Comparison of the milk fatty acid composition from

Authors: Sabrina M Staerfl Johanna O Zeitz Sergej L Amelchanka Tasja Kälber Michael Kreuzer Florian Leiber

Publish Date: 2013/01/24

Volume: 93, Issue: 2, Pages: 201-210

PDF Link

Abstract

Ryegrass with high contents of watersoluble carbohydrates WSC was recently bred and tested for its potential beneficial effects as feed for ruminants The objective of the present study was to determine the effect of feeding highWSC ryegrass hay on the fatty acid composition of the milk as compared to lowWSC ryegrass hay and a maize silagebased diet The diet type had no significant effect on feed intake and gross milk composition Milk yield was highest for cows fed the lowWSC hay Vaccenic acid and conjugated linoleic acids were higher in the milk fat of hayfed cows compared to those receiving the maize diet Milk fat from cows fed lowWSC hay showed the highest proportion of αlinolenic acid while that from cows fed the maize diet showed the lowest proportion Total polyunsaturated fatty acids were also highest in milk from cows fed lowWSC hay and lowest in milk from cows fed the maize diet The milk from cows fed the highWSC hay showed intermediate values for both In conclusion the highWSC hay diet compared to the lowWSC hay had no beneficial influence on the proportion of functional fatty acids in cow milkThe authors are grateful to Dr HR Wettstein and his staff at the ETH Research Station Chamau for the technical assistance provided during the experiment We acknowledge the financial support of the Swiss Federal Offices of Environment and Agriculture

Keywords: