Feed intake and efficiency in beef cattle: overview of recent Australian research and challenges for the future

2004 ◽  
Vol 44 (5) ◽  
pp. 361 ◽  
Author(s):  
P. F. Arthur ◽  
J. A. Archer ◽  
R. M. Herd
Keyword(s):  
Beef Cattle ◽  
Feed Intake ◽  
Feed Efficiency ◽  
Animal Feed ◽  
Random Regression ◽  
Individual Animal ◽  
Research Activity ◽  
The Future ◽  
Feed Utilisation ◽  
Selection For

In the last 10 years, there have been 3 major research and development projects in Australia on the efficiency of feed utilisation by beef cattle. The primary objective of these projects has been to examine individual animal variation in feed efficiency and its exploitation for genetic improvement in beef cattle. The results of these projects indicate that genetic variation in feed efficiency exists in Australian beef herds, that feed efficiency is moderately heritable and that the potential exists to reduce the cost of beef production through selection for efficient cattle. These results have been further developed for industry application through the generation of BREEDPLAN estimated breeding values for net (or residual) feed intake (a feed efficiency trait) for Angus and Hereford–Polled Hereford breeds. Although economic analyses have indicated substantial benefit from selection for feed efficiency, the high initial cost of identifying animals which are superior for feed efficiency is a barrier to rapid adoption of the technology. Developing cost-effective methods of implementing the feed efficiency technology is thus an on-going research activity. Challenges for the future include: the development and use of more sophisticated statistical analyses procedures (such as random regression) for feed intake and efficiency evaluation; development of accurate methods of assessing individual animal feed intake at pasture; the adoption of a whole-production system approach to feed utilisation; and better integration of the disciplines of genetics and nutrition. The outcomes from research in the efficiency of feed utilisation in beef cattle have wider applications, not only in other livestock species, but also in human energetics, such as the control of obesity.

scholarly journals Exploring Biological Impacts of Prenatal Nutrition and Selection for Residual Feed Intake on Beef Cattle Using Omics Technologies: A Review

2021 ◽  
Vol 12 ◽  
Author(s):  
Aidin Foroutan ◽  
David S. Wishart ◽  
Carolyn Fitzsimmons
Keyword(s):  
Beef Cattle ◽  
Feed Intake ◽  
Feed Efficiency ◽  
Growth And Development ◽  
Genetic Selection ◽  
Residual Feed Intake ◽  
Reproductive Capacity ◽  
Phenotypic Traits ◽  
Prenatal Nutrition ◽  
Selection For

Approximately 70% of the cost of beef production is impacted by dietary intake. Maximizing production efficiency of beef cattle requires not only genetic selection to maximize feed efficiency (i.e., residual feed intake (RFI)), but also adequate nutrition throughout all stages of growth and development to maximize efficiency of growth and reproductive capacity, even during gestation. RFI as a measure of feed efficiency in cattle has been recently accepted and used in the beef industry, but the effect of selection for RFI upon the dynamics of gestation has not been extensively studied, especially in the context of fluctuating energy supply to the dam and fetus. Nutrient restriction during gestation has been shown to negatively affect postnatal growth and development as well as fertility of beef cattle offspring. This, when combined with the genetic potential for RFI, may significantly affect energy partitioning in the offspring and subsequently important performance traits. In this review, we discuss: 1) the importance of RFI as a measure of feed efficiency and how it can affect other economic traits in beef cattle; 2) the influence of prenatal nutrition on physiological phenotypes in calves; 3) the benefits of investigating the interaction of genetic selection for RFI and prenatal nutrition; 4) how metabolomics, transcriptomics, and epigenomics have been employed to investigate the underlying biology associated with prenatal nutrition, RFI, or their interactions in beef cattle; and 5) how the integration of omics information is adding a level of deeper understanding of the genetic architecture of phenotypic traits in cattle.

