Use of Camelina sativa and By-Products in Diets for Dairy Cows: A Review

Abstract

Camelina sativa, belonging to the Brassicaceae family, has been grown since 4000 B.C. as an oilseed crop that is more drought- and cold-resistant. Increased demand for its oil, meal, and other derivatives has increased researchers’ interest in this crop. Its anti-nutritional factors can be reduced by solvent, enzyme and heat treatments, and genetic engineering. Inclusion of camelina by-products increases branched-chain volatile fatty acids, decreases neutral detergent fiber digestibility, has no effect on acid detergent fiber digestibility, and lowers acetate levels in dairy cows. Feeding camelina meal reduces ruminal methane, an environmental benefit of using camelina by-products in ruminant diets. The addition of camelina to dairy cow diets decreases ruminal cellulolytic bacteria and bio-hydrogenation. This reduced bio-hydrogenation results in an increase in desirable fatty acids and a decrease in saturated fatty acids in milk obtained from cows fed diets with camelina seeds or its by-products. Studies suggest that by-products of C. sativa can be used safely in dairy cows at appropriate inclusion levels. However, suppression in fat milk percentage and an increase in trans fatty acid isomers should be considered when increasing the inclusion rate of camelina by-products, due to health concerns.

Nutritive value of Serbian camelina genotypes as an alternative feed ingredient

“…Camelina has a higher content of protein than that in sunflower, linseed, and rapeseed but lower than that in soybean; and has a lower level of lipid than that in linseed and sunflower but similar to that in rapeseed (Balalić et al, 2017;Zając et al, 2020;Riaz et al, 2022). The level of fibres is higher in camelina than that in linseed (7.9%) but significantly lower than that in sunflower (46.3%) (Zając et al, 2020).…”

“…The tested camelina genotypes showed similar contents of phytic acid to those in sunflower (Joudka et al, 2022), but higher than those in soybean and lupine seeds (14.3 mg/g and 13.8 mg/g, respectively) (Hídvégi & Lásztity, 2002). Generally, the concentration of phytic acid in camelina seed is lower compared to other members of the Brassicaceae family, predominantly used in animal nutrition (Riaz et al, 2022).…”

“…The mineral content of Serbian camelina genotypes was lower compared to the results of Zając et al (2020) for camelina grown in Central Europe. According to Riaz et al (2022), cold-pressed camelina meals can contain a higher concentration of macro-minerals compared to camelina seed or camelina cake. O N L I N E F I R S T Some plants that belong to the Brassicaceae family possess the ability to accumulate heavy metals.…”

“…The constant need for more sustainable feed protein sources urges the scientific community to search for adequate alternatives to the most widely used soybean meal. In light of these efforts, camelina has been recognised as a promising candidate as a feed ingredient that could be successfully included in regular animal nutrition (Juodka et al, 2022;Riaz, Ahmed, Sizmaz & Ahsan, 2022). Camelina (Camelina sativa (L.) Crantz) is a rediscovered protein and oilseed crop belonging to the Brassicaceae family, which was cultivated in the distant past (2000 BCE) in South-eastern Europe and Southwest Asia.…”

“…These byproducts are regarded as valuable sources of proteins and bioactive compounds in animal nutrition. Likewise, they are relatively cheaper feed ingredients in comparison to conventional products, especially soybean (Riaz et al 2022). Recent studies have demonstrated that camelina by-products are an excellent source of proteins for fish and ruminants (Hixson et al, 2016;Halmemies-Beauchet-Filleau et al, 2017).…”