Building a North American Feed Information System (1995) / Chapter Skim
Currently Skimming:
Executive Summary
Executive Summary
Pages 1-10
The Chapter Skim interface presents what we've algorithmically identified as the most significant single chunk of text within every page in the chapter.
Select key terms on the right to highlight them within pages of the chapter.
From page 1... ...
An important aspect of such a system is managing dietary nutrients for efficient animal production to meet increasing and changing consumer demands. More than 31 billion kilograms (68 billion pounds)
|
From page 2... ...
From a societal perspective, a feed information system would provide a tool for improving nutrition research, a mechanism for more efficient animal production, an avenue for reducing environmental pollution, and a means of facilitating sustainable agriculture practices. These public goods are reviewed briefly in the following sections and are discussed in detail in subsequent chapters of the report.
|
From page 3... ...
Changing the nutrient composition of a dairy cow ration can increase milk yields, resulting in increased yields of milk components from individual cows, which translates into increased profits. Moreover, as nutrients are used more efficiently, the direct input costs of production are decreased.
|
From page 4... ...
The amount of urinary nitrogen excreted by a single dairy cow can be altered by as much as 50 percent by changing dietary protein levels (Andrew et al., 1991~. Methane emissions from agricultural animals, which contributes to global warming and which is estimated to be between 15 and 20 percent of the total methane released annually, also can be decreased by altering the composition of the diet.
|
From page 5... ...
To assess the importance of feed composition data to sustainable agriculture practices, the critical characteristics of such a system are identified as follows: Sustainable agriculture maintains the long-term biological and ecological integrity of natural resources, while providing economic returns to individual farm and farm-related businesses. Sustainable agricultural practices contribute to the quality of life of rural populations and strengthen the economic development of countries in which they are employed (National Research Council, 1993:p.
|
From page 6... ...
The International Network of Feed Information Centres (INFIC) , originally established in 1971 with 18 organizations, functions as a platform for contributing to sustainable, environmentally conscious, efficient animal production and a safer world food supply.
|
From page 7... ...
The need for accurate updated information on the nutrient composition of feeds has increased because of the absence of an existing comprehensive feed data base, the presence of new varieties and species of feed items, changing consumer preferences, increased concern for animal and human health, and the effects of agriculture on the environment. Recommendations A North American feed information system should be maintained within the U.S.
|
From page 8... ...
Therefore, a system for uniformly describing feeds needs to be developed, as should strict guidelines for the laboratory procedures that should be used to determine the nutrient composition of feeds and a system for quality control and standardization across the laboratories that submit data. A long-standing foundation for acceptable analytical standards exists in the official methods of analyses of AOAC.
|
From page 9... ...
Data base managers should be involved in determining acceptable laboratory and sampling procedures and in actively collecting compositional and bioavailability data not readily available from other sources. A budget adequate to account for the routine costs incurred by similar data bases already in operation, costs associated with inflation, and costs of timely and efficient information gathering and dissemination is recommended.
|
From page 10... ...
Imperative to successfully managing feeding programs is the ability to obtain accurate and current chemical and biological information characterizing the value of the feeds, and this can be done through the proposed North American feed information system.
|
Key Terms
This material may be derived from roughly machine-read images, and so is provided only to facilitate research.
More
information on Chapter Skim is available.