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

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  13 March 2007

E. Jordan ,
D. K. Lovett ,
M. Hawkins ,
J. J. Callan  and
F.P. O'Mara
E. Jordan
Affiliation:
UCD School of Agriculture, Food Science and Veterinary Medicine, Lyons Research Farm, University College Dublin, Newcastle, Dublin, Ireland
D. K. Lovett
Affiliation:
UCD School of Agriculture, Food Science and Veterinary Medicine, Lyons Research Farm, University College Dublin, Newcastle, Dublin, Ireland
M. Hawkins
Affiliation:
UCD School of Mathematical Sciences, University College Dublin, Dublin 4, Ireland
J. J. Callan
Affiliation:
UCD School of Agriculture, Food Science and Veterinary Medicine, Lyons Research Farm, University College Dublin, Newcastle, Dublin, Ireland
F.P. O'Mara*
Affiliation:
UCD School of Agriculture, Food Science and Veterinary Medicine, Lyons Research Farm, University College Dublin, Newcastle, Dublin, Ireland
*
†UCD School of Agriculture, Food Science and Veterinary Medicine, Agriculture and Food Science CentreUniversity College Dublin, Belfield, Dublin 4, Ireland. E-mail: frank.omara@ucd.ie
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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 heiferscoconut oilforage to concentrate ratiomethane
Type
Research Article
Information
Animal Science , Volume 82 , Issue 6 , December 2006 , pp. 859 - 865
Copyright
Copyright © British Society of Animal Science 2006

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