Alltech Crop Science, una división de Alltech, se complace en anunciar su participación en ExpoLevante, que tendrá lugar del 18 al 20 de abril, se ha convertido en un referente dentro de la agricultura del Levante almeriense.

Los expertos de Alltech Crop Science, ubicados en el Pabellón 2 stand 36, ofrecerán recomendaciones sobre cómo optimizar la producción de sus cultivos, tanto en términos de rendimiento como de calidad. La feria será el escaparate perfecto para mostrar los productos y las soluciones naturales libres de residuos que proporcionan a los productores de todo el mundo para afrontar los retos agronómicos y hortícolas actuales.

Nuestra gama de productos naturales es también apta para la producción ecológica de acuerdo con el Reglamento (CE) Nº 834/2007.

Los ensayos llevados a cabo en colaboración con Ideagroanalizan la producción de cultivos intensivos y permiten a Alltech identificar así los fundamentos científicos que explican la mejora del rendimiento y de la calidad. En medio de este entorno siempre cambiante, proporcionar a los cultivos un catalizador del crecimiento en el momento preciso puede marcar una gran diferencia para los productores.

Alltech Crop Science se esfuerza por dotar a los cultivos de los nutrientes esenciales que necesitan para ser sostenibles.Gracias a los bioestimulantes y a los fertilizantes naturales de Alltech, los cultivos son más robustos y resistentes. Las plantas más sanas presentan un mayor contenido de azúcares y la producción se vuelve más uniforme en tamaño y color, lo que mejora su rendimiento comercial.

Alltech Crop Science, que desde 1994 ha investigado 69 tipos de cultivos diferentes en 29 países, cuenta con una fuerte presencia regional en Europa, América del Norte, América Latina, Oriente Medio, África y Asia. Debido a la mayor demanda de estudios en el campo de las ciencias agrícolas, Alltech está ampliando sus instalaciones europeas de investigación en Irlanda para respaldar los ensayos en curso. Los estudios europeos proporcionan a Alltech una mayor comprensión de las necesidades actuales de los cultivos. El objetivo de Alltech Crop Science es acercar la ciencia a la sostenibilidad, naturalmente. El programa de investigación de Alltech Crop Science impulsará la innovación para mejorar la rentabilidad y la sostenibilidad de los productores de cultivos intensivos.

The following is an edited transcript of Tom Martin's interview with Dr. Anna Catharina Berge, veterinarian and owner of Berge Veterinary Consulting. Click below to hear the full interview:

Dr. Anna Catharina Berge, owner of Berge Veterinary Consulting BVBA, is a veterinarian with extensive knowledge and skills combining real-life animal husbandry with epidemiological perspectives of animal and public health challenges. Berge joins Tom Martin from Vosselaar, Belgium, to discuss the use of, and alternatives to, antibiotics in pig production.

Tom:                          Let’s begin with pig production. Is antimicrobial use in pig production a real threat?

Catharina:                 All antimicrobial use has the potential to increase antimicrobial resistance in bacteria. Antimicrobials are really vital to humans and animals to protect against bacteria that can cause disease or death. Antimicrobial resistance is threatening the efficacy of these valuable drugs to treat bacterial disease. Even the World Health Organization (WHO) stated in 2014 that the antimicrobial resistance situation is so serious that we are entering a post-antibiotic era in which common infections and minor injuries can kill. This is far from being an apocalyptic fantasy — it’s a very real possibility for the 21^st century. This is not just some journalists writing up some fearful scenario. This was the WHO. So, it is a real threat.

                                 Microbial resistance in pig production is usually a consequence of decades of antibiotic use for disease prophylaxis or growth promotion. The antibiotics administered are not completely absorbed by the animals. If you’re giving an antibiotic to an animal, 30 to 90 percent of those antibiotics are actually excreted through the urine or feces. The antibiotics can reach the source through medical waste, improper drugs or even from dust from pens in barns. These antibiotic residues can also impact the environment and disturb the delicate ecological balance.

                                 Antibiotic-resistant bacteria may also spread into a virus through other mechanisms. Antibiotic-resistant bacteria may also spread to humans through food or through the environment. These antibiotic-resistant bacteria don't just disappear if we stop using antibiotics. They tend to linger. They’re easily created, but they don't tend to disappear quickly. Therefore, we need to do everything to not increase this pool of resistant disease that can spread between different types of bacteria. These resistant diseases can spread from bacteria that are not dangerous and just hanging around in our dust to those bacteria that are really causing disease and even death. If that resistant disease finds bacteria that cause death, then we have a bacterial disease that can’t be treated, and we may die from it. So, resistance is dangerous.

                                 Antibiotic resistance is also an increasing challenge on many pig farms because producers are noticing that good old antibiotics are not working any longer because bacteria become resistant to them. So, they use newer and newer antibiotics. And this newer antibiotic is what the WHO now calls critical antibiotics, those that we want to maintain to treat humans against dangerous disease, so we’re building up resistance to all of these newer antibiotics. The problem is, there are really no new antibiotics created today. The pharmaceutical industry has stopped investing in the research and development of new antibiotic drugs, so we're running out of good drugs to treat bacteria.

Tom:                          You have noted that herd-level immunity, individual pig gut health, systemic immunity, nutritional status, stress levels, and environmental conditions all interact. Why is it important to understand these interactions?

Catharina:                 No animal, organ or cell works in isolation. They all work closely together and, hopefully, in harmony. They all influence each other. So, a pig, furthermore, is living within a very complex production system where you have various factors that can influence its health and productivity. So, unless you take the whole system into account and evaluate this whole system, you don't really know the cost of a disease or why the pig is not doing well. You may think the cause is something other than disease, but it’s really the disease as a consequence of the production system.

                                    Our production systems have not been optimized for what the pig needs and what we want from the pig. We are trying to adapt the pig to our production systems instead of adapting our systems to the pig. This is creating a problem, and one of the solutions has been to medicate with antibiotics.

Tom:                          What challenges do antibiotics pose to the gut health of pigs and livestock?

Catharina:                 Antibiotics can prevent bacteria from reproducing or destroy bacteria. These antibiotics don't differentiate between bacteria that are good for the body and those that are potentially harmful. Some antibiotics work on different threats to the bacteria and some can work against a lot of bacteria types. Others work against just a few.

                                 Many of these antibiotics are used in the feed in pig production for extended periods of time. They have what we call a broad spectrum. They work against a lot of different bacteria. An example of such is tetracycline. These antibiotics can modify the gut flora and reduce diversity of the bacteria in the gut. Therefore, many good bacteria that are helping in many different ways are killed. Some harmful bacterial also are killed, but when the good gut flora is destroyed, then the pathogenic, harmful bacteria have a bigger chance to reproduce and attack the intestinal lining, maybe even invade the body and cause disease. It’s really essential to create a good microbial flora in the pig, and these antibiotics can actually work against them in that way.

Tom:                          Globally, farmers are now showing that it is possible to reduce antimicrobial use without sacrificing performance in health. A key focus has been placed on gut health. Why is gut and intestinal health in pigs so important?

Catharina:                 It’s key to a healthy animal. The gut is responsible for the digestion and absorption of nutrients that are necessary for the whole body to function properly. Through the food ingested, the pig gets energy — macronutrients and micronutrients — to fuel and support the functions of every single cell in the body. So, if the gut is not working, then the pig’s overall health will suffer.

                                  It’s in the gut that the immune system encounters many potential pathogens that are harmful bacteria. These need to be stopped before they start destroying the intestinal linings or invade the body. In the gut, we have the most immune cells of the whole body. This immunity has high requirements for energy and nutrients and must be in top shape for protecting the pig. If you don't have good gut health, then the immune system doesn't have enough energy to do good work.

                                 A healthy gut, furthermore, has a microflora of bacteria that participates in the digestion of many nutrients. These healthy gut microflora also prevent pathogens from growing and invading intestinal cells. This microflora shows a high level of diversity, and every bacteria species influence each other. So, the healthy gut microflora is also critical to a healthy gut.

Tom:                          What do you think will be the best measures to reduce antibiotic use?

Catharina:                 I like the holistic approach. The best measure to decrease antibiotic use is to optimize the production system and nutrition to better meet the pig’s basic needs.

                                 A first step is to create awareness of the consequences of our antibiotic medicating system and motivate people to change. It’s important for producers to understand that reductions in antibiotic use can be made without compromising the health of the animal or their productivity. But it requires an evaluation of the whole production system and nutrition to identify the weaknesses in every single system because every single system we enter is different.

