J. R. Segers

Effect of long-term corn by-product feeding on beef quality, strip loin fatty acid profiles, and shelf life

The objective of this study was to evaluate the meat quality and shelf life of steaks from steers fed dried distillers grains with solubles (DDGS) or dried corn gluten feed (CGF) compared with soybean meal with corn (SBM) as a protein supplement from weaning to slaughter. Angus cross steers (n = 81; BW = 306 ± 26.1 kg) were randomly assigned to pens (n = 9) and fed a stocker diet of corn silage (75% of DM) with DDGS, CGF, or SBM and ground ear corn. After 84 d of stockering, 12 steers (BW = 397 ± 15.3 kg) were randomly selected from each treatment and finished using the same protein supplement at 25% of DM for 100 d. Carcass data were collected (24 h) and the longissimus lumborum was fabricated into steaks at 48 h postmortem. Steaks were assigned to proximate analysis, Warner-Bratzler shear force (7-, 14-, or 21-d aging), and retail display (1, 3, 6, or 9 d). Protein source did not affect carcass yield, quality, or longissimus lumborum composition (P > 0.05). After 7 d of aging, DDGS and CGF steaks were more tender (P < 0.01) than SBM, but were similar (P = 0.30) after 14 and 21 d of aging. Feeding corn by-products did not influence subjective overall color acceptance (P = 0.17) in this study, but acceptance declined over time (P < 0.01). Subjective redness was similar (P > 0.05) among diets except SBM steaks were more red (P < 0.01) than DDGS after 9 d. On d 3 and 6 of retail display, CGF steaks exhibited more discoloration (P < 0.04) than SBM or DDGS steaks. However, after 9 d DDGS steaks were more discolored (P < 0.01) than CGF or SBM. Objective L* was lighter for CGF (P < 0.04) over 9 d of display, and all treatments became darker (P < 0.01) as time increased. Redness (a*) declined (P < 0.01) over time with SBM steaks maintaining more color in the red spectrum than CGF and DDGS after 6 d of display. Protein source did not affect (P > 0.05) the rate of lipid oxidation. Total SFA concentrations were similar (P > 0.05) among treatments; however, total MUFA were less (P < 0.05) and total PUFA concentrations were greater (P < 0.05) in DDGS steaks compared with SBM or CGF steaks. These data show that DDGS or CGF can be fed as a protein supplement at 25% DM from weaning until slaughter while maintaining meat quality when compared with steers fed soybean meal as a protein supplement.

Use of corn gluten feed and dried distillers grains plus solubles as a replacement for soybean meal and corn for supplementation in a corn silage-based stocker system

Corn gluten feed and dried distillers grains plus solubles (DDGS) were evaluated as replacements for soybean meal and ground ear corn when supplemented with corn silage during 2 yr of a beef cattle stockering program. Experiment 1: In YR 1, 104 steers (initial BW = 305 ± 30 kg), and in YR 2, 56 steers and 38 heifers (initial BW = 301 ± 32 kg) were stratified by weight and assigned to 1 of 9 groups. Each group was randomly assigned to 1 of 3 corn silage-based (75% of DM) diets supplemented with: i) corn gluten feed (CGF), ii) DDGS, or iii) soybean meal and ground ear corn (CSBM) at 25% of DM. On d 0, 28, 56, and 84, BW and BCS were recorded. Additionally, ribeye area, 12th rib fat thickness, intramuscular fat, and rump fat thickness were assessed via ultrasound on 9 (YR1) and 4 (YR 2) steers per pen that were randomly assigned as observational units. Average daily gain was greater (P < 0.05) for steers fed DDGS and CSBM compared with CGF (1.08, 1.08, and 0.94 kg/d, respectively). Average DMI (P < 0.05) was less for DDGS compared with CSBM with CGF intermediate (18.1, 18.8, 20.2 g/kg BW, respectively), and the resulting G:F was greatest for DDGS (P = 0.01). Cost per kilogram of BW gain was least for DDGS (P > 0.05). Ultrasound data indicated no differences (P ≥ 0.13) in predicted carcass traits among treatments. Experiment 2: Diets from Exp. 1 were subjected to in vitro digestion for incubation times of 0, 2, 4, 8, 16, 24, 48, and 72 h to estimate DM degradation, gas production kinetics, and CP fractions. The potentially degradable DM fraction was greater (P = 0.01) for CSBM compared with CGF and DDG. Total gas production and rate of gas production was not different among treatments (P > 0.42). Rumen degradable protein was greatest for CSBM and least for DDG (P = 0.001). These data indicate that DDGS can be used to replace soybean meal and corn in silage-based stocker systems to decrease feed costs without compromising animal performance and CGF may decrease animal performance.

