The effect of feed grains of the fatty acid composition of milk fat

Finnish milk fat is relatively hard, particularly during the indoor feeding period. For reasons of both dairy technology and nutrition, however, it would be advantageous to obtain a softer fat. On the basis of the initial experiments, it would appear that the feed concentrates used, particularly their grain component, have a effect on the composition of milk fat. For this reasons, a comparative study of the effect of oats and barley on the fatty acid composition of milk fat was being carried out in the winter of 1983. In a comparison of barley and oats, it was observed that the iodine value of the milk in the experimental group which was fed barley was 5.1 units lower than that of the group fed oats. By itself, the feeding of barley alone was also responsible fora sharp decrease in iodine values when compared to the results obtained during the pre-experimental phase during which the cows were fed barley and oats in a ratio of 1:1.The softening effect of oats on milk fat appeared to be slight when the results from the experimental phase were compared to those of the pre-experimental phase. In a comparison of the fatty acid composition of milk fat in samples from the barley and oats groups, it was found that the greatest differences were in the amounts of palmitic acid (C16) and oleic acid (C18:1) present. The amount of palmitic acid in the milk fat of the barley group was 36.6 %, and in that of the oats group 30.2 %. The corresponding amounts of oleic acid were 14.7 % and 22.1 %. On the basis of this study, it is recommended that oats should be preferred in making up feed concentrate mixtures for milk cows