                                 The easiest part to change is nutrition for the pig and making sure that it’s correct for every single stage of its life and that the pig is not exposed to high levels of bacteria or mycotoxins in the feed and the water. Thereafter, we are starting to look at management changes and housing changes to meet the physiological needs of the animals and protect them from disease from inside and outside the unit. That’s also called “biosecurity,” and that's very important. Thereafter, we need to start looking at how we can boost immunity so that the pig is then able to meet all the challenges.

Tom:                          Among the farms you are working with, what percentage of reduction do you think is realistically achievable?

Catharina:                 I would say most farmers across the world are still using a lot of antibiotics prophylactically to prevent disease, or they use it for growth promotion. And I believe that all of that use can stop. There, again, there has to be a motivation of the producer to change. But, in general, if we go onto a farm, a realistic goal we usually can see without too much of a challenge is a 50 percent reduction in antimicrobial use already within the first year.

Tom:                          What are the components that should be included in any antibiotic reduction program?

Catharina:                 There was a philosopher in 1850 that said if you don't record it, you can’t improve it. So, you have to have an antibiotic use registration system and you have to evaluate it. It’s not enough just to jot down a few notes in a book somewhere. You have to evaluate. Then you have to set targets. You have to ask, “How can I achieve this reduction with those targets?” You need to look at the appropriate nutrition for every single stage of production. All the pigs, based upon where they are and how old they are, have different needs. You need to have appropriate nutrition. You also have to have very good, quality feeds — low microbial levels and low mycotoxin levels. Then you need to look at the management level. How are you moving the pigs around the system? Are you weaning them too young? Are you stressing them at different phases by mixing litters, and so on? So, management systems are very important.

                                 Housing systems need to be evaluated. Many times, we have pigs in old systems where it’s really not optimized for holding them, and we may need to consider rebuilding on a long-term scale.

                                 A very important part is biosecurity. Biosecurity is what we call “disease protection.” You need to protect the animals from disease that is found inside the uterus. That’s called “internal biosecurity.” You also need to protect the pigs from diseases that are not on the farm currently, but could be introduced by animals, vehicles and people. That’s called “external biosecurity,” and that's very important.

                                  You also need to be able to correctly diagnose and treat the clinical diseases in the best way. People don’t always understand what they're seeing and how it should be best treated.

                                 And of course, we have the alternatives to antibiotics that are valuable tools to support health and productivity. We have products that can support microflora in the gut and optimize the strength of the gut lining such as Bio-Mos® and Actigen®.

                                 We have alternatives to boost immunity. Vaccines, for example, are vital to protect the pigs against many diseases. Organic minerals are important to boost the immune system and help the immune system work optimally. So, all of those components are appropriate and are very important to consider in a program.

Tom:                          You have suggested that the goal to reduce antibiotic use should be rephrased to a goal to produce healthy production systems. How do producers look at this challenge as an opportunity instead of a threat?

Catharina:                 Well, I think for that exact reason: Health is not a threat. It’s something we all strive for, whether in our bodies, a healthy business, healthy ecosystem or healthy planet. And producers are realizing more and more that diseases are costly. Furthermore, there is no joy in working with sick animals. Honestly, I have yet to meet a pig producer that tells me that he or she wants to use antibiotics. It’s rather that they believe it's necessary to prevent disease. When we start showing that we can remove the antibiotics without suffering productivity losses or increased diseases, then they start seeing the possibility of moving toward a more sustainable production.

Tom:                          Can you expand on the practical measures a pig operation could implement to develop a healthy production system?

Catharina:                 I would recommend any pig producer that wants to develop a healthy production system seek out a team of experts: consultants, nutritionists and veterinarians who can evaluate the whole system. That is what we call a “whole herd audit.” This audit usually takes at least a day. Based upon this initial audit, there will be various points to address, whether in housing, management, nutrition or disease treatment. You start setting up the concrete plan of what major issues to address and what targets to achieve.

                                  Everyone involved in production, as well as nutritionists and veterinarians, needs to be involved in an antimicrobial reduction plan. Once you’ve set up this plan and you start implementing, it's really important that you have a very good follow-up. Therefore, you should have regular audits to monitor the progress, create accountability for effort and set up new achievable targets as necessary. Alltech has actually developed such a holistic antimicrobial reduction audit.

Tom:                          What is the future of antibiotic use in the pig industry?

Catharina:                 I hope that the pig industry will move toward reducing antibiotics very quickly so that the consumers are not forcing them to completely ban all antibiotics. The future of antibiotic use, as I see it, is that antibiotics will be available for individual treatment of sick pigs or serve a metaphylactic use in the exceptional cases. But all prophylaxis or regular continual use such as growth promotion is stopped.

Tom:                          In the past couple of years, we've seen some significant increases in the presence of mycotoxins in haylage, barlage and silage. Why are mycotoxins important to consider when we're talking about antibiotic reduction?

Catharina:                 Mycotoxins are produced in various unfavorable conditions. As you mentioned, we see them more and more emergent in all our feed sources. They’re very toxic compounds, and they can impact both immunity and health. There are various types of mycotoxins present in most feeds in various levels. We have seen in audits of many pig producers that an underlying reason for poor health and productivity is a high level of mycotoxin exposure.

Tom:                          What kind of effects do mycotoxins have on pigs?

Catharina:                 That is one of the problems — that people don't realize that they have a mycotoxin challenge in their production because the signs are very subtle and diffused. There are various symptoms that the producer does not recognize. Some of these symptoms are, for example, poor feed efficiency, suboptimal growth, digestive distress, various disease problems and poor reproductive performance. Mycotoxins have strong immune suppressors, and that’s one of the reasons why we see more and more disease and why the pigs are susceptible to disease.

                                 All of these mycotoxins — there are many — have different modes of action. But there’s seldom just one mycotoxin present in the feed. There’s usually multiple. When they’re working together, sometimes they can have an additive effect, but sometimes they will have a multiplicative effect. The gut and immune system are first to encounter the mycotoxins once ingested. We have talked about the importance of gut health and antimicrobial reduction audits and programs. It’s essential to address this risk as an aspect of the reduction program. We have always seen in our antimicrobial reduction audits that when we go in and address these mycotoxin challenges and feed through the inclusion of a good broad-spectrum mycotoxin binder such as Mycosorb®, then we see improved productivity.

Tom:                          What consumer demands are driving significant changes in the industry?

Catharina:                 Consumers have high demands on the industry. Today’s consumers want food from animals from a sustainable, animal-friendly system. They also want food from animals that have not been medicated with antibiotics. We have seen that consumers are actually willing to pay a higher price for meat produced without antibiotics.

                                  Animal welfare is another area that has a very high importance for consumers. Measures such as tail docking and castration are increasingly questioned. Since these interventions are often coupled with an antibiotic injection, systems where castration and tail docking are not necessary will have reduced antimicrobial use. Tail docking has been performed to reduce the incidence of tail biting in group-housed pigs. If the animal environment is improved, it is possible to rear pigs with their tails intact. That is the case in Sweden, where tail docking is banned.

                                  An improved group housing system will reduce antimicrobial use in growing pigs. Another area is the group housing for gestating sows, so they don’t stand locked up in small crates all their life. This is also highly desirable by consumers. This also optimizes the health and strength of these sows, and they can rear healthier piglets. The animal welfare requests of consumers contribute to healthy animals that do not need antibiotics. 

Tom:                          Dr. Cat Berge of Berge Veterinary Consulting BVBA in Vosselaar, Belgium. Thank you so much for joining us.

Have a question or comment?

Los productores ganaderos intentan constantemente bajar la tasa de conversión alimenticia (FCR) de su ganado para mejorar la productividad. Con una FCR de 6,4:1; a veces el ganado se compara con los pollos en cuanto a su eficiencia, FCR 2,1:1.

Algunos argumentan que comparar las tasa de conversión alimenticia de los pollos y las vacas es como comparar manzanas con peras, y es justo. Sin embargo, incluso cuando se comparan las eficiencias del ganado lechero con las del ganado de carne, las tasas del ganado de carne sigue siendo bajas. Si el ganado de carne fuera metabólicamente eficiente como las vacas lecheras, entonces, por extrapolación, el ganado de carne alcanzaría un peso de aproximadamente 2 toneladas a los dos años de edad. Esto es claramente irrazonable.

Las ineficiencias en la industria contribuyen a la pérdida de beneficios, pero ¿es posible que la industria de ganado de carne sea más eficiente?

El profesor Maurice Boland, director europeo de investigación en Alltech, cree que el ganado de carne tiene el potencial de mejorar la FCR. El proceso correcto, únicamente, se implementa con la ayuda de las herramientas adecuadas. 

