Animal nutrition affects food composition and environmental footprint of animal-derived foods. Various feeding strategies can be used to improve animal product quality and to reduce environmental emissions. We seek novel nutritional and genetic means for modifying food composition and enriching animal-derived food with bioactive components beneficial to health. Our long-standing work on modifying dairy cow milk fat composition by dietary means serves as an example.
Halmemies-Beauchet-Filleau, A., Shingfield, K. J., Simpura, I., Kokkonen, T., Jaakkola, S., Toivonen, V., & Vanhatalo, A. 2017. Effect of incremental amounts of camelina oil on milk fatty acid composition in lactating cows fed diets based on a mixture of grass and red clover silage and concentrates containing camelina. Journal of Dairy Science 100:305-324. https://doi.org/10.3168/jds.2016-11438.
Koivunen, E., Talvio, E., Valkonen, E., Tupasela, T., Tuunainen, P. & Valaja, J. 2016. Use of semi-leafless peas (Pisum sativum L) with enzyme addition in diets for broilers. Agricultural and Food Science 25:90-98.
Halmemies-Beauchet-Filleau, A., Vanhatalo, A., Toivonen, V., Heikkilä, T., Lee, M. R. F., & Shingfield, K. J. 2014. Effect of replacing grass silage with red clover silage on nutrient digestion, nitrogen metabolism, and milk fat composition in lactating cows fed diets containing a 60:40 forage-to-concentrate ratio. Journal of Dairy Science 97:3761-3776. https://doi.org/10.3168/jds.2013-7358.
Halmemies-Beauchet-Filleau, A., Kairenius, P., Ahvenjärvi, S., Toivonen, V., Huhtanen, P., Vanhatalo, A., Givnes, D.I & Shingfield, K.J. 2013. Effect of forage conservation method on plasma lipids, mammary lipogenesis, and milk fatty acid composition in lactating cows fed diets containing a 60:40 forage-to-concentrate ratio. Journal of Dairy Science 96:5267-5289. https://doi.org/10.3168/jds.2013-6571.