Effects of sodium citrate plus sodium diacetate and buffered vinegar on Escherichia coli O157:H7 and psychrotrophic bacteria in brine-injected beef.

The objective of this research was to examine the effects of sodium citrate plus sodium diacetate or buffered vinegar on Escherichia coli O157:H7 and psychrotrophic bacteria when incorporated in brine solutions for injected beef. Two experiments were conducted in which 30 top rounds and 30 top sirloins were injected (110%) to contain (i) 0.5% sodium chloride and 0.4% sodium tripolyphosphate as the control (CNT); (ii) CNT with a 1% solution of 80% sodium citrate plus 20% sodium diacetate (SC + D); or (iii) CNT with 2% buffered vinegar (VIN) in the final product. For the E. coli challenge, muscles were surface inoculated to target 6 log CFU/cm(2). After injection and 10 days of storage in a vacuum package (4°C), one half of each muscle was sampled raw and the other half was cooked to an internal temperature of 60°C with a 12-min hold. For raw samples, a significant reduction of 0.6 and 1.0 log CFU/g of E. coli O157:H7 was observed in both SC + D- and VIN-injected top rounds and sirloins, respectively. All cooked samples were E. coli O157:H7 negative. For psychrotrophic analysis, subprimals were injected and vacuum packaged for 10 days at 0 ± 1°C. After 10 days of storage, steaks were fabricated and placed in aerobic display (4 ± 1°C) for 1, 7, 14, and 21 days. Psychrotrophic organism growth was restricted in SC + D and VIN samples when compared with CNT on all days except day 1. Sodium citrate plus sodium diacetate or buffered vinegar may improve the safety and shelf life of multineedle brine-injected beef.

Effects of protein and fat concentration in coproduct-based growing calf diets on performance and carcass composition

Angus×Simmental crossbred heifers (n=150) and steers (n=100) were used to evaluate 1 of 5 growing diets: 1) a corn-based growing diet (CRN); 2) a high-fat, high-protein coproduct blend; 3) a high-fat, low-protein coproduct blend; 4) a low-fat, high-protein coproduct blend; and 5) a low-fat, low-protein coproduct blend in a 2×2+1 factorial arrangement. Low-protein and low-fat diets were formulated to be isonitrogenous and isofat to CRN (16.0% CP and 3.0% fat), and high-protein and high-fat diets were formulated to have 20.0% CP and 5.0% fat, respectively. Calves were weaned at 85±1.2 d, blocked by weight, and allotted to pens (10 calves/pen) within sex (10 pens of steers and 15 pens of heifers). The objective of this experiment was to determine if the concentration of protein or fat or their interaction in coproducts used in growing diets fed to early-weaned calves affects feedlot performance or carcass composition. Starting on d 0, calves (141±1.2 d of age) were fed experimental diets for 112 d and then fed a common feedlot diet for an additional 112 d. Body weight, hip height, and ultrasound data were collected at the end of each 112-d feeding phase. Carcass data included HCW, LM area (LMA), 12th-rib back fat (BF), marbling score (MS), KPH, and USDA quality grade. There was no fat×protein interaction (P≥0.27); therefore, only main effects are discussed. No effects (P≥0.47) of CRN, protein, or fat were detected for BW at d 112 or 224. Increased dietary protein resulted in greater (P=0.04) ADG at d 112 compared to calves fed low protein. Feeding cattle CRN decreased (P=0.04) DMI and increased (P<0.01) G:F during the growing phase compared to coproducts. High-fat diets increased (P=0.05) BF in calves at d 112 compared to low-fat diets. High-protein diets decreased (P=0.02) ultrasound MS at d 112 compared to low-protein diets. Carcasses from cattle fed high-fat diets had greater (P=0.03) MS compared to those from cattle fed low-fat diets. No differences (P≥0.14) were observed for HCW, LMA, BF, KPH, or yield grade. These data indicate that final BW was unaffected by protein and fat content of growing calf diets but that increased dietary fat and low dietary protein increased MS.