Moviéndonos hacia el objetivo de la eficiencia en la ganadería

Para que el ganado sea más eficiente, son necesarios menos días de alimentación y menos alimento por día, al mismo tiempo se deben alcanzar los pesos deseados de la canal. La genómica parece ser la mejor herramienta para lograr estos objetivos; sin embargo, todavía queda mucho trabajo por hacer en la genómica para el ganado de carne.

"Si bien la genómica ha logrado una mejora significativa en los rebaños lecheros, será más fácil decirlo que hacerlo para lograr el mismo resultado en los rebaños de carne, debido a la variación de animal en animal", comentó Boland.

El blanco: Encontrando los objetivos reproductivos

Si bien la genómica está mejorando, el trabajo reciente está contribuyendo a una mejor comprensión sobre cómo mejorar el proceso de reproducción.

Los siguientes son algunos de los objetivos reproductivos para el ganado de carne, recolectados de una publicación reciente¹ por Michael G. Diskin y David A. Kenny del Departamento de Investigación y Biosciencia Animal en el Centro de Investigación e Innovación de Teagasc Animal & Grassland. Estos objetivos reproductivos sugieren que, para lograr una producción óptima:

• Los intervalos de parto deben ser de 365 días o menos.
• Menos del 5 por ciento de las vacas deben ser sacrificadas por infertilidad.
• La edad al primer parto debe ser de 24 meses.
• Debería haber una tasa de reemplazo entre 16 a 18 por ciento.

Para determinar si el ambiente en el útero (in utero) tuvo efectos significativos en la salud posnatal, Alexander Evans, decano de agricultura y jefe de la Facultad de Agricultura y Ciencias de los Alimentos en University College Dublin, en un estudio separado² examinó los efectos de la nutrición en los folículos ováricos en el desarrollo fetal.

A 150 días, la mayoría de las novillas tendrán todos los folículos que tendrán. Evans alteró la nutrición de dos grupos de vacas que iban a ser inseminadas y continuó el plan nutricional durante una parte del embarazo. Los terneros resultantes no difirieron en peso al nacer ni en ninguna medida de tamaño, pero el grupo control, con el nuevo plan nutricional, tuvo un número de folículos ováricos significativamente más alto que aquellos provenientes de vacas que tuvieron su consumo de energía restringido durante los primeros 110 días del embarazo.

Un mayor número de folículos significa que los objetivos reproductivos establecidos por Diskin y Kenny son más alcanzables.

Fortalecimiento 

Otro estudio realizado por Giuliana Miguel-Pacheco³, asociada de investigación honoraria de la Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, mostró que la proteína cruda en el segundo trimestre aumentó significativamente el peso corporal en los terneros. Mientras que los pesos al nacer fueron solo un poco más altos, la proteína cruda aumentó la tasa de crecimiento de los terneros durante los primeros seis meses.

Boland es optimista acerca de las oportunidades que la programación nutricional prenatal podría presentar sobre las mejoras en la tasa de conversión alimenticia en el ganado vacuno.

"Creo que hay oportunidades que aun no hemos percibido, en relación con lo que está sucediendo en el período de embarazo", dijo. "Los mecanismos para aprovechar esa oportunidad están disponibles".

Vacas productivas

A pesar de que las mejoras en la eficiencia del ganado de carne, normalmente, parecen estar rodeadas de desafíos, estudios recientes indican la promesa de una programación nutricional prenatal. Cuanto más eficiente sea el ganado, más ganancias obtendrán los productores. La investigación continua, especialmente la investigación centrada en la nutrición in utero, tiene el potencial de convertir a cada vaca en una vaca productiva.

Referencias:

1. Diskin MG and Kenny DA. 2016. Managing the reproductive performance of beef cows. Theriogenology. doi:10.1016/j.theriogenology.2016.04.052
2. Evans, Alexander & Mossa, Francesca & Fair, T & Lonergan, P & Butler, Stephen & Zielak-Steciwko, Anna & W Smith, G & Jimenez-Krassel, Fermin & K Folger, J & L H Ireland, J & J Ireland, J. (2010). Variation in the number of ovarian follicles in cattle: Possible causes and consequences. Society of Reproduction and Fertility supplement. 67. 421-9. 10.5661/RDR-VII-421
3. Miguel-Pacheco, G., Curtain, L., Rutland, C., Knott, L., Norman, S., Phillips, N., & Perry, V. (2017). Increased dietary protein in the second trimester of gestation increases live weight gain and carcass composition in weaner calves to 6 months of age. Animal, 11(6), 991-999. doi:10.1017/S1751731116002330

If you’re in the Northern Hemisphere, with any luck, the chill of winter is finally lifting, and grass is taking on a long-awaited healthy, green glow. You and your horses are likely chomping at the bit (pun intended) to head outside and take full advantage of the free buffet. But before you turn those ponies loose, ask yourself: Are you thinking strategically about pasture management?

Why utilize rotational grazing?

If horses are allowed to graze on one pasture continuously, they can quickly eat down the quality forage, leaving behind weeds and potentially bare ground. Given the choice, horses will selectively graze on their favorite plants and grasses and may completely neglect certain areas while overgrazing others. Whenever a plant is grazed on, it needs time to regenerate leaves and restore energy to its root system. If grazed on again before roots are re-energized, the plant grows weaker. If regularly overgrazed, the plant will ultimately die. Rotational grazing is meant to stop this cycle from taking place.

By utilizing rotational grazing, you could potentially double the amount of forage produced and salvage this precious resource, thereby saving a great deal on additional hay costs. This is because rotational grazing allows portions of pasture to rest and recover, particularly the most heavily grazed plants and grasses. A pasture can be divided into several segments to allow ample time for rested areas to grow back to a reasonable grazing height.

How do I begin a rotational grazing program?

The way you divide your pasture(s) will depend on several factors, including climate, soil fertility, rainfall/irrigation, drainage, types of plants and grasses, and number of horses grazing. Removing horses from an area when the grass has reached an approximate height of 3 to 4 inches (using a color-coded grazing stick can be very helpful) can prevent overgrazing from occurring and allow you to take advantage of the underutilized sections.

If you are transitioning a paddock to its rest period, you will need to remove manure, trim to an even height to encourage grasses to regrow uniformly and allow approximately three to four weeks’ rest. You’ll need at least four paddocks (1 to 2 acres per horse, per paddock) to maintain this schedule. Using more will allow for briefer grazing periods and increased rest, which is even better. A smart strategy is to keep a dry lot available and feed hay when longer rest periods are warranted.

You may also be wondering how long you should allow horses to graze on pasture sections. This will be dependent on the number of horses, length of daily turnout and size of the area, as well as the other factors mentioned previously. A good rule of thumb is to plan for one week’s use of each section but to monitor closely. Walking the pastures, preferably daily, will allow you to ensure that areas aren’t being overgrazed and to check that fencing is working properly. Temporary electric fencing is generally most effective for this strategy as it can be adjusted at any time. It is also worth noting that you should keep horses inside or in a dry lot during wet weather to prevent pasture damage from hooves.

What about water?

One challenge associated with rotational grazing is that we are often using automatic waterers and the question of accessibility comes into play. Obviously, you won’t be able to provide easy access to the waterer in all instances, so you may have to get creative when it comes to providing adequate water. Setting up temporary troughs, checking them often and moving them around the paddock(s) periodically can help to avoid creating particularly muddy areas or soft ground, which could lead to pasture damage.

Is rotational grazing worth the hassle?

I know what you’re thinking. This sounds like a lot of extra work, and that’s because it is. But the time, effort and commitment can truly pay off in the end, with the potential to increase forage quantity and quality, improve horse health, save money (less spent on hay) and decrease both you and your horses’ environmental footprint, making rotational grazing a very worthwhile endeavor.

I would like to learn more about horse health.

Derek Wawack, Alltech On-Farm Support forage specialist, has been a part of the company for over seven years and visits nearly 500 farms annually. Drawing from this experience, he explains the key things he looks for when inspecting a silage pile, and the steps farmers can take to avoid costly issues.

Safety

When I go on-farm for a bunker audit, the first thing I do is inspect the silage pile for any safety concerns. Large cracks, often found when there are two crops butted together, can come down, causing an avalanche or collapse. Are there overhangs? Tires falling down? Bales that could tip over? Always exercise extreme caution when around large piles.

Mold

Molds like Penicillium, Aspergillus and Fusarium are often found in corn silage and are common mycotoxin producers.

Colorations can help us identify molds, especially in corn silage. White-to-red/pinkish molds are Fusarium, or field-borne, molds. Blue-green molds are typically Penicillium, which is more often storage-related but can occur in the field under certain weather conditions. Aspergillus, which is very common in dry climates, is olive green to yellow in color.

