Upcycling of manure with insects: current and future prospects

An unavoidable by-product of any animal production system, be it vertebrate- or invertebrate-based, is the manure generated by the animals themselves. In this review, we focus on the role that insects, particularly the black soldier fly Hermetia illucens (L.) (Diptera: Stratiomyidae), could play in managing the mass amount of manure produced through animal agriculture, and the subsequent commodities that could be generated by such a system. Although the focus of this review is on the black soldier fly, we postulate that other species, including the lesser mealworm Alphitobius diaperinus (Panzer) (Coleoptera: Tenebrionidae) and the house fly Musca domestica L. (Diptera: Muscidae) are also well poised to help with the challenge of managing animal manure, while generating products of value.

Effects of High-Grain Diet on the Quality of Meat and Carcass of Lambs and Economic Indices of Various Diets

The Brazilian sheep farming sector suffers from low productivity, related to the extensive animal production system and low availability of native fodder during most of the year. An alternative to the systems would be the use of a diet without roughage, allowing greater weight gain and better quality carcasses. The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of diets containing different proportions of grains on the quality of carcass and meat of lambs as well as the economic indices of various diets. Three diets containing different proportions of concentrate and roughage (100:0, 80:20, and 60:40) were supplied. The concentrate comprised 85% whole-grain corn and 15% commercial pelletized supplement. Twenty-four male lambs (no racial pattern; average body weight, 20.9 ± 1.0 kg; age, 6 months) were randomly allotted to three collective bays for 52 days. Subsequently, the animals were slaughtered, and further analyses were performed. The diet with 100% concentrate achieved overall higher carcass yield, lower weight loss on cooking, and greater lipid oxidation. However, no diet affected weight gain, slaughter weight, carcass length and thorax depth, pH, temperature, color, water-holding capacity, and meat shear force (P > 0.05). The best economic indices were obtained with the diet containing 100% concentrate. Therefore, based on the results obtained, the use of 100% concentrated diet for lambs is the most suitable practice to improve the sheep production from a productive and economic point of view.

Inhibitory protection of bearing units of electric motors in animal husbandry

The electric motor is always part of the agricultural production system, in particular the animal production system. Its purpose is to equip a technological object with energy to ensure the functioning of the production process. The weak link of electric motors used in animal production is the bearing assemblies due to their wear in the corrosive environment of the premises used in this industry. The aim of the work was to assess the effect of inhibitory protection on the reliability of the bearing assemblies of electric motors for the conditions of their operation in animal husbandry. A theoretical resource distribution of bearing assemblies was chosen, approximated by the three-parameter Weibull distribution. For two groups of bearing assemblies, with and without inhibitory protection, bench tests were carried out to simulate the conditions of animal husbandry. The distributions of the initial wear rate of bearings and the difference between the limiting and initial wear rates were obtained. Using the theoretical distribution, the parameters of Weibull distribution were established. Their analysis showed that the use of the inhibitor “Prana” increases the durability of bearings by 15%, which indicates the advisability of using this protection in animal husbandry conditions.

Effects of heat stress on the gut health of poultry

Stress is a biological adaptive response to restore homeostasis, and occurs in every animal production system, due to the multitude of stressors present in every farm. Heat stress is one of the most common environmental challenges to poultry worldwide. It has been extensively demonstrated that heat stress negatively impacts the health, welfare, and productivity of broilers and laying hens. However, basic mechanisms associated with the reported effects of heat stress are still not fully understood. The adaptive response of poultry to a heat stress situation is complex and intricate in nature, and it includes effects on the intestinal tract. This review offers an objective overview of the scientific evidence available on the effects of the heat stress response on different facets of the intestinal tract of poultry, including its physiology, integrity, immunology, and microbiota. Although a lot of knowledge has been generated, many gaps persist. The development of standardized models is crucial to be able to better compare and extrapolate results. By better understanding how the intestinal tract is affected in birds subjected to heat stress conditions, more targeted interventions can be developed and applied.

