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Animal Science Abstract

The effect of varying levels of coconut oil on intake, digestibility and methane output from continental cross beef heifers

E. Jordan¹, D.K. Lovett¹, M. Hawkins² and F.P. O’Mara^1,A

^ACorresponding author. Address: UCD School of Agriculture, Food Science and Veterinary Medicine, Agriculture and Food Science Centre, University College Dublin, Belfield, Dublin 4, Ireland. E-mail: frank.omara@ucd.ie

¹UCD School of Agriculture, Food Science and Veterinary Medicine, Lyons Research Farm, University College Dublin, Newcastle, Dublin, Ireland
²UCD School of Mathematical Sciences, University College Dublin, Dublin 4, Ireland

Abstract

This experiment sought to establish the response to increasing levels of coconut oil (CO) supplementation with a fixed 0•50:0•50 forage:concentrate diet on intake, digestibility and methane (CH4) emissions. Sixteen continental cross beef heifers (mean starting weight 481 ± 36 kg) were assigned randomly to one of four levels of CO; 0 g/day, 125 g/day, 250 g/day or 375 g/day in an incomplete (three periods) multiple (no. = 4) Latin-square design experiment (no. = 12 per treatment). A linear reduction in CH4 output occurred as the level of CO in the diet increased (P < 0.001) with the greatest reduction at the 375 g/day level (394, 341, 314 and 240 l/day for animals fed 0, 125, 250 and 375 g/day CO, respectively). As the level of CO increased dry-matter (DM) intake (DMI) decreased, however these differences were only statistically significant at the 375 g/day level (P < 0•001). The proportional reduction in CH4 output was greater than the proportional reduction in DMI and hence CH4 l/kg DMI decreased from 39•8 l/kg when no CO was given to 29•7 l/kg when 375 g/day CO was given. The addition of CO to the diet resulted in a significant decline in dry-matter digestibility (DMD) at the 375 g/day level (P < 0•05). These data demonstrate that the inclusion of CO at levels from 0•013 to 0•045 of the dietary DM within a 0•50:0•50 silage and concentrate ration reduces CH4 production with no adverse effect on DMI or DMD up to the 250 g/day level (0•027 of dietary DM).

Keywords: beef heifers, coconut oil, forage to concentrate ratio, methane.

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