When I observe large mold lines, I do not touch, inhale, grab or sample those areas. Many molds cause health issues to both animals and humans, and they can also produce a fair number of different mycotoxins.

In humans and animals, Penicillium mold alone can cause dermal irritation as well as gut health complications if ingested. Mycotoxins can also cause performance and reproductive problems.

Facing

Increased surface area permits more oxygen to penetrate the feed, triggering mold and yeast growth, which increases heating. We look for a smooth face, with little loose material at the base and edges. The proper facing and feed out equipment can help reduce shrinkage. A shaver provides a very smooth and clean face and can help reduce losses with proper management. Rakes or claws will cause tine marks, increasing surface area, but they do limit oxygen penetration during facing. Finally, bucket facing leads to a lot of oxygen penetration due to lifting the pile face.

Infrared inspection

Along with evaluating facing techniques, we utilize infrared cameras for hot spot detection on the piles. These cameras are used to look for areas of aerobic instability that could be due to yeast, mold, bacteria or even the management of facing practices. Shavers tend to not allow oxygen very deep into piles. Rakes and buckets can allow oxygen into the piles, resulting in quicker spoilage.

Other issues we see on infrared cameras are yeasts. Yeasts have a tendency to show up as a large bubble on the images and, being water soluble, will drain down the pile. Yeast can contaminate the top and then drain down through the face. In contrast, molds have a tendency to grow in a linear or spherical fashion. This means molds will stay more toward the top of the pile and will develop in lines.

Plastic

We also look at how well the plastic has been managed. Has it been pulled back too far? How many sheets are being used? Are the tires touching? Are the sides covered well and is the plastic pulled out with sand around the edges if it’s a drive-over pile? Or is it a bunker in which the plastic has been, at the very least, run down the walls and double overlaid?

Due to the curvature of the pile surface area, taking proper precautions and good management of the top of the pile can result in reducing up to a third of spoilage and oxygen penetration:

• Tires: You don’t want to see large spaces between tires; in fact, the tires should nearly be touching. For ease of weight and placement, side walls work the best and reduce water-holding capacity, which can encourage bugs and pathogens.
• Plastic: One black and white sheet with an oxygen barrier film, or two layers of black and white plastic, will protect the top of the forage from the elements and discourage animals from penetrating your feed.
• Cutting: Depending on height, conditions and other safety factors, try to keep the plastic cut 6 inches to 1 foot from the face edge. Two to three feet is common, but air, rain and other weather conditions can truly damage your forage when it is exposed to the elements.
• Treatment: Most spoilage occurs at the top of the pile, where the packing density isn’t as high. A mold inhibitor can help counter the impact of increased oxygen flow in this area.

Up to 60 percent of the average farm’s expenses are feed-related. By increasing the quality of your forage and reducing shrinkage, considerable cost savings can be achieved without even leaving the farm. To learn more about proper forage management, watch Pat Crowley, Alltech’s forage specialist, explain the “4 unwritten rules for great silage.”

    The International Federation of Agricultural Journalists (IFAJ) announced the recipients of the 2018 IFAJ/Alltech Young Leaders in Agricultural Journalism Award. This year's program, sponsored by Alltech, honors 10 young agricultural journalists and communicators who have demonstrated outstanding achievement in reporting as well as excellent potential as leaders of the industry in the years to come. 

Click here to view the full article: 

La Dra. Kristen Brennan es gerente de proyectos de investigación en el Centro de Nutrigenómica Animal y Nutrición Animal Aplicada de Alltech en Nicholasville, Kentucky. En una entrevista realizada por Tom Martin, la Dra. Brennan nos nos ayuda a comprender mejor su campo, la nutrigenómica, y su función en la agricultura sostenible.

A continuación una transcripción editada de la entrevista de la Dra. Kristen Brennan:

¿Qué es la ciencia de la nutrigenómica?

La manera más fácil de comprender sobre la nutrigenómica es dividiendo la palabra para definir: "nutri" y "genómica". Lo que tratamos de estudiar con la nutrigenómica es cómo la nutrición (ya sean los nutrientes, las formas de nutrientes, las dietas, o el tiempo de las dietas) influye en el genoma del animal. Por lo tanto, no cambiamos el genoma, pero influimos en la actividad de todos los genes del genoma del animal.

¿Es esto una consecuencia del proyecto del genoma humano, o es mucho más que eso?

La nutrigenómica es algo que ha existido siempre. Desde el momento en que el primer organismo vivo evolucionó, necesitaba nutrientes, y esos nutrientes tenían influencia en la actividad de los genes de ese animal o célula. En los últimos años, lo que hemos hecho es descubrir cómo capturar esa información. Siempre ha existido, solo que no teníamos la forma de medirlos. Las tecnologías como la secuenciación del genoma son la base central para medir lo que estamos viendo.

¿En qué momento nos dimos cuenta de que los nutrientes impactan en la expresión génica? 

Creo que desde hace mucho tiempo sabemos la importancia de la nutrición. Siglos atrás, se tenía la idea de que la nutrición tenía un papel vital. No sé si en ese momento, realmente, sabíamos qué era el ADN y cuál era la función de los genes, pero sabíamos que la nutrición podía influir en el resultado, o en el fenotipo de un animal (lo que vemos en el exterior), y qué tan importante es para la buena salud.

¿Cuáles son las ventajas de la nutrigenómica en los estudios animales?

En primer lugar, creo que este campo es muy emocionante porque, cuando se trata de un muestreo real, necesitamos una cantidad de muestra muy pequeña. Podemos hacer esto, por ejemplo, con una pequeña muestra de sangre de un animal, o una pequeña biopsia. Por lo tanto, no tenemos que sacrificar a un animal para obtener su tejido.

Una gran ventaja es la cantidad de información que obtenemos. Si pensamos en la mayoría de los genomas, estamos hablando de miles de genes, podemos medir de una sola vez cómo cada uno de dichos genes se comporta en respuesta a una dieta o nutrición. Eso representa una increíble cantidad de información.

La otra ventaja es que se puede realizar realmente rápido. Desde el momento en que obtenemos una muestra hasta el momento en que tenemos el resultado de los datos, puede ser tan breve como unos pocos días en el laboratorio. Entonces, mucha información, pocos insumos. Una tonelada (de datos) de una manera muy rápida.

¿Con esto, usted es capaz de entender por qué algunos animales responden de manera diferente a los mismos nutrientes?

Sí. Podemos usar esta información para entender eso. Un ejemplo sería animales saludables versus enfermos y por qué la nutrición puede desempeñar un papel sobre la respuesta a la enfermedad. Cada vez más, estamos empezando a comprender cómo las diferencias a nivel genético (diferentes razas de animales, diferentes condiciones de producción, cosas por el estilo) pueden influir en cómo responde el animal.

¿Podría profundizar en esto y descubrir cómo los nutrientes y los componentes bioactivos en los alimentos activan o desactivan ciertos genes?

Sí. La mayor cantidad de información que obtenemos es simplemente “¿se activan o desactivan los genes?”. Por lo tanto, ¿cómo responde cada gen individual al alimento? A medida que comprendamos más y más, podemos dar un paso atrás y comenzar a comprender qué está pasando. Son lo que llamamos vías de señalización, algo como, si configuramos una fila de dominós y golpeamos la primera pieza, se desconfigura todo. Es lo mismo con la actividad de los genes. Existe una serie de moléculas que son responsables de regular o activar otras. Y podemos comenzar a descifrar qué obtenemos del nutriente o la dieta que estamos suministrando en el punto final, la ultima ficha de dominó en la línea.

¿Podría entonces enfocarse en problemas que requieren algún tipo de intervención nutricional?

Sí. Y esa es obviamente una de las aplicaciones más interesantes de esta investigación. Podemos utilizar esto para definir la nutrición de precisión.

Uno de los desafíos con la alimentación de los animales, o de las personas en general, es que existen muchos factores ambientales que influyen en cómo responde el animal a la dieta: trastornos y enfermedades, pero también las condiciones de producción, dónde viven, cuál es su dieta basal. Podemos utilizar esta tecnología para obtener información precisa sobre cómo podemos utilizar la nutrición para obtener el mejor desempeño o la mejor salud de ese animal.

¿Cómo lleva a cabo su investigación? ¿Qué sucede en el laboratorio de Kristen Brennan?

¡Magia! Esta investigación se realiza en varios pasos. Es realmente un trabajo en equipo. El estudio más simple que tenemos es entre dos grupos de animales, y debido a que muchas cosas podrían influir en la expresión génica, queremos asegurarnos de que esos dos grupos de animales sean lo más idénticos posible: la misma raza, sexo, edad, condiciones de producción y alojamiento en entornos similares. La única diferencia entre esos dos grupos es el nutriente que nos interesa.