Compostagem de efluente suíno no tratamento de resíduos de fármacos veterinários

The increasing need for animal protein has exerted pressures on the current animal production system. One of the alternatives found by producers to improve animal performance has been the use of veterinary drugs, especially antibiotics. However, its indiscriminate use can be a risk to the environmental balance of the producing locations since Brazil has approximately 42 million pigs. With this herd, pig farming represents a great potential for generating environmental impacts. As an alternative use of the large volume of liquid pig manure generated, many producers have been using this slurry in the soil as a bio fertilizer. Residues of veterinary drugs are capable of accumulation with environmental matrices and leach into water resources. In this sense, it is mandatory to dedicate more efforts on the study of techniques and processes for the treatment of organic effluents contaminated by veterinary drugs. Low-cost and environmentally friendly alternative treatment systems are necessary, in order to minimize the entry of these contaminants into the environment. Therefore, the composting process, defined as aerobic microbial decomposition process of organic matter, can be an alternative for treating the effluents contaminated by veterinary drugs. This review to aims to create awareness in the academic community regarding the veterinary drug residues and their contamination potential in different environmental matrices, as well as evaluating the composting process as a technique to minimize the impacts of the swine activity waste on the environment.

Reproductive Characteristics of Buffaloes: A Review

Interest in buffalo breeding has increased, due to certain advantages in relation to cattle breeding. The objective of this article was to review the reproductive biological characteristics of buffaloes. Buffaloes have their peculiarities regarding the reproductive characteristics, the females are seasonal polyestrous breeders of short days, the puberty’s buffalo is reached in ages more than in the bovine, the detection of the estrus is more difficult because of the estrus it happens at dawn and the females of buffalo have few physiological changes producers have difficulty detecting estrus. The gestation period varies between 300 and 320 days. Males have smaller external reproductive organs and less intense sexual behavior in relation to cattle. Buffalo females exhibit reproductive differences such as the hyperpigmented vulva and smaller and lighter, more rigid and tortuously inner structures with more muscle tone. There are some advantages in the creation of buffaloes were evidenced, such as their rusticity and adaptation to areas that would be unsuitableto cattle production, besides counting on products such as milk and meat of good quality. Several protocols of oestrus and ovulation synchronization have been adopted, to improve reproductive efficiency. These protocols have resulted in a pregnancy rates increase of 30% to 50%. It is concluded that buffalo breeding has space within the animal production system, especially in areas that would be suitable for the breeding of other ruminant species.

209 Effects of heat stress on the intestinal tract of poultry

Stress is a biological adaptive response to restore homeostasis, and occurs in every animal production system, due to the multitude of stressors present in every farm. Heat stress is one of the most common environmental challenges to poultry worldwide. It has been demonstrated that heat stress negatively impacts the welfare and productivity of broilers and laying hens. However, our knowledge of basic mechanisms associated to the reported effects, as well as related to poultry behavior and welfare under heat stress conditions is in fact scarce. The adaptive response of poultry to a heat stress situation is complex and intricate in nature, and it includes effects on the intestinal tract. Intervention strategies to deal with heat stress conditions (e.g., management practices, feed additives, diet formulation, and others) have been the focus of most published studies. Nevertheless, effectiveness of most of the interventions has been variable or inconsistent. This review focuses on the scientific evidence available on the effects of the heat stress response on different facets of the intestinal tract of poultry, including its integrity, physiology, immunology and microbiology.

Antimicrobial resistance: from basic science to translational innovation

The rise in antimicrobial resistance (AMR) poses a major threat to animal agriculture and human health. To summarize and update current and emerging AMR issues that are significant for animal health and food safety, this issue presents a virtual AMR symposium consisting of seven review papers. These reviews cover a newly described AMR mechanism in Campylobacter, effects of AMR and microbiome on Campylobacter infection, plasmid-mediated colistin resistance in food-producing animals, the impact of point source or antibiotic residues on the environmental resistome, and potential factors influencing horizontal gene transfer in the intestines of food animals. These papers also identify significant knowledge gaps in AMR research and provide new directions for the development of innovative and effective strategies to mitigate AMR in the animal production system.

Produção de farinha de minhoca da espécie Eisenia fetida (Savigny, 1826) como ferramenta na gestão de estercos

A trial was conducted to evaluate the production of earthworm meal from Eisenia fetida as a tool for the management of manure. A completely randomized design was used. The treatments were: 100% bovine manure (T1), 100% equine manure (T2) and 100% capybara manure (T3). Each treatment had five replications. A total of 50 adult and containing clitellum earthworms (Eisenia fetida) were inoculated in each experimental unity. The following analyses were performed: total nitrogen, crude protein, total phosphorus, potassium and total calcium. The results showed that the production of earthworm meal is an important tool for the management of different manure and it does not present any limitation of environmental nature. The substrates bovine manure, equine manure and capybara manure result in an earthworm meal containing a high content of crude protein. The proteic and mineral composition of earthworm meal are dependent on the quality and form of storage of the manure. The proper planning of the animal production system must contemplate an adequate place for the storage of the manure in order to maintain the quality of the substrate provided to the earthworms.