Ralco announced today that continued university research around the essential oil-based product Stand Strong™ for Ruminants, shows positive effects on feed conversion, rumen function, and reduced ammonia and waste gas emissions. This study was conducted by Gansu Agriculture University in China and built on prior work demonstrating that Ralco essential oil supplementation improved growth performance, edible meat quality and cashmere fiber quality.
This study utilized cashmere goats and modified their diets to include Ralco essential oils together with Microbial Catalyst® technology and measured the results against a control group. “With the addition of Ralco technologies, the ruminal fermentation metagenomics changed digestion patterns and improved physiological and biochemical responses for a more efficient animal,” said Dr. Del Davis, Senior Beef Nutritionist at Ralco. “This not only positively impacts average daily gain, but also benefits skin and hair health for better-quality animal fiber.”
The research team used top-of-the-line polymerase chain reaction (PCR) technology to show that essential oils blended in animal feed improved the efficiency of tissue RNA protein production. When using Stand Strong for Ruminants, the research provides strong evidence that protein-dependent tissue like muscle, skin, hair, meat or simply immune proteins was shown to have a measurable impact on protein syntheses outcomes for enhanced health and well-being. The Chinese data strongly suggested that the product improved economic traits by functioning deep inside the body cells. “Stand Strong for Ruminants doesn’t change your genetics but can make your genetics perform better and more profitably,” said Davis.
This study also showed a clear pattern related to rumen function and waste gas emissions. Two-thirds of livestock-related emissions have been related to methane emissions from enteric fermentation, according to a 2019 article posted by the American Farm Bureau Federation®. This study continues to show that improved rumen fermentations through the use of essential oils mitigates ruminal methane and ammonia production in a natural way thereby reducing the environmental impact of ruminant production.
According to Davis, “Essential oils are a green choice in nutrition, medicine and agriculture due to their anti-bacterial, anti-fungal, anti-nematode and anti-oxidant properties.” Ralco has been scientifically researching and exploring essential oil effectiveness in animal feed additives for more than 15 years and has developed a patented process for developing Microfused® Essential Oils. This process creates stability in delivering the essential oils for greater consistency and effectiveness when feeding ruminant animals.
About Ralco
Ralco is a third-generation family-owned multinational company with distribution in more than 20 countries. Ralco is a leading global supplier of livestock nutrition, animal health products and crop enhancement technologies that support large segments of the livestock, poultry, aquaculture and crop production industries. Learn more at https://ralcoagriculture.com/