Por ejemplo, si estamos evaluando la forma de un mineral como el selenio, podríamos tener una dieta para un grupo con selenio en forma de selenito de sodio, y podríamos tener otra dieta para el otro grupo en forma de selenio orgánico como nuestro producto Sel-Plex^®. Una vez que hayamos suministrado estas dietas por un período de tiempo estipulado, evaluaremos lo que nos interesa: qué tejidos y qué nutrientes vamos a evaluar; luego obtenemos una muestra. Puede ser tan simple como una pequeña biopsia muscular o unos mililitros de sangre. Llevamos eso al laboratorio, y nuestros técnicos de laboratorio esencialmente tomarán ese tejido, romperán las membranas celulares y luego las membranas nucleares y purificarán lo que llamamos el ARNm, o las transcripciones, ubicadas dentro del núcleo. Nos aseguramos de que la transcripción, o un ARN total, sea de una calidad y pureza súper alta porque estos ensayos son muy precisos. Tenemos altos estándares para lo que podemos utilizar.

Luego utilizamos un chip de ADN disponible comercialmente. Y eso nos permite establecer un perfil. Este tiene sondas para cada gen en el genoma del animal, por ejemplo para el caso de un pollo, tiene aproximadamente 18.000 sondas, eso nos permite medir si el ARNm, o la transcripción, para cada uno de esos genes ha aumentado o disminuido en respuesta al nutriente que suministramos.

Al final, obtenemos una hoja de cálculo larga que dice: el gen A ha aumentado, el gen B no ha cambiado, el gen C ha disminuido.

Luego viene la parte difícil, el análisis de datos. Tenemos todos esos datos, estamos hablando de miles, es como un enorme rompecabezas. Si tomamos esa caja de rompecabezas y la tiramos al suelo, sería un gran desastre, ¿cierto? Cuando obtengo esa hoja de cálculo de Excel de miles de filas y columnas, básicamente, eso es lo que parece. Entonces, necesitamos ayuda para tratar de unir las piezas de los rompecabezas. Si sacamos una pieza, podríamos encontrar una esquina, algo realmente importante. Igualmente, si miro esa hoja de cálculo, podría encontrar un gen muy importante, que está muy aumentado o disminuido. Este es el punto de partida.

Lo que realmente necesitamos hacer para visualizar el panorama completo es unir las piezas. Utilizamos lo que llamamos la bioinformática, esencialmente estadísticas biológicas, y utilizamos programas de software que nos dicen, estos 100 genes están relacionados, todos tienen una función biológica común; y en función de su actividad, predecimos si la función biológica aumenta o disminuye. Y eso nos ayuda a orientar esta información.

Entonces, al igual que al unir las piezas del rompecabezas, tenemos una idea general de lo que sucede dentro del animal, lo cual genera lo que vemos en el exterior, como un crecimiento mejorado o una mejora en la eficiencia alimenticia o mejores marcadores de salud.

Tengo la impresión de que el "Santo Grial" para usted sería encontrar y establecer un vínculo entre los enfoques genómicos nutricionales y la investigación nutricional aplicada. ¿Lo podría explicar?

Claro. El objetivo final de la nutrigenómica, al menos en mi opinión, es que cuando realizamos estudios de nutrición tradicional, tomamos una dieta experimental, la administramos a un animal y evaluamos el resultado fenotípico. Por lo tanto, ¿qué vemos en el animal? Podría ser el cambio en el peso corporal, las tasas de crecimiento, la eficiencia alimenticia, cosas que podemos medir o simplemente ver en el animal. Podríamos evaluar los marcadores de sangre, cosas por el estilo. Lo que normalmente falta y para lo que podemos utilizar la nutrigenómica es: ¿Cómo pasamos del punto A al punto B? ¿Cómo obtenemos de la dieta una respuesta en el animal?

Lo que la nutrigenómica nos brinda es una herramienta para observar la razón molecular de dichos cambios. Podemos utilizar la nutrigenómica para descifrar: ¿Estamos afectando el consumo de energía en las células? ¿Estamos afectando la traducción de proteínas en el músculo? Este tipo de cosas puede ayudarnos a explicar lo que estamos viendo en ese animal en vez de tan solo adivinar cómo funciona algo.

¿Esta tecnología, la nutrigenómica, reduce nuestra dependencia a los estudios a gran escala realizados en animales, y es esta menos invasiva que el enfoque tradicional?

Creo que sí. Con estos estudios, podemos trabajar con un número mucho más pequeño (de animales) por tratamiento. Entonces, donde necesita cientos de animales para obtener información significativa, por ejemplo, sobre la calidad de la canal, podemos usar seis o 10 animales por tratamiento y aún así obtener la misma información que explicaría por qué vemos ciertos cambios en el animal. Obviamente, es alternativo, pero utilizamos esta tecnología para minimizar la cantidad de animales que necesitamos por tratamiento.

La otra ventaja es la obtención de muestras. No necesitamos un kilo de músculo esquelético para hacer nuestro análisis. Necesitamos una pequeña cantidad. Por lo tanto, realmente no es invasivo. Podemos utilizar una simple muestra de sangre, que no es invasiva, para obtener información.

La granja del siglo XXI es un lugar diferente en comparación con la del siglo pasado. La gran razón detrás de todo esto es la llegada de mucha más ciencia, tecnologías y datos masivos. Si tuviéramos que sacar su ciencia, la nutrigenómica, del laboratorio a la granja, ¿cómo los productores utilizarían lo aprendido?

Creo que una de las principales maneras en que pueden utilizarla es a través de la nutrición de precisión, realmente formulando dietas para satisfacer las necesidades reales del animal. Y también para comprender la forma versus la función de diferentes nutrientes. Es decir, ¿cómo obtenemos lo mejor que podemos obtener de un animal a través de la nutrición? La nutrigenómica nos brinda esa herramienta para comprender el cómo.

Para ir más allá, aparte de ayudar a determinar qué funciona para un tipo genético de animal, ¿la nutrigenómica ayuda a explicar por qué necesitamos saber lo que funciona para un animal específico?

Absolutamente. Y creo que realmente ayuda a impulsar la idea de precisión detrás de la nutrición. Por mucho tiempo, hemos sobrealimentado nutrientes. Realmente no hemos prestado atención a la forma versus la función. La nutrigenómica nos está proporcionando las razones por las cuales la forma es tan importante en los nutrientes, y por qué los niveles precisos son importantes. Estamos eliminando el juego de adivinar en la nutrición animal.

Creo que a medida que nuestra población crece y las necesidades de alimentos continúan aumentando, esa optimización real en la nutrición basada en el potencial genético del animal será realmente importante.

¿Cómo puede ayudarnos esta información de la genómica a comprender mejor sobre la nutrición y la ciencia de los nutrientes?

Esa es una buena pregunta. Esto nos da una buena comprensión sobre los efectos ocultos de la nutrición: lo que realmente no entendemos, por qué vemos los cambios. Por ejemplo: ¿por qué vemos una mayor eficiencia energética con diferentes formas de selenio? Si solo consideramos nuestra investigación nutricional tradicional, no tendremos idea. Pero utilizamos la nutrigenómica para decir: "Está bien, los genes que controlan, digamos, el crecimiento mitocondrial en el músculo esquelético de los animales son activados con Sel-Plex, y eso explica por qué vemos cambios en el consumo de energía".

Ese es el tipo de información que podemos conseguir a través de la investigación tradicional en la nutrición animal, y la nutrigenómica realmente ayuda a impulsar esa información y nos permite comprender mejor cómo funcionan los nutrientes, cosas que no podemos ver simplemente mirando a un animal.

Una última pregunta: En su trabajo, ¿qué es lo que realmente le interesa y le entusiasma?

¡Todo, como verdadera científica! Una de las áreas que me fascina por completo, y lo he estado haciendo durante años y hemos trabajado bastante en ello, pero es algo en lo que pienso y casi me da dolor de cabeza, es la idea de la programación nutricional. Este es el concepto de cómo la nutrición temprana (ya sea en un animal neonatal o incluso en la dieta de gestación, o hasta evaluando a la descendencia) influye en un animal a lo largo de su vida.

Hemos trabajado mucho para evaluar algunas de las cosas que suceden, como los cambios que ocurren en la expresión génica. Cuando cambiamos la dieta de un animal en las primeras 96 horas de vida, esos patrones y cambios permanecen con ese animal a lo largo de su vida, y eso me fascina por completo.

