Inclusion of Cocoa Bean Shell in the Diet of Dairy Goats: Effects on Milk Production Performance and Milk Fatty Acid Profile

Abstract

The use of agro-industrial by-products in animal nutrition is a promising strategy to reduce the food-feed competition, the diet cost at farm level and the environmental impact of animal-derived food production. In this study, the suitability of cocoa bean shell (CBS), a by-product of the cocoa industry, as a feed ingredient in the diet of dairy goats was evaluated, with a focus on the related implications on feed intake, milk yield, milk main constituents, and fatty acid (FA) profile of milk fat. Twenty-two Camosciata delle Alpi goats were divided into two balanced groups. All the goats were fed mixed hay ad libitum. The control group (CTRL; n = 11) also received 1.20 kg/head × day of a commercial concentrate, while in the experimental group (CBS; n = 11) 200 g of the CTRL concentrate were replaced by the same amount of pelleted CBS. The total dry matter intake of the goats was reduced by the dietary inclusion of CBS (P ≤ 0.01). The milk yield, as well as the milk fat, protein, and casein contents and yields were unaffected by the treatment. Milk from the CBS-fed goats showed decreased urea content when compared to the CTRL group (P ≤ 0.001). Milk from the CBS group of goats also showed increased concentrations of total branched-chain FA (both iso and anteiso forms; P ≤ 0.001) and total monounsaturated FA (P ≤ 0.05), as well as a decreased ∑ n6/∑ n3 FA ratio (P ≤ 0.05). De novo saturated FA, total polyunsaturated FA, total conjugated linoleic acids, and the majority of ruminal biohydrogenation intermediates remained unaffected by the dietary treatment. These results suggest that CBS can be strategically used as an alternative non-conventional raw material in diets intended for lactating goats, with no detrimental effects on their milk production performance. The use of CBS in goat nutrition may be hindered by the presence of theobromine, a toxic alkaloid. Special attention is needed by nutritionists to avoid exceeding the theobromine limits imposed by the current legislation. Detheobromination treatments are also suggested in literature to prevent toxic phenomena.

Subproductos del cacao (Theobroma cacao) como alternativa para la mejora de la dieta balanceada en rumiantes

“…De igual manera Omotoso, en el 2019 público un informe en relación al valor nutricional de los compuestos de la cascara de mazorca de cacao en rumiantes, cuyos resultados mostraron un significativo valor nutricional para este sector, beneficio que podría ser mejorado con el agregado de urea al 5% (Omotoso, 2019). Esto se ve fundamentado por el estudio publicado por el equipo de investigadores de Campione donde determinaron que la leche de ovejas alimentadas con CC poseen menos concentración de urea a causa de una distinta eficiencia en el uso de nitrógeno en el rumen, por lo que se requiere que se añada urea al suplemento, a fin de alcanzar los valores normales de urea que posee la leche (Campione et al, 2021) (Renna et al, 2022).…”

“…Diversos autores han estudiado la fracción poli fenólica de la CC, evidenciándose una alta variabilidad segun las condiciones de extracción. En el estudio de Campione y col la cantidad de polifenoles es 4,8 veces mayor que los valores encontrados por el equipo de investigación de Renna (Campione et al, 2021;Renna et al, 2022;Hikmah et al, 2020).…”

Maternal Supplementation with a Cocoa Extract during Lactation Deeply Modulates Dams’ Metabolism, Increases Adiponectin Circulating Levels and Improves the Inflammatory Profile in Obese Rat Offspring

“…In fact, our group has previously published similar results induced by the intake of GSPE in lactating rats [ 25 ]. However, a great number of studies relate the intake of various sources of polyphenols to an increase in milk production and milk fat concentration [ 47 , 48 , 49 ], or to a null effect in these parameters [ 50 , 51 ], mainly in ruminants. Thus, it is probable that these discrepancies reflect the genetic and metabolic differences between animal species as well as differences in the polyphenol’s composition and concentration of the studied extracts.…”