Decembers edition of Washington Roundup includes three overviews: Outlook for Continuing Resolution and Farm Bill Extension Unclear, USDA and FDA Release Dietary Guidelines Committee Report, and FDA and APHIS Release Charter on Animal Biologicals Jurisdiction

The Scientific Report of the 2025 Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee (Scientific Report) was submitted to the Secretaries of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) and is available online. The departments have opened a 60-day comment period to collect input from the public on the Scientific Report (December 11, 2024 – February 10, 2025).

As we all know, Animal Sciences is a multifaceted STEM field that studies animal biology and management to improve the lives of both animals and humans. It applies principles from the biological, physical, and social sciences to problems in livestock production and management.

The December Edition of The Giving Herd, an ASAS Foundation Newsletter

This study aimed to assess the impact of soybean isoflavone (SIF) on milk production and composition in dairy goats. In vivo experiments revealed that SIF supplementation (100 mg/d) significantly raised serum estrogen and prolactin levels, resulting in increased milk yield and fat content compared to the control group.

Growth hormone (GH), secreted by the anterior pituitary gland, is crucial in the regulation of ruminant growth and development, milk production, and energy metabolism in ruminants. Controlling GH secretion is, therefore, an essential factor in enhancing productivity.

Genetic determination of phenotypes depends not only on the host genome but also on its microbiome, particularly that of the intestinal tract. Host and microbiome form a complex co-metabolism that ultimately affects relevant phenotypes, like the intramuscular fat content. The metabolomic analysis of the gut content can provide a functional characterization, giving a better insight into the microbiome activity implicated.

Classifying fresh pork loin based on potential consumer appeal and value enables processors and producers to stand out in a competitive market, catering to domestic and export demands. Accurate classification aligns products with consumer expectations and benefits purveyors, chefs, retailers, and consumers by ensuring consistent quality.

There is significant interest in improving the efficiency of beef production. Beef quality and consumer satisfaction are of equal importance. Feeding zinc (Zn) above nutritional recommendations and feeding ractopamine hydrochloride (RH) can be utilized to optimize cattle growth.

The performance and welfare benefits of providing shade in cattle feedlots have predominantly been investigated in higher-risk heat-stress zones. However, it is unclear whether the reported benefits of shade are relevant in cooler temperate zones.

Most research conducted to reduce methane (CH4) emissions from cattle has focused on intensive feeding systems, such as dairy and feedlots, where feeding management is tightly controlled. The delivery of CH4 mitigants to ruminants grazing in extensive pasture-based systems requires attention. Two experiments were conducted to investigate the delivery of an essential oil blend called Agolin Ruminant L (Agolin) to beef cattle via drinking water to reduce CH4 emissions.

Gastrointestinal parasite resistance is a heritable trait important to breeders of hair sheep. However, the U.S. Maternal Hair Index, provided by the National Sheep Improvement Program, omits parasite resistance. Selection indexes were designed in this study to continue improving total weight of lamb weaned per ewe lambing (TW), the current goal, and reduce postweaning fecal egg count (PFEC), an indicator of parasite resistance.

The assessment of contributions to diversity is informative on how allelic frequencies of a metapopulation are partitioned among subpopulations and is further useful to identify unique subpopulations gathering rare alleles. Up to 2,260 pig genotypes were used to assess contributions to gene diversity and allelic richness in a total of 98 local domestic pig subpopulations and 6 Cosmopolitan pig populations worldwide.

During disease states, bacterial endotoxins act locally and systemically, negatively impacting reproductive capacity and economic productivity. The present study investigated the impacts of repeated low-dose endotoxin exposure during follicular development on the immune response and subsequent reproductive and lamb growth variables.

This research investigates the potential of administering vasoactive intestinal polypeptide (VIP) to ruminants fed grain-based diets, to mitigate gut inflammation and thus enhance growth performance. Lambs were adapted to a corn-based diet with no added forage and randomly assigned to control (no VIP) or VIP treatment groups.

Recent literature suggests that exposure of the sire to excess or inadequate nutrition before breeding could contribute to altered growth, metabolism, and reproduction of their offspring. Exposure of the offspring to postnatal environmental stressors may further exacerbate the effects of sire nutrition on growth and metabolism.

Novembers edition of Washington Roundup includes three overviews: Congress Returns for Lame Duck Session, Registration Open for USDA’s 101st Agricultural Outlook Forum, and NIFA Publishes Climate Science Report.

Members of the ASAS Public Policy Committee attended the Societal Role of Meat and Livestock - Denver Summit 2024. The following brief highlights the purpose, activities, significance, and proposed outcomes of the summit.

The ASAS Public Policy Committee continually looks to share information which increases awareness of strategies and solutions for a more sustainable animal agricultural future. A recently released report “Potential for U.S. Agriculture to Be Greenhouse Gas Negative", assembled by the Council for Agricultural Science and Technology (CAST) in partnership with U.S. Farmers & Ranchers in Action (USFRA), examines strategies for reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions within U.S. agriculture, particularly focusing on animal production systems. The report outlines how combining reduced GHG emissions from some agricultural activities with increased carbon sequestration in others could achieve GHG-negative agriculture. It also describes the research needed to help accomplish it.