Creo que es una aplicación que se puede aprovechar a través de todas las diferentes especies animales, ya sea ganado o incluso humanos. Pensamos que usted es lo que come, pero también es lo que comió su madre y lo que comió la madre de su madre y luego quizás lo que comió su padre. Es realmente fascinante. Entonces, esa es probablemente una de las áreas más interesantes en las que trabajamos.

La Dra. Kristen Brennan es gerente de proyectos de investigación en el Centro de Nutrigenómica Animal y Nutrición Animal Aplicada de Alltech, ubicado en Nicholasville, Kentucky.

Estudiantes de la Universidad Federal de Santa Catarina de Brasil y de la Universidad EARTH de Costa Rica forman parte de los finalistas 

Los ganadores del programa Alltech Young Scientist serán anunciados durante ONE: La Conferencia de Ideas de Alltech (ONE18)

[LEXINGTON, Ky.] — En pocas semanas, estudiantes de ciencias agropecuarias de pregrados y posgrado de todas partes del mundo competirán al más alto nivel por la oportunidad de ser recompensados por su investigación innovadora. Los finalistas regionales a nivel global han sido seleccionados para el programa Alltech Young Scientist 2018 (AYS), la competencia para estudiantes universitarios de ciencias del agro más grande del mundo. En su 13° año, el grupo de nominados del programa representa 83 universidades de 28 países.

Los finalistas regionales asistirán a AYS Discovery Week, una semana de descubrimiento para presentar sus investigaciones a un panel de jueces internacionales, que se realizará en conjunto con ONE: La Conferencia de Ideas de Alltech (ONE18), del 20 al 22 de mayo en Lexington, Kentucky. También tendrán la oportunidad de tutorías profesionales, desarrollo de liderazgo y relacionamiento. Los premios incluyen una posición de doctorado totalmente financiada para el ganador global de pregrado y $5.000USD; y una posición posdoctoral totalmente financiada y $10.000USD para el ganador global de posgrado.

Los finalistas regionales para el premio AYS de posgrado y sus investigaciones son:

• Moisés Poli, Universidad Federal de Santa Catarina, Brasil
  • “Integración del camarón blanco del Pacífico y la tilapia del Nilo en el sistema biofloc bajo diferentes densidades de poblaciones de peces”
• Zili Gao, Universidad de Massachusetts Amherst, Estados Unidos
  • “La proteína de choque térmico cognato 70 es un blanco innovador de la nobiletina y sus metabolitos colónicos en la inhibición de la carcinogénesis del colon”
• Saheed Salami, Universidad de Catania, Italia; actualmente asistiendo a University College Cork, Irlanda
  • “Harina de cardo como alimento novedoso: efectos sobre el desempeño del cordero, la función del rumen y la calidad de la carne”
• Yanli Liu, Northwest A&F University, China
  • “La metabolómica y la proteómica revelan los efectos del ácido fólico en el metabolismo de los lípidos en los hepatocitos primarios de pollo (el ácido fólico regula el metabolismo de los lípidos mediados por IGF2)”

Los finalistas regionales para el premio AYS de pregrado y sus investigaciones son:

• Juan Bol, Universidad EARTH, Costa Rica
  • “Evaluación de productos resistentes inducidos para mejorar la salud de las raíces y el control de nematodos fitoparásitos en plantaciones comerciales de bananos”
• Ronald Trotta, Universidad de Kentucky, Estados Unidos; actualmente asistiendo a la Universidad Estatal de Dakota del Norte, Estados Unidos
  • “Efectos de la fuente y el nivel de suplementación de energía en la dieta en la digestión de la fibra y la producción de metano in vitro en dietas a base de festuca”
• Evgeny Remizov, Universidad Agraria Estatal de Saratov, Rusia
  • “Péptidos antimicrobianos como base del desarrollo de una nueva medicación antimicrobiana”
• Shenfei Long, Universidad Agrícola de China, China
  • “Suplementación dietaria con microalgas enriquecidas con DHA mejora el desempeño, la composición del suero, las características de la carcasa, el estado antioxidante y el perfil de ácidos grasos de los pollos de engorde”.

“El programa Alltech Young Scientist ofrece una experiencia única para las mentes más brillantes de la próxima generación de líderes en las ciencias del agro”, expresó el Dr. Karl Dawson, vicepresidente y director científico de Alltech. “Los finalistas regionales presentarán sus investigaciones a una audiencia global, y los ganadores de la competencia de pregrado y posgrado tendrán la oportunidad de unirse a nuestro equipo global”.

Para más información acerca del programa Alltech Young Scientist, visite AlltechYoungScientist.com y manténganse conectado a través de la página de Facebook Alltech Education. 

The following is an edited transcript of Tom Martin’s interview with Eddie Daly, business development manager at InTouch. Click the link above to hear the full audio. 

Eddie Daly is the business development manager at InTouch, a live nutritional support service developed by KEENAN to provide real-time feedback on diet performance. He joins us from Dunboyne, Ireland.

Tom:                          First, what is InTouch, and what’s your role with InTouch?

Eddie:                         InTouch, in its simplest form, is a live feedback and support system for predominantly ruminant farmers — dairy farmers or beef farmers. My role as business development manager is growing the business, growing InTouch’s presence in the different regions, especially those new regions that we're going into now with Alltech as our mother company. It’s bringing new technologies to the market and tailoring InTouch’s offering for each region.

Tom:                          When InTouch first tapped into the internet in 2011, which seems like light-years ago, there wasn't much connectivity. There were maybe 12 million connected devices. How does that look now?

Eddie:                         It's changed drastically in the last seven years. Conservative estimates say there are 10 billion connected devices at the moment — some people say there are about 20 billion — so, it's huge. The number of smart devices in our everyday lives has grown astronomically. I think the goal in all of this hasn't changed. It's all about making those devices speak with each other and delivering a coherent message to the end user at the end of the day.

Tom:                          InTouch offers its farm clients real-time performance monitoring and instant feedback. What does that mean?

Eddie:                         I suppose it means, in its simplest form, that we record what is happening on a daily basis on each farm. So, farmers and nutritionists will talk about the prescribed diets of the day that they formulate and try and execute. So, what we're recording is what they actually put into that mixer wagon. So, we’re importing data back from the mixer wagon and we’re combining that with production data to give them different key performance indicators.

Tom:                          And is that information, that data, is it being obtained through sensors that are strategically placed?

Eddie:                         Yes. We’re importing data from the sensors from the mixer wagon and we're also importing different kinds of service sensors. That can be anything from chain tension, so different things that are important to the farmer for both his performance and also for his machine operability.

Tom:                          Farmers are busy people, and yet here is all this incoming data, streams of it. How do you help them interpret and harness it to their advantage?

Eddie:                         You're exactly right. You know, we’re being inundated with data from different sources. It can be very difficult for one farmer or one customer to sit down and make sense of it all. One of the most important elements of InTouch is having a human at the other end of the phone or other end of the computer. We have a trained team of InTouch nutritionists, who will interpret the data that has already been crunched. So, the data has already been interpreted by our algorithms in the InTouch system. That person at the other end of the phone will relay the information to the farmers. So, we’re always trying to make it very manageable for the farmer to make one small decision that might make an improvement on his overall operations.

Tom:                          Is a benefit of this process a reduction, or even elimination, of paperwork?

Eddie:                         Absolutely. That's the goal. We customize our approach depending on how that customer likes to be contacted. We now contact them through the phone — which can be a very brief phone call that lasts 10 seconds, or it can be a long phone call that lasts 20 minutes — or by email. And we're going mobile. We have an InTouch app from which the farmer can receive information and also send information to his mixer wagon. We're always trying to tailor our approach to exactly what the farmer needs and how he best likes to connect with us.

Tom:                          What are some ways that InTouch can turn around this data and help the farmer optimize efficiencies and accuracy in feed mixing?

Eddie:                         Our goal at InTouch is to simplify the process so that we can say that, whether you are operating the mixer wagon yourself or whether you have three different operators, with InTouch you can be guaranteed that it's being operated consistently on any given day.

                                    We’re trying to simplify the process of loading the mixer wagon. Then, at the other end, when we have the performance information, we're trying to give farmers useful management clues as to what he should be doing. We can take different producers from a particular region — take the U.K., for instance — and we can benchmark each producer against other producers in his region. He can see in a snapshot where he lies in that league table, how he is performing, and then that will give him clues as to what he should be doing or what he can do to improve.

Tom:                          We touched on the elimination of paperwork, but what other sorts of conveniences does InTouch bring to the farm?

Tom:                           Now that we’ve gone cloud-based — that was in 2011, as you mentioned — all the farmers’ information is stored securely in the cloud. That means they can access their data from anywhere, at any time. So, they can log on to their own unique producer portal through any device and access their information straight away. With the mobile app, everything is a lot simpler; you can make changes on the go. I was recently speaking to a beef producer who was importing a lot of animals on a daily basis. He was going to different sources, and from his mobile, he could update his rations based on his changing inventory of animals. So, that made his life a lot easier, and he could then spend his time better, as a result.

