Corms from several aroids collectively known as cocoyam are readily available in the humid tropics and have good nutritional attributes. The efficient use of cocoyam in poultry feeding is however, still limited due to the presence of antinutrional factors such as calcium oxalate. Depending on the method of processing, age and class of birds, moderate quantities of corms can be included in the diet. The increasing research interest in feed processing will add a value to cocoyam as ingredient in the feed industry.

Efforts to improve phosphorus nutrition in northern beef production systems have largely focused on the supply of additional phosphorus via supplementation practices. There has been little investigation of improving the actual utilisation of phosphorous. Previous work has shown that the utilisation of phosphorus can be achieved by the addition of vitamin D metabolites. This study demonstrated that the supplement of a metabolite of vitamin D can influence phosphorus metabolism in Brahman heifers under grazing conditions.

This study showed that lambs fed a supplemented chromium diet had a lower level of subcutaneous, abdominal, tail and total carcass fat. Also, administration of chromium and Ni was found to decrease insulin, triglycerides and low-density lipoprotein levels of experimental lambs.

The use of probiotics in poultry nutrition improves the health of animals and makes breeding more profitable. A probiotic preparation containing live cultures of Bacillus subtilis enriched in choline is recommended for broiler chickens. The administration of this probiotic improves disease resistance, histological parameters of the jejunum and composition of intestinal microflora, which makes it beneficial for the health of these animals.

Accurate feed testing is becoming increasingly important as livestock industries seek to maximise efficiency of producing animal products to meet world requirements. The use of digestibility values derived from sheep for formulating diets fed to cattle is commonplace but has rarely been evaluated on the range of silages commonly fed to livestock in Australia. It was concluded that generally, sheep derived digestibility values can be applied to cattle enabling farmers to confidently formulate rations irrespective of the species being fed.

Cassava roots are often used as an energy source in the ruminant feed and sulfur is the main source of mineral. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the effect of fresh cassava roots and a feed block containing high sulfur, using in vitro gas-production technique. In conclusion, fresh cassava roots in different proportions and a feed block containing high sulfur did not show any negative effects on in vitro fermentation and digestibility. Moreover, they improved rumen ecology.

Feeding legumes may provide sustainability in tropical ruminant production systems by improving nutritional quality of diet and reducing greenhouse gases emissions. In this study we evaluated productive aspects and methane (CH₄) emission from lambs fed the legume forage Macrotyloma axillare (macrotiloma). Productive performance was not affected, but the results indicated possible anti-methanogenic potential despite the lack of effects on CH₄ emissions itself. Further studies are required to increase knowledge regarding the use of this legume in ruminant nutrition.

An increasing number of bacteria on farms are resistant to treatment, with devastating effects on human health. Farmers’ behaviours play a significant role in preventing the spread of these resistant bacteria, and this study found that farmers tend to react to problems rather than proactively preventing them. Understanding how farmers behave will help policy and outreach to make livestock production systems cleaner and safer.

Phosphorus (P) deficiency in cattle grazing many northern Australian rangeland regions causes major production losses, but adoption of P supplementation to maintain production is low. An economic evaluation demonstrated that P supplementation is highly profitable for beef enterprises in both a harsh environment in the Northern Territory and a more endowed environment in central Queensland. The contradiction of large economic benefits and low adoption rates suggests a need for targeted RD&E to identify constraints and increase adoption.

Silage production of sustainably integrated systems in ruminant feed. Evaluate silage of sorghum intercropped Paiaguas palisadegrass in different forage systems and maturity stages. The silages of the intercropping systems provide a higher yield per area and best nutritional characteristics of silages. The intercropping could become important option for the production of silage in addition to contributing to the formation of pasture after the crops have been harvested for ensiling maximizing nutrient production per area in sustainable manner.

Rural poultry production in developing countries consists mainly of indigenous or native chickens that have not been characterised and classified into well-defined breeds. In this study, indigenous chickens in northern Ghana have been characterised, revealing large variations in qualitative traits including plumage colour pattern, comb type, eye colour, earlobe colour, shank colour and feather distribution. Positive associations among these traits imply that multiple traits could be targeted for improvement in such indigenous chicken.

The inclusion of antioxidants in beef diets could improve quality and stability of meat. However, different results have been obtained depending on the active principle and the aging time. Current results show that the effects obtained in meat quality with the inclusion of low levels of hydrolysed lignin from Pinus Taeda in beef finishing diets vary with the aging period but, in general, may result in meat with beneficial effects on human health.

Castration in beef cattle can reduce the muscularity depending on the phase of life it occurs, and improves meat quality. The present study confirms the benefit of castration postpuberty, because it can ensure the high growth as that in intact males and greater fat deposition in carcass as that in castrated animals, with a high-quality meat production.