scholarly journals The Ruminant Farm Systems Animal Module: A Biophysical Description of Animal Management

Animals ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (5) ◽  
pp. 1373
Author(s):  
Tayler L. Hansen ◽  
Manfei Li ◽  
Jinghui Li ◽  
Chris J. Vankerhove ◽  
Militsa A. Sotirova ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Simulation Model ◽  
Environmental Impacts ◽  
Feed Intake ◽  
Feed Efficiency ◽  
Animal Feed ◽  
Baseline Scenario ◽  
Individual Animal ◽  
High Intake ◽  
Farm Systems ◽  
Very High

Dairy production is an important source of nutrients in the global food supply, but environmental impacts are increasingly a concern of consumers, scientists, and policy-makers. Many decisions must be integrated to support sustainable production—which can be achieved using a simulation model. We provide an example of the Ruminant Farm Systems (RuFaS) model to assess changes in the dairy system related to altered animal feed efficiency. RuFaS is a whole-system farm simulation model that simulates the individual animal life cycle, production, and environmental impacts. We added a stochastic animal-level parameter to represent individual animal feed efficiency as a result of reduced residual feed intake and compared High (intake = 94% of expected) and Very High (intake = 88% of expected) efficiency levels with a Baseline scenario (intake = 100% of expected). As expected, the simulated total feed intake was reduced by 6 and 12% for the High and Very High efficiency scenarios, and the expected impact of these improved efficiencies on the greenhouse gas emissions from enteric methane and manure storage was a decrease of 4.6 and 9.3%, respectively.

scholarly journals RAPID COMMUNICATION: Residual feed intake in beef cattle is associated with differences in protein turnover and nutrient transporters in ruminal epithelium

2019 ◽  
Vol 97 (5) ◽  
pp. 2181-2187
Author(s):  
Ahmed A Elolimy ◽  
Emad Abdel-Hamied ◽  
Liangyu Hu ◽  
Joshua C McCann ◽  
Daniel W Shike ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Amino Acid ◽  
Beef Cattle ◽  
Protein Degradation ◽  
Insulin Signaling ◽  
Feed Intake ◽  
Feed Efficiency ◽  
Protein Turnover ◽  
Residual Feed Intake ◽  
Ubiquitin Proteasome ◽  
Ruminal Epithelium

Abstract Residual feed intake (RFI) is a widely used measure of feed efficiency in cattle. Although the precise biologic mechanisms associated with improved feed efficiency are not well-known, most-efficient steers (i.e., with low RFI coefficient) downregulate abundance of proteins controlling protein degradation in skeletal muscle. Whether cellular mechanisms controlling protein turnover in ruminal tissue differ by RFI classification is unknown. The aim was to investigate associations between RFI and signaling through the mechanistic target of rapamycin (MTOR) and ubiquitin-proteasome pathways in ruminal epithelium. One hundred and forty-nine Red Angus cattle were allocated to 3 contemporary groups according to sex and herd origin. Animals were offered a finishing diet for 70 d to calculate the RFI coefficient for each. Within each group, the 2 most-efficient (n = 6) and least-efficient animals (n = 6) were selected. Compared with least-efficient animals, the most-efficient animals consumed less feed (P < 0.05; 18.36 vs. 23.39 kg/d DMI). At day 70, plasma samples were collected for insulin concentration analysis. Ruminal epithelium was collected immediately after slaughter to determine abundance and phosphorylation status of 29 proteins associated with MTOR, ubiquitin-proteasome, insulin signaling, and glucose and amino acid transport. Among the proteins involved in cellular protein synthesis, most-efficient animals had lower (P ≤ 0.05) abundance of MTOR, p-MTOR, RPS6KB1, EIF2A, EEF2K, AKT1, and RPS6KB1, whereas MAPK3 tended (P = 0.07) to be lower. In contrast, abundance of p-EEF2K, p-EEF2K:EEF2K, and p-EIF2A:EIF2A in most-efficient animals was greater (P ≤ 0.05). Among proteins catalyzing steps required for protein degradation, the abundance of UBA1, NEDD4, and STUB1 was lower (P ≤ 0.05) and MDM2 tended (P = 0.06) to be lower in most-efficient cattle. Plasma insulin and ruminal epithelium insulin signaling proteins did not differ (P > 0.05) between RFI groups. However, abundance of the insulin-responsive glucose transporter SLC2A4 and the amino acid transporters SLC1A3 and SLC1A5 also was lower (P ≤ 0.05) in most-efficient cattle. Overall, the data indicate that differences in signaling mechanisms controlling protein turnover and nutrient transport in ruminal epithelium are components of feed efficiency in beef cattle.

