Performance, feed efficiency, methane emission and rumen microbiome in lactating dairy cows fed a grass-clover silage-based diet supplemented with an essential oil blend
Year: 2025
Type: article
Abstract: ABSTRACT Emission of enteric methane from cattle is a challenge for sustainable milk production. Blends of essential oils (EO), as a feed additive, have the potential to reduce enteric methane from cattle. The aim of the present study was to evaluate dairy cow performance, methane emissions and rumen microbiome, when fed a grass-clover silage-based diet supplemented with a blend of EO from the company Agolin SA (AR). Thirty-six Holstein cows were allocated to one of two treatment groups and were fed either a standard TMR diet, or the same diet added 1 g per cow per day of the AR product, which contained 200 mg active blend of EO. The experiment was conducted for a period of 10 weeks in a continuous design plus a pre-period of 1 week. The cows had free access to GreenFeed methane measurement devices throughout the experiment. Individual dry matter intake (DMI), milk yield, milk composition, rumen volatile fatty acids (VFA) were measured. Rumen microbiome was analyzed from metagenomic sequencing of DNA from rumen samples and quantitative PCR targeting total Bacteria, Archaea, Fungi and Protozoa. There was no effect of AR on DMI ( P = 0.25), energy-corrected (ECM), milk yield ( P = 0.47), or feed efficiency ( P = 0.64). Furthermore, there was no significant effect of AR on production of methane per day ( P = 0.67), per kg DMI ( P = 1.00), or per kg ECM ( P = 0.71). In conclusion, adding 200 mg of EO to diets with a high proportion of grass-clover silage had no significant effect on dairy cow performance, methane emissions, rumen fermentation or rumen microbiome.
Institution: Aarhus University
Language: English
Subfield: Agronomy and Crop Science
Domain: Life Sciences
SDGs: Zero hunger, Climate action
Open Access status: hybrid
Estimated APC paid: $3,250
OpenAlex ID: W4416549107