The rowanberries (Sorbus aucuparia L.) are small orange-red fruits of a rowan tree and belong to the family Rosaceae. These berries have been described as an important source of flavonoids, and their antioxidant activity affects reactive oxygen species and lipid peroxidation; therefore they are suitable for production of health-food products. The ripe wild rowanberries have traditionally been used for jellies and jams, but their use as a food ingredient has been less popular because of their bitter taste. Sweeter and less astringent than wild rowanberries are different cultivars of sweet rowanberries and hybrids with other species. The aim of the current research was to determine physical and chemical parameters and sensory properties of rowanberry marmalades. The experiments were carried out in the Faculty of Food Technology of Latvia University of Agriculture. The purees of wild rowanberry and six different rowanberry cultivars were chosen for the production of marmalades. Chemical, physical and sensory indices of the product – moisture, total carotenoids, tannins, colour, hardness and intensity of sensory properties (flavour, colour, bitterness) – were determined as quality indicators. The results showed large variability in the physical and chemical parameters between the marmalades of different rowanberry cultivars and hybrids. The sensory evaluation of marmalades from rowanberry cultivars ‘Moravica’, ‘Mitchurinskaya krasnaya’, ‘Sorbinka’ and hybrid of rowanberry × hawthorn ‘Granatnaya’ showed that the degree of liking was from “neither like nor dislike” to “like moderately”, and marmalades from wild rowanberry, S. aucuparia var. sibirica and hybrid of rowanberry × pear ‘Alaya Krupnaya’ – from “dislike moderately” to “dislike slightly”.

Extensive comparisons of the effects of tropical shrub legumes rich in condensed tannins (CT) require well-conserved material. It is, however, unclear if the application of even gentle methods like freeze drying (lyophilization) affects the results in comparison to fresh material. Therefore, an experiment with the gas-pressure transducer technique, simulating ruminal fermentation dynamics in vitro, was conducted to investigate the effect of freeze drying on the ruminal nutrient degradability of three tropical multipurpose shrub legumes. Leaves of the CT shrubs Calliandra calothyrsus and Flemingia macrophylla and of the CT-free shrub Cratylia argentea were tested either in fresh form or lyophilized. In order to simulate practical feeding conditions, the legume leaves were incubated together with Brachiaria humidicola (1:2) for 144 h. Additionally, incubations were carried out either with or without polyethylene glycol (PEG) to be able to separate effects either dependent or independent of the CT. Only few differences were found between fresh and lyophilized leaves. These included that the proportion of apparently undegraded nitrogenous compounds was higher in fresh than in lyophilized leaves of Flemingia macrophylla, and freeze drying had a limited influence on volatile fatty acid production in Calliandra calothyrsus. The variables related to degradation dynamics (i.e., total gas production, the time until the point of inflection, apparent dry matter degradability), however, were not influenced. There was also no difference between CT and non-CT plants in that respect, as is also obvious from the lack of interactions of state of the plant material and PEG addition. This indicates that effects of freeze drying of shrub leaves on overall ruminal nutrient degradation in mixed grass-legume diets were minor.

The present work aimed to evaluate the effect of sea buckthorn (Hippophae rhamnoides) extract on Cryptosporidium spp. invasion in calves. Sea buckthorn is a good source of vitamins, carotenoids, organic acids and tannins. It has been reported that it possesses anti-inflammatory effect, as well as anthelmintic and antibacterial activity. Research was conducted in a dairy cattle farm ‘Mežacīruļi’ during April and July 2015. Experimental (n = 10) and control (n = 10) groups of calves were used. The experimental group received a mix of aqueous alcohol sea buckthorn leaf and berry pomace extract, administered with milk, at dose of 5 – 8 mL twice a day for 20 days. The control group received only milk. Samples were analysed with the concentration McMaster technique. The results showed that there is no significant (p is greater than 0.05) difference in the number of oocysts per gram of faeces between the experimental and control groups. It was concluded that the administration of sea buckthorn leaf and berry pomace extract had no effect on Cryptosporidium spp. invasion in calves. Studies will be continued with a higher dose of extract.