scholarly journals PSVIII-38 Late-Breaking Abstract: Estimating genetic parameters of feed efficiency traits in American mink

2020 ◽  
Vol 98 (Supplement_4) ◽  
pp. 347-347
Author(s):  
Pourya Davoudi ◽  
Duy Ngoc Do ◽  
Guoyu Hu ◽  
Siavash Salek Ardestani ◽  
Younes Miar
Keyword(s):  
Body Weight ◽  
Genetic Correlation ◽  
Feed Intake ◽  
Feed Efficiency ◽  
Fixed Effects ◽  
Genetic Parameters ◽  
American Mink ◽  
Genetic Correlations ◽  
Final Body Weight ◽  
Selection For

Abstract Feed cost is the major input cost in the mink industry and thus improvement of feed efficiency through selection for high feed efficient mink is necessary for the mink farmers. The objective of this study was to estimate the heritability, phenotypic and genetic correlations for different feed efficiency measures, including final body weight (FBW), daily feed intake (DFI), average daily gain (ADG), feed conversion ratio (FCR) and residual feed intake (RFI). For this purpose, 1,088 American mink from the Canadian Center for Fur Animal Research at Dalhousie Faculty of Agriculture were recorded for daily feed intake and body weight from August 1 to November 14 in 2018 and 2019. The univariate models were used to test the significance of sex, birth year and color as fixed effects, and dam as a random effect. Genetic parameters were estimated via bivariate models using ASReml-R version 4. Estimates of heritabilities (±SE) were 0.41±0.10, 0.37±0.11, 0.33±0.14, 0.24±0.09 and 0.22±0.09 for FBW, DFI, ADG, FCR and RFI, respectively. The genetic correlation (±SE) was moderate to high between FCR and RFI (0.68±0.15) and between FCR and ADG (-0.86±0.06). In addition, RFI had low non-significant (P > 0.05) genetic correlations with ADG (0.04 ± 0.26) and BW (0.16 ± 0.24) but significant (P < 0.05) high genetic correlation with DFI (0.74 ± 0.11) indicating that selection for lower RFI will reduce feed intake without adverse effects on the animal size and growth rate. The results suggested that RFI can be implemented in genetic/genomic selection programs to reduce feed intake in the mink production system.

Selection for feed efficiency traits and correlated genetic responses in feed intake and weight gain of Nellore cattle1

2014 ◽  
Vol 92 (3) ◽  
pp. 955-965 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. L. Grion ◽  
M. E. Z. Mercadante ◽  
J. N. S. G. Cyrillo ◽  
S. F. M. Bonilha ◽  
E. Magnani ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Weight Gain ◽  
Feed Intake ◽  
Feed Efficiency ◽  
Selection For ◽  
Genetic Responses

Is it useful to define residual feed intake as a trait in animal breeding programs?