Tom:                          How does InTouch differ? What sets it apart from other feed management technologies and tools?

Eddie:                         I suppose it’s the alert system. We flag any discrepancies in performance in or around 10 percent. So, if we see inaccuracies of 10 percent, or reduction in performance by 10 percent — or increases in performance by 10 percent — we raise an alert.

                                    The next thing that makes InTouch different from other management tools is that there's a person who is interpreting the data and taking it to the next level. These are trained nutritionists. They can advise on a new formulation of the diet as a result or they can just simply walk through with the farmer the different management things he's doing and make suggestions. In the end, the farmer gets a very condensed bit of information. He's not having to deal with reams of data; he’s able to get to the root of the problem much more quickly.

Tom:                          And can you interface with other software programs and services?

Eddie:                         Absolutely. At the moment, we’re integrating the different herd management tools such as DairyComp and milking equipment such as DelPro. We're speaking with those feed management and herd management tools. From day one, we've always been a very open platform. We'll share our information or our portals with other platforms so we can give the farmer a better value at the end of the day.

Tom:                          There is a lot of interest these days in food chain traceability. How does InTouch facilitate that?

Eddie:                         We're working with a few retailers that are concerned about traceability. They want to guarantee that their end product is from a credible source. So, we're working with them by collecting and recording the feed data so they can then say, “This animal has been fed this diet over a certain amount of days and achieved this performance.” So, they can put a stamp on it and say, “We can verify this beef or this milk” or “This is a truly sustainable product because we know where it’s coming from — we know what it’s been fed and we know the cost of it to the environment.”

Tom:                          Any emerging technologies that you're keeping your eye on for their potential to improve efficiencies and quality for your clientele farms?

Eddie:                         Yes. There are so many smart devices coming on board now. In agriculture, it's definitely a very hot area. We’re certainly looking at incorporating things like cameras. There’s a lot of very smart technology out there monitoring cow behavior through cameras, monitoring feed behavior as well.  I suppose one of the most well-known ones out there is NIR, or “near infrared technology,” which is able to get a snapshot of the quality and the nutritional value of some ingredients. So, we’re very open to building those kind of things into the system and tailoring our approach.

                                    With Alltech coming on board and acquiring InTouch, we definitely see synergies between the two companies. We've always been about precision feeding, and with Alltech, we’re seeing potential to get to precision nutrition. Alltech has a lot of very nice solutions based on minerals and additives that can add to the performance of different producers. If we can pinpoint an area that a producer is lacking in or needs help with, we could see a lot of synergies with Alltech and fitting in different solutions.

Tom:                          Does InTouch employ blockchain technology?

Eddie:                         We're not there yet, but we have the potential to plug into one of those kinds of systems very nicely. I suppose it comes back to that conversation about retailers and an integrated system. Blockchain has very exciting possibilities for farmers. They can use blockchain to add to the value of their product at the end of the day. We're definitely interested in that arena, and we’re in talks with different partners.

Tom:                          With all this data pouring into InTouch from thousands of farm clients, do trends emerge? What are you seeing?

Eddie:                         Yes. We can break it down by markets — by country or by regions within the country. Anecdotally, you could say there is definitely a tendency for the larger farms to have the ability to make savings and become more efficient just purely through scale. But, I think one thing that we’ve seen across the last decade is that good management is key to any profitable business. Those farmers who are clued into their data and are aware of their bottom line are the farmers who are going to grow and be more profitable as a result. So, it’s very much down to the individual farmer. I wouldn’t say there's any formula to a successful agricultural enterprise, but a very clued-in, good manager goes a long way to being a successful business.

Tom:                          So, Eddie, based on the information that InTouch is gathering, do you have any advice for producers?

Eddie:                         That’s a tough one. I suppose I would always recommend casting a critical eye over your business, not to have to accept criticism or anything like that, but to definitely embrace new technologies. Farmers are the original inventors. They have come up with the best innovations in agriculture themselves. So, I'm sure there are listeners to your podcast who have thoughts on innovations that they just want to get out there. And I would just encourage them to do so because I think agriculture and ag-tech are in a golden age.

Tom:                          Thank you for joining us, Eddie.

Eddie:                         Thanks, Tom. Good to talk to you.

In a recent webinar, Dr. Shelby Roberts, a postdoctoral research fellow at the Alltech Center for Animal Nutrigenomics and Applied Animal Nutrition, used her knowledge of ruminant health and immunology to take a closer look at calf gut health and the importance of nutrition during the first weeks of the calf’s life. Here are a few points to keep in mind in the midst of spring calving.

1. The importance of colostrum for the calf’s immune system

Colostrum is the mother’s first milk and the calf’s first source of immunity and nutrients. Antibodies from colostrum protect calves until their immune systems are fully functional. However, the first couple weeks after birth can be a period of elevated risk as the maternal antibodies disappear and the calf’s immunity is maturing, as shown in the diagram.

2. The balancing act between pathogenic and non-pathogenic bacteria

Good bacteria (e.g., lactobacilli, bifidobacteria) are constantly fighting to keep the pathogenic bacteria (e.g., E. coli, Salmonella) in check, but the immune system is also fighting the pathogenic bacteria. The immune system and the good bacteria work together to keep the cow healthy and to suppress the pathogenic bacteria. When antibiotics are used, this clears out the pathogenic bacteria AND the good bacteria. While recolonizing the gut, the cow is at risk for pathogenic bacteria recolonizing at a quicker rate than the good bacteria, leaving the immune system as the last and only line of defense when antibiotics are removed.

3. The new research behind Bio-Mos^® is here

Since the 1980s, Alltech has been conducting studies on its signature product, Bio-Mos. The calf research on Bio-Mos has shown the following results:

• Maintenance of gastrointestinal health
• Alteration of intestinal microbial populations
• Stimulation of immune activity
• Stimulation of the natural defenses of the animal 

When it comes to receiving diets, Bio-Mos has also been tested. In a study conducted in a commercial feedlot in Southern Alberta in Canada, 902 mixed-breed, newly weaned beef cattle were split into two groups, one fed a control and one supplemented with Bio-Mos. Cattle fed Bio-Mos showed improved average daily gain and maintained a healthy immune response. 

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Winners of the Alltech Young Scientist program to be awarded at ONE: The Alltech Ideas Conference (ONE18).

[LEXINGTON, Ky.] — In a few short weeks, agriscience students from colleges and universities around the world will compete at the highest level for the chance to be rewarded for their innovative research. The global regional finalists have been selected for the 2018 Alltech Young Scientist (AYS) program, the world’s largest agriscience competition for university students. Now in its 13^th year, the program’s pool of nominees represents 83 universities from 28 countries.

The regional finalists will attend AYS Discovery Week, held in conjunction with ONE: The Alltech Ideas Conference (ONE18), May 20–22 in Lexington, Kentucky, to present their research to a panel of international judges. They will also have leadership building, career mentorship and networking opportunities. The prizes include a fully funded Ph.D. position for the global undergraduate winner as well as $5,000 USD, and a fully funded postdoctoral position and $10,000 USD for the global graduate winner. 

The regional finalists for the graduate AYS award and their paper topics are:

• Zili Gao, University of Massachusetts Amherst, United States
  • “The heat shock cognate 70 protein is a novel target of nobiletin and its colonic metabolites in inhibiting colon carcinogenesis”
• Saheed Salami, University of Catania, Italy; currently attending University College Cork, Ireland  
  • “Cardoon meal as a novel feed: effect on lamb performance, rumen function and meat quality”
• Yanli Liu, Northwest A&F University, China
  • “Metabolomics and proteomics reveal impacts of folic acid on lipid metabolism in chicken primary hepatocytes (Folic acid regulates lipid metabolism mediated by IGF2)”
• Moisés Poli, Universidade Federal de Santa Catarina, Brazil
  • “Pacific white shrimp and Nile tilapia integration in biofloc system under different fish-stocking densities”

The regional finalists for the undergraduate AYS award and their paper topics are:

• Ronald Trotta, University of Kentucky, United States; currently attending North Dakota State University, United States
  • “Effects of source and level of dietary energy supplementation on fiber digestion and in vitro methane production from tall fescue-based diets”
• Evgeny Remizov, Saratov State Agrarian University, Russia
  • “Antimicrobial peptides as a base of development of new antimicrobial medication”
• Shenfei Long, China Agricultural University, China
  • “Dietary supplementation with DHA-enriched microalgae improves performance, serum composition, carcass trait, antioxidant status and fatty acid profile of broilers”
• Juan Bol, Universidad EARTH, Costa Rica 
  • “Evaluation of induced resistant products to improve root health and control of plant parasitic nematodes in commercial banana plantation”

“The Alltech Young Scientist program provides a once-in-a-lifetime experience for the best and brightest minds of the next generation of agriculture science leaders,” said Dr. Karl Dawson, vice president and chief scientific officer at Alltech. "The regional finalists will present their research to a global audience, and the undergraduate and graduate competition winners will have the opportunity to join our global team."the opportunity to join our global team.”

