Effects of feeding two different blends of essential oils to finishing steers on growth performance, carcass characteristics, meat quality, meat composition, and shelf life
2021
Dorleku, J.B. | Wang, L.M. | Zhou, Z.Y. | Mandell, I.B. | Bohrer, B.M.
The objective was to evaluate the effects of feeding two different commercially available blends of essential oils to finishing steers to replace conventional feed additives in feedlot diets. Angus-based crossbred steers [N = 43; starting body weight (BW) = 466 ± 31 kg] were used in a randomized complete block design. Steers were randomly assigned to four different dietary treatments for the 100 d finishing period in which steers were fed high-moisture corn/alfalfa silage/soybean meal diets. Dietary treatments included a negative control (no additives; CON), a positive control (33 mg·kg⁻¹ monensin and 11 mg·kg⁻¹ tylosin added to the diet; M/T), and two different proprietary blends of essential oils [EO-1: 1 g·steer⁻¹·d⁻¹ Victus Liv (DSM Nutritional Products) and EO-2: 4 g·steer⁻¹·d⁻¹ Fortissa Fit 45 (Provimi Canada ULC)]. Growth performance, carcass characteristics, meat quality, sensory attributes (excluding juiciness), most fatty acid parameters, and shelf-life (color and lipid oxidative stability) were generally unaffected by the inclusion of two different commercially available essential oil blends when compared with both a negative control (CON) and a positive control (M/T). This indicates that commercially available essential oil blends may show promise as a replacement to conventional feed additives like antibiotics without causing negative effects to meat quality, storage stability, and eating experience.
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