ratios (3000/130, 3000/6, 100/130, 100/6), the risk of Cu deficiency described above was confirmed and lower dietary Zn/Cu ratios were shown to optimize Cu without compromising Zn metabolism. In conclusion, dietary ZnO levels have a major contribution in modulating the metabolism of Zn, Cu, and Fe in post-weaning piglets, with potential detrimental health effects.
Learn more about Dr. Danyel Bueno Dalto.
Exploring seaweed supplementation as a tool to reduce antibiotic use and improve resilience to heat stress in poultry
Canada’s broiler chicken industry has taken great steps to reduce the use of antibiotics in production. Chicken Farmers of Canada successfully implemented a plan to remove both Category I and II antibiotics for preventive use from broiler feeds. There may be benefits from similar products for birds raised for egg production. Our research team has been involved in the evaluation of feed ingredients of marine origin. Seaweeds available off the Atlantic Coast of Canada were incorporated into broiler diets as potential alternatives to traditional antibiotics. Varying levels of success were achieved for broiler growth in the absence of antibiotics. In addition to these broiler studies, we have conducted studies with some of the same seaweeds included in laying hen diets.
As the industry transitions away from conventional cages and is introduced to housing systems that allow birds to access manure there may be an increased need for the use of feed ingredients that beneficially modify the digestive tract microbiome. Evaluation of combinations of inclusion level and type of seaweed led to a challenge study where colonization of introduced Salmonella was diminished in the presence of dietary seaweed. We included heat stress treatments in seaweed feeding experiments with but were challenged to observe any impact on feed intake or product quality. In a series of studies, it was determined there are benefits to including certain seaweeds in the diet of poultry, that include modification of gut bacterial populations to improved growth performance in broiler chickens.
Learn more about Dr. Bruce Rathgeber.
Kees de Lange Lectureship in Animal Nutrition: Advancing energy and nutrient utilization for a resilient animal nutrition industry
Feed cost accounts for the largest proportion of the production cost of poultry and swine production. Further, the recent disruptions in the supply chain for feed ingredients and the continued consumer demand for food of animal origin that is sustainably produced dictates the need for solutions that utilize locally available resources. In the face of these challenges, significant progress towards a resilient Canadian animal nutrition industry can be realized by reducing dependency on international supply chains for inputs and enhancing utilization of locally produced crops and their co-products, especially using human non-edible feed sources to produce high-quality food of animal origin. Also, using nutritional principles to minimize the environmental footprint of livestock production is critical to the long-term sustainability of the livestock industry.
To achieve these goals, locally produced feedstuffs and co-products must be fully characterized in terms of their chemical composition and nutritional value for different classes of poultry and swine. As energy, protein and phosphorus are the three most expensive components in poultry and swine diets, it is logical that any such efforts are directed at these components to meaningfully impact feed cost and mitigate the environmental footprint associated with livestock production. Based on this, there has been a concerted effort in the recent past in Canada to characterize established as well as novel feedstuffs in terms of their nutritive values and to examine the role of technology and processing techniques in enhancing energy and nutrient utilization. Results from these studies will be presented with a particular emphasis on energy, protein, and phosphorus utilization.
Learn more about Dr. Martin Nyachoti.
To be announced
Ruminant Sessions
Thursday, May 11 – Morning
A look to transition beyond the fresh pen: the impact of transition cow management on subsequent lactation and reproductive performance
The quality of the transition period is decisive for the success of the subsequent lactation cycle. Cows with a poorer transition produce less milk, take longer to become pregnant, and are more likely to lose pregnancy and to be culled from the herd, causing substantial economic losses. Investments in infrastructure, personnel, and nutrition focused on prevention and treatment of postpartum health problems, when effective, often result in an excellent return of investment because it minimizes the economic losses related to long-term effects of postpartum disease. Reduced feed intake, exacerbated inflammation, and oxidative stress seem to account for a large portion of the long-term consequences of an impaired transition period on cow performance.
Thus, management strategies that counteract these features are potentially beneficial to transition health and subsequent performance. In this presentation, we will explore the supplementation of omega-3 fatty acids to fresh cows as a strategy to quickly change the fatty acids composition in circulation and to regulate postpartum inflammation; and the supplementation of organic trace minerals to transition cows as a strategy to enhance antioxidant capacity, immunity, and feed intake. Direct and indirect effects of these dietary supplements on reproduction of dairy cows will be discussed. Finally, we will explore additional factors affecting feed intake during the transition period, the importance of monitoring body condition score over time to access transition quality, and novel utilization of rumination activity information collected by wearable sensors.
Learn more about Dr. Eduardo Ribeiro.
