Controlling residual feed consumption is maintaining balance.
The progress of the animal production sector has delivered noteworthy enhancements in the efficiency of food consumption, owing to advancements in genetics, technology, and management practices.
Livestock production, being considered a business aimed at obtaining one or several products, requires the use of controls that allow evaluating current results in order to determine whether objectives have been achieved, correcting deviations, promoting strategy changes, and formulating new plans.
Production records can be defined as:
“A systematic format for gathering information about the origin, management, behavior, and destination of animals, with the goal of assisting the producer in decision-making” (Refer to Production Records for Decision-Making on the Ranch- *spanish content).
Supplying feed to animals constitutes the main cost across all animal production systems. Nonetheless, the benefit lies in its straightforward quantification.
Among the methods of regulation is the computation of “Residual Feed Intake” (RFI), delineating the variance between projected and actual feed consumption. This calculation takes into account:
body size
weight change
milk production
rendering it a valuable metric for comprehending feed efficiency.
Practical trial on residual feed intake
For instance, during a study, Sainz and Paulino (2004) from the University of California, Davis, discovered that:
Two calves with identical intakes (7.43 kg) exhibited a difference of more than 50% in their average daily gain: 1.51 kg versus 0.98 kg, respectively.
Evidently, the more efficient animal would yield significantly higher profits.
However, in the same trial, two animals with nearly identical growth rates (1.5 kg/day) had significantly different feed intakes (7.43 kg versus 9.22 kg/day).
Obviously, the animal with the same growth rate and lower feed intake would be much more profitable.
This phenomenon arises when animals fail to ingest sufficient feed to fulfill their nutritional requirements, potentially resulting in adverse impacts on their health, growth, and overall productivity.
Figure 1. Impact of reducing RFI on major physiological functions
The utilization of nutrients by an animal encompasses intricate biological mechanisms and interactions within its environment (Figure 1). Furthermore, this process is further complicated by the strong correlation between feed intake, body...
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