2014 Volume 60 Issue 3 Pages 178-185
The experiments were carried out to investigate the chemical composition, digestibility and nutritive value of rapeseed (Brassica napus L.) meal (RM) expelled mechanically from the novel domestic double-low cultivar, ‘Kirariboshi’, and the production performance and metabolic profile of lactating dairy cows fed the RM as a substitution of soybean meal (SM). The examined RM contained more ether extract and less crude protein (CP) compared with SM, while the total digestible nutrition content was estimated to be similar to that of SM. The CP of RM was degraded more rapidly in the rumen of dairy cows compared with SM. The cross-over trial using eight lactating cows showed that the substituting of a half amount of SM with RM caused no effect on feed intake, body weight and condition, feed digestibility and lactation performance. Although the plasma content of total cholesterol was elevated (P = 0.038) when cows received the RM, the elevated level was still within a normal range. These results suggest that, on the basis of the feed characteristics of RM elucidated in the present study, the substitution of SM with RM at an appropriate rate exerts no adverse effect on the production performance and nutritional physiology of lactating cows.