The effects of zilpaterol hydrochloride supplementation on market dairy cow performance, carcass characteristics, and cutability

ABSTRACT Market dairy cows (n = 34) were used to determine the effects of zilpaterol hydrochloride (ZH) supplementation, in addition to concentrate feeding, on growth performance, carcass characteristics, and carcass yields. Cows were stratified by BW and randomly assigned to 1 of 2 treatments: 1) concentrate fed for 42 d (control) or 2) concentrate fed for 42 d with ZH (8.33 mg/kg) from d 19 to 39. Dietary supplementation of ZH had no effect (P > 0.05) on locomotion score, BCS, BW, ADG, G:F, or DMI over the course of the feeding period. Supplementation with ZH increased (P

Effect of sodium citrate plus sodium diacetate or buffered vinegar on quality attributes of enhanced beef top sirloins.

As new pathogen intervention products come to market, it is important to ensure that they maintain or improve meat quality. Shelf-life and palatability traits were measured for top sirloins enhanced to 110% with solutions containing 0.5% sodium chloride and 0.4% sodium tripolyphosphate (CNT); CNT with a 1% solution of 80% sodium citrate plus 20% sodium diacetate (SC+D); or CNT with 2% buffered vinegar (VIN) in the final product. Enhancement solution did not influence color over 7days of retail display, except VIN was subjectively more red than CNT and SC+D on d 7 and SC+D had less discoloration than CNT on d 7 (P<0.05). VIN was rated lower (P<0.05) than CNT for trained sensory tenderness and there was no difference in shear force between treatments. SC+D and VIN show promise for use in beef enhancement solutions, however, further sensory studies are warranted.

Utilization of canola and sunflower meals as replacements for soybean meal in a corn silage-based stocker system

Abstract Two experiments were conducted to evaluate 3 silage-based stocker diets. In Exp. 1, diets were fed to a total of 276 animals over a period of 3 yr and performance data was collected. In Exp. 2, the same diets were subjected to in vitro digestion for 5 time periods: 0, 6, 12, 24, and 48 h, to evaluate IVDMD, production of fermentation end products, and efficiency of transformation of energy. The experimental diets were similar, except for their protein supplements. They were composed of: 1) 74% corn silage, 15.2% ground ear corn, and 10.8% soybean meal (SBM); 2) 74.4% corn silage, 9.8% ground ear corn, and 15.8% canola meal (CAN); 3) 74.5% corn silage, 9.8% ground ear corn, and 15.7% sunflower meal (SUN). Results from Exp. 1 showed that DMI was similar across all treatments (P = 0.167), but ADG was greater (P = 0.007) for animals fed either SBM or CAN than for animals fed SUN (1.29, 1.28, and 1.20 kg/d, respectively). Both CAN and SUN significantly reduced (P < 0.001) daily feeding cost per animal in comparison to SBM. Exp. 2 revealed that total VFA production was similar for all treatments (P = 0.185), and greatest molar proportions of propionate were observed for SBM and CAN (P = 0.02). Additionally, IVDMD was highest for SBM (P < 0.001). Regression analysis showed that most of the evaluated traits followed a quadratic trend for incubation times (P ≤ 0.02). On average, the in vitro technique used in this study was able to account for 97.03% of the caloric transformations suffered by DE throughout the different incubation times. Overall, our findings revealed that although animals receiving SUN had the cheapest daily feeding cost, important traits like ADG and feed conversion rate were negatively affected by this treatment. In contrast, data showed that CAN was an effective replacement for SBM for it maintained similar animal performance while decreasing feed costs. Therefore, from a producer standpoint, CAN is a viable alternative to replace the more costly SBM diet in silage-based stocker operations.