For more information about the Alltech Young Scientist program, visit AlltechYoungScientist.com and stay connected through the Alltech Education Facebook page.

When you hear the word “nutrigenomics,” your first reaction may be “What in the world is that?” Nutrigenomics is an up-and-coming research field that aims to understand how nutrition can influence an animal’s genome and what that means for animal health and production. It isn’t genetic engineering or modification, but rather a way of measuring changes in the activity of genes that result from changes in an animal’s diet. This field of research opens many doors that were previously closed in classic animal nutrition and allows us to better understand how “you are what you eat,” or rather, your chickens are what you feed them.

What is nutrigenomics?

Before we can talk about nutrigenomics, let’s do a quick review of molecular biology. Each animal has what’s called a genome that contains all of the genetic material, or DNA, of an animal and provides the basic blueprint for life. These carefully drawn out plans provide the blueprint for that animal’s life. However, outside influences, such as nutrition, can have a strong impact on the expression of this genetic information, or essentially how that blueprint is read.

Over the last decade, genomes have begun to be sequenced. This means that we know the approximate makeup of an animal’s entire genome. Identifying the genome sequences opened the door for cutting-edge research approaches to understand the molecular mechanisms behind everyday life. Even more importantly, we can now use genomic technologies to understand how each of the genes in that genomic sequence responds to outside influences and how this relates to the health and disease of an animal. The genomic sequence is very stable, so changes in function and activity come from up-regulating (“turning on”) or down-regulating (“turning off”) individual genes to produce (or decrease) products called transcripts in response to a stimulus like nutrition.  These transcripts code for the proteins that make up structures and functions in the cells, so the result is that changes occur in physiological processes like energy production or immune response.

Nutrigenomics is the field of research we use to study these changes in gene activities that occur because of changes in the animal’s diet. This information can help us better understand how nutrition influences animal health and production by giving us insights into what is going on within the cell in response to changes in the diet. We can measure the response in animal tissue using a technology called DNA microarrays. These tools are the basis of nutrigenomics studies and allow researchers to profile the activity of all the genes on a genome at once. The information gathered from nutrigenomics studies can provide us with a better understanding of nutrition by giving us clues to how nutrients work, why different forms of nutrients have different effects and how such nutrients can be optimized for health and production.

How can we use nutrigenomics to further poultry nutrition?

Current research can paint us a picture of how nutrigenomics is being applied to poultry nutrition. For example, recent work at Alltech has helped decipher why different forms of nutrients in the diet, such as Bioplex® organic minerals versus inorganic forms of minerals, can have very different effects on animal health. Before nutrigenomics, analyses like animal growth and tissue nutrient content gave us only part of the picture. But now, we can understand why changes occur.

Mineral matters

We know that Bioplex minerals support increased tissue levels. Through nutrigenomics, we identified changes in important transport proteins in the intestine that lead to increased mineral uptake into tissues when Bioplex zinc is used in poultry diets. In a similar fashion, we used nutrigenomics to understand why Sel-Plex® has a greater effect on reproduction than inorganic selenium. Traditional poultry nutrition studies were only able to reach the conclusion that it was due to selenium’s role in antioxidant defenses. However, nutrigenomics data confirmed this and, more importantly, indicated that selenium in the form of Sel-Plex could alter genes involved in energy production and reproductive signaling in the oviduct. In males, it made a clear impact on genes involved in tissue structure and function.

Early birds

Another area in which nutrigenomics is leading to a new understanding of the importance of nutrition is nutritional programming. This concept is the idea that nutrition, especially early in life, can have lasting imprints on an animal’s entire life. By understanding the gene expression patterns that are targeted by early life nutrition, we can begin to determine how this programming occurs and use it to our advantage in poultry production. For example, nutrigenomics studies have shown that changing the trace mineral content in the post-hatch diet can have long-term effects on genes in the gastrointestinal tract that are important for nutrient transport and for intestinal tissue structure. These genes remain changed in the adult bird weeks after the post-hatch period.

In the future, the information that nutrigenomics provides us could change the way we feed birds and make poultry nutrition a more precise field. Molecular findings can add to our understanding of how nutrition influences animal production and health and how we can use nutrition to get the best out of our animals. Nutrigenomics provides a way to know preciously what nutrients, timing of nutrients or combinations of nutrients are optimal. Through this information, we can not only streamline nutrition, but improve performance, efficiency and health.

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La idea del núcleo familiar se está expandiendo para incluir a las mascotas no solo como animales de compañía, sino como una extensión de la familia, a veces incluso en lugar de los hijos. No debería de sorprendernos que muchos padres de mascotas comenten que la nutrición de su mascota es tan importante como la de su familia. Por esta razón, prestan tanta atención a los ingredientes de sus alimentos para mascotas al igual que a sus alimentos que colocan sobre la mesa.

Los súper alimentos llegan al plato de los perritos

Los consumidores están gravitando hacia los "súper alimentos" que promocionan efectos beneficiosos para el cuerpo humano, y quieren lo mismo para sus perros y gatos. Los alimentos funcionales que ahora aparecen en las listas de ingredientes de los alimentos para mascotas incluyen:

• Arándanos: Identificados como una fuente de antioxidantes, se pueden encontrar en los alimentos secos para perros.
• Zanahorias: Conocidas por su contenido de betacaroteno, se pueden encontrar como el principal ingrediente vegetal en los alimentos para mascotas y se pueden ofrecer a los perros tanto crudas como cocidas.
• Calabaza: Las opciones de productos con calabaza, generalmente estacional, se pueden encontrar también en el alimento para mascotas. La calabaza es una buena fuente de fibra soluble con propiedades digestivas beneficiosas.

Sostenibilidad: Apoyando al ciclo positivo del "bien" para las mascotas y el planeta

La sostenibilidad es un concepto que se ha vuelto cada vez más importante para los consumidores cuando piensan en sus propios alimentos. Los consumidores no solo quieren saber qué tan nutritivos son sus alimento, sino también qué prácticas se utilizaron para cultivar las verduras y alimentar a los animales que nutrirán sus cuerpos.

Esta preocupación se extiende a los ingredientes de los alimentos para mascotas y cómo se cultivaron los granos, las verduras y las frutas (al igual que los súper alimentos).

Desde este punto de vista, las prácticas de manejo utilizadas en la granja son muy importantes para el concepto de sostenibilidad.

Cuando una planta está estresada, ya sea por factores ambientales, presión por enfermedades o deficiencia de micronutrientes, carece de los ingredientes necesarios para alcanzar su máximo rendimiento. Esto puede generar bajo rendimiento, tamaño, sabor y textura; y los productores invariablemente usarán productos sintéticos para tratar de combatir estas deficiencias.

Sin embargo, un enfoque más sostenible incorporará el uso de productos naturales, con sustancias como los aminoácidos que permiten que los micronutrientes estén más disponibles para las plantas, aumentando su capacidad para combatir los factores estresantes. La planta se fortalece y, al utilizar estos productos naturales, los productores también limitan los residuos que podrían quedar en las frutas y verduras que se usan en la producción de alimentos para mascotas.

El proceso es cíclico. Mediante el uso de prácticas sostenibles que protegen al suelo, como los cultivos de cobertura, la rotación de cultivos y la agricultura de precisión, los productores crean una microbiota del suelo más activa y llena de microorganismos beneficiosos que ayudan a proporcionar micronutrientes a las plantas. Estos micronutrientes, junto con los productos bioestimulantes naturales para las plantas, mejoran la resistencia de la planta contra los factores estresantes y ayudan a la planta a protegerse. Esto a su vez disminuye la necesidad de pesticidas y otros productos sintéticos que dejan residuos en el suelo, en el campo y en los alimentos.

Las plantas cultivadas en suelos sanos con los micronutrientes necesarios para la salud de las plantas, complementadas con fertilizantes naturales según sea necesario, tienen un mayor valor nutricional. Mientras tanto, estas prácticas agrícolas también mejoran la huella ambiental del cultivo, y estará seguro de que el alimento de sus mascotas no solo es bueno para ellos, sino también para el planeta.