Strategies to improve resiliency and recovery from stress in feedlot cattle
In Spain, the beef fattening system is an intensive system where calves are commonly housed in partially open barns with straw bedding and 40% of the calves, mainly males, are from dairy origin (surplus calves). These calves are transported by road for long hours (up to 3-5 days) from their dairy origin farms to the rearing farm where these calves are fed low amounts of milk replacer for 6-8 weeks and concentrate and straw ad libitum in separate feeders from very young ages with a resulting concentrate to straw ratio around 90-80 to 10-20%. These calves are not castrated and slaughtered around 12 months of age. In Europe the use of hormones or growth promoters are not allowed. This dairy beef production system needs to face mainly 3 challenges and need the design of nutritional strategies to:
i) reduce the incidence of BRD and the antimicrobial use of unweaned calves upon arrival, mainly focusing on the nutrition and management before arrival to the rearing farm and transportation and the recovery from the negative energy balance, the increased gut permeability, the oxidative stress, the anemia, and the drop of feed intake
ii) reduce the bulls aggressive and aberrant oral non-nutritive behaviours based on the modulation of inflammation processes to reduce the incidence of DFD meat; and finally to face one of the main challenges
iii) reduce the environmental impact of this dairy beef production by decreasing the methane and N emissions, and to find alternative feed ingredients with low LCA impact.
Learn more about Dr. Stephanie Hansen.
Dairy goats are not small cows: feeding practices and challenges
Dairy goats can be highly productive to the level of exceeding that of dairy cattle on a metabolic body size basis. Far too often and due to limited controlled research studies, feeding practices used for dairy cattle are extrapolated to feeding dairy goats. Similarly, commercial supplements are formulated for sheep and goats even though there are well known nutritional differences, namely copper nutrition where goats have a higher requirement like cattle. Goats are selective browsers compared to sheep and cattle that are more grass grazers. Selective browsing of goats can be advantageous in addressing parasite management; however, it makes for challenges in feed sorting.
Limited research has addressed specific feeding practices for high producing goats. Using total mixed ration (TMR) feeding has shown selection against the longest (>75 mm) and smallest (< 4 mm) particle sizes by goats based on particle distribution using the Penn State Particle separator. Goats, in contrast to cows, more efficiently masticate their feed, especially grains, suggesting a lesser need for processing for improved digestion as in dairy cattle. Greater mastication coupled with pelleted or processed grains may predispose the consuming goat to episodes of ruminal acidosis and altered milk composition, especially in conventional feeding systems where supplemental feeds are provided at milking. Goats have a higher feed intake as a percent of body weight resulting in a faster rate of passage, which may limit fiber digestibility. As in all ruminant feeding systems, forage quality is of critical importance in supporting highly productive physiologic states.
Learn more about Dr. Robert J Van Saun.
Microbiome solutions: intervention opportunities to improve dairy calf health and performance
The development and maturation of the calf gut is an important process that significantly influences calf growth and health during early life. More and more evidence indicates that the colonization and establishment of the gut microbiome can directly and indirectly influence gut function including development and metabolism, nutrition absorption, barrier and immune function, endocrine and neuron transmitter secretions, which can impact animals’ development and growth. The mammalian gut microbiome consists of diverse groups of prokaryotic and eukaryotic microbes, which colonize the gut immediately after birth with different succession orders and shifts dynamically in response to the environment factors (diet, management, farm and so on). The establishment of calf gut microbiome is a complex process and the establishment a stable and the maintenance of a balanced gut microbiota during early life can have a lifelong impact on their performance.
Therefore, the intervention of gut microbiome to prevent and/or restore the microbial dysbiosis during early life has been considered as one of effective approaches to improve gut health. Direct fed microbes (live naturally existing microbes that can benefit host animals on health and production performance) with psychobiotic (a type of probiotic that affect cognitive and behavioral functions of the host via the gut-brain axis) function can be one of novel microbiome solutions to target and alter the microbiome dysbiosis. This presentation will highlight to date research of direct fed microbes and psychobiotics and their potential implications in improving calf health and productivity through manipulation of the gut microbiome in calves.
Learn more about Dr. Leluo Guan.
To be announced
Closing Plenary
Thursday, May 11 – Afternoon
Raising resilient animals for optimal welfare on tomorrow’s farms
Poor welfare can stem from a mismatch between challenges in the captive environment and those the animal, having evolved in a particular natural environment, is adapted to face. Most efforts to improve animal welfare involve reforming housing and husbandry to fit the animal. A complementary solution is to choose, or mold, the animal to better fit the environment. However, traits that are beneficial in one environment may be harmful in another, so this approach runs the risk of creating “specialist” animals, fit for only one specific environment. An alternative is to promote robust, “generalist” animals, resilient or adaptable enough to maintain good welfare in a wide variety of different environments. This is an important “future-proofing” measure, as production practices will continue to evolve in unpredictable ways, due to factors including shifting social expectations, technological developments, and climate change.
The primary goal of our ongoing pig research program is to characterize determinants and develop methods to promote robustness. Do some personality traits predispose animals to good welfare across all environments, and can they be selected for? Does juvenile play increase robustness, and can this be promoted by modifying juvenile housing? Finally, how does the social environment impact resistance to infectious disease, and can housing treatments that improve social dynamics also ameliorate health? We hope to find ways to create animals prepared to maintain good welfare on farms of the future, whatever these may resemble.
Learn more about Dr. Jamie Dallaire.