2004 ◽  
Vol 44 (5) ◽  
pp. 405 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. H. J. van der Werf
Keyword(s):  
Feed Intake ◽  
Production Efficiency ◽  
Residual Feed Intake ◽  
Selection Response ◽  
Random Regression ◽  
Biological Efficiency ◽  
Multiple Trait ◽  
Selection Indices ◽  
Feed Utilisation ◽  
Definition Of

Residual feed intake is a linear function of feed intake, production and maintenance of liveweight, and as such is an attractive characteristic to use to represent production efficiency. The phenotypic and genetic parameters of residual feed intake can be written as a function of its constituent traits. Moreover, selection indices containing the constituent traits are equivalent with an index that includes residual feed intake. Therefore, definition of the term residual feed intake may be useful to interpret variation in production efficiency, but it does not help in obtaining a better selection response than selection on constituent traits alone. In fact, multiple trait genetic evaluation of constituent traits rather than residual feed intake is likely to be more accurate as this more appropriately accommodates different models for the constituent traits and missing data. For residual feed intake to reflect true biological efficiency in growing animals, it is important that feed intake and liveweight are accurately measured. Accounting for growth and body composition would significantly help in revealing between-animal variation in feed utilisation. Random regression models can be helpful in indicating variation in feed efficiency over the growth trajectory.

scholarly journals Optimizing feed intake recording and feed efficiency estimation to increase the rate of genetic gain for feed efficiency in beef cattle

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ghader Manafiazar ◽  
John Basarab ◽  
Lisa McKeown ◽  
Jennifer Stewart-Smith ◽  
Vern S Baron ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Beef Cattle ◽  
Feed Intake ◽  
Genetic Gain ◽  
Feed Efficiency ◽  
Efficiency Estimation

scholarly journals Effect of selection for fasting tolerance on feed intake, growth and feed efficiency in the European sea bass Dicentrarchus labrax

Aquaculture ◽  
2014 ◽  
Vol 420-421 ◽  
pp. S42-S49 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sophie Daulé ◽  
Marc Vandeputte ◽  
Alain Vergnet ◽  
Bruno Guinand ◽  
Laure Grima ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Feed Intake ◽  
Feed Efficiency ◽  
Dicentrarchus Labrax ◽  
Sea Bass ◽  
European Sea Bass ◽  
Selection For ◽  
Fasting Tolerance

scholarly journals EFISIENSI PRODUKSI SAPI POTONG PADA PETERNAKAN RAKYAT PADA MUSIM KEMARAU DI DAERAH PERTANIAN LAHAN KERING KABUPATEN GUNUNGKIDUL

2018 ◽  
Vol 32 (1) ◽  
pp. 49 ◽  
Author(s):  
Eka Handayanta ◽  
Lutojo Lutojo ◽  
Kurniasih Nurdiati
Keyword(s):  
Beef Cattle ◽  
Feed Intake ◽  
Feed Efficiency ◽  
Production Efficiency ◽  
Average Daily Gain ◽  
Dry Season ◽  
Efficient Production ◽  
Smallholder Farmer ◽  
Feed Cost ◽  
Daily Gain

<p><em>This research was conducted to know the production efficiency of beef cattle in smallholder farmer in a dry farming area at dry season. Research has been started on June and finished on September (dry season) at smallholder farmer in the village Kemejing, Semin subdistrict, district Gunungkidul, DIY. The research materials are 28 heads of beef cattle from 17 farmers, which consist of 10 heads of PO breed, 10 heads of a Simpo breed, and 8 heads of Limpo breed with 292.25 kg of initial body weight. This research was using Participatory Rural Appraisal method which is a collecting data process that an active teamwork between data collector and farmer. Collected parameter are feed intake, average daily gain (ADG), feed efficiency, feed cost per gain (FC/G), and income over feed cost (IOFC). Data resulting from this research are 8.42 kg/head/day of feed intake, 0.19 kg/head/day of ADG, 0.021 of feed efficiency, Rp 46.166,62 of feed cost per gain, and Rp 3.985,55 of income over feed cost. It can be concluded that the efficient production of beef cattle in smallholder farmer at the dry area is low because average daily gain, feed cost per gain and income over feed cost produced are extremely small so if the calculated economic result is less favorable.</em></p>

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