Increasing corn distillers solubles alters the liquid fraction of the ruminal microbiome

Five ruminally fistulated steers were used in a 5 × 5 Latin square design to determine the effects of increasing dietary fat and sulfur from condensed distillers solubles (CDS) on the ruminal microbiome. Treatments included a corn-based control (CON) and 4 levels of CDS (0, 10, 19, and 27%) in a coproduct-based (corn gluten feed and soybean hulls) diet. Fat concentrations were 1.79, 4.43, 6.80, and 8.91% for diets containing 0, 10, 19, and 27% CDS, respectively. Steers were fed for ad libitum intake once daily. After feeding each diet for 18 d, ruminal samples were collected 3 h after feeding on d 19. Samples were separated into solid and liquid fractions. Microbial DNA was extracted for bacterial analysis using paired-end sequencing of the V3 through V4 region of the 16S rRNA gene on the MiSeq Illumina platform and quantitative PCR of selected species. Orthogonal contrasts were used to determine linear and quadratic effects of CDS inclusion. Increasing CDS inclusion decreased (linear, < 0.05) α-diversity and species richness in the liquid fraction. Analysis of Bray-Curtis similarity indicated a treatment effect ( = 0.01) in the liquid fraction. At the phyla level, relative abundance of Bacteroidetes decreased in steers fed increasing dietary inclusion of CDS as Firmicutes increased to 82% of sequences for the 27% CDS treatment. Family Ruminococcaceae increased (linear, < 0.01) 2-fold in the liquid fraction when feeding CDS increased from 0 to 27% CDS, yet genera tended ( = 0.09) to decrease in steers fed greater CDS. The most abundant family of sulfate-reducing bacteria, Desulfovibrionaceae, increased ( < 0.03) in the solid and liquid fraction in steers fed additional dietary CDS and sulfur. Relative abundance of family Veillonellaceae and were increased (linear, ≤ 0.02) in the solid fraction as steers were fed increasing CDS. There were no effects ( > 0.10) of feeding increasing dietary fat from CDS on fibroylytic genus in either fraction. Results demonstrate increasing fat and sulfur from CDS in a coproduct-based diet markedly alters the liquid fraction ruminal microbiome but does not elicit negative effects on relative abundance of identified fiber-fermenting bacteria.

Cattle Movement Monitoring for the Assessment of Impacts on Pasture Based Systems

With rising concerns in climate change, cattle production systems have been linked to the emissions of Greenhouse Gas (GHG) as well as the potential sequestration of carbon in soils. There exists an opportunity to impact carbon sequestration in soils through a better understanding of cattle movement, feeding behaviors and pasture utilization. A successful GPS tracking system has been developed to monitor the movement of a mixed group of beef cows and heifers on fescue pasture in rotational grazing paddocks at the University of Illinois Beef Cattle Farm. GPS data have been collected during the grazing season in 2010. To support this work, experiments have been designed to examine the static horizontal accuracy of GPS collars. ArcGIS package was used for data storage, management, visualization and analysis. Spatial analysis tools in ArcGIS were used to identify cattle movement patterns. A field utilization map has been created based on cattle movement data using density analysis. The initial results show that the pasture lands were unevenly utilized by cattle. This work has developed a successful protocol for monitoring cattle movement and provided some insights into the management and analysis of animal movement data. Given a thorough understanding of cattle field utilization and impact, models and decision tools will be developed in the future for identifying management strategies capable of considering both carbon balance and cattle performance.