Composite breeds are commonly used in the U.S. beef industry since they provide producers with benefits such as breed complementarity and retained heterosis. However, cattle composite genomes are not well characterized.

Our study dealt with strategies on how to reduce biases (inflation and level-bias) and improve a parameter related to accuracy (stability) of genomic predictions of breeding values that combine genotyped and non-genotyped animals, which are denoted as single-step genomic predictions.

When high-risk cattle arrive at the feedlot, they have low feed consumption and a greater risk for disease because of stress, inflammation, and exposure to pathogens. Because of reduced feed consumption, newly arrived cattle may not be able to meet their energy requirement for growth during the first several weeks after feedlot arrival.

In lactating sows, nutrient requirements among individual animals vary greatly. With a single diet, lactating sows are likely to be either underfed, which results in body reserve mobilization, or overfed, which results in nutrient excretion.

It is essential to educate students about humane slaughter as it is a critical component of livestock production, particularly for animal science students who represent future stakeholders in agriculture. There is limited research about the effects of experiential learning on student comfort in participating in education regarding sensitive, yet important topics in the animal sciences.

Decreasing the frequency of protein and energy supplementation to beef cattle is often used to reduce labor and feeding costs. We hypothesized that reducing the frequency of protein and energy during third trimester of gestation of beef cows would not impact maternal performance but would be detrimental to offspring growth.

Potassium, fed as potassium bicarbonate (KHCO3) in this study, is essential for swine and is a key component of numerous physiological processes such as the maintenance of electrolyte balance, neuromuscular function. Feeding high levels of chloride anions, via crystalline lysine (L-Lys HCl) has been shown to negatively impact intake and growth performance of pigs.

Saccharomyces cerevisiae fermentation product (SCFP) is a yeast product containing bioactive fermentation metabolites, residual yeast cells, and yeast cell wall fragments. In this study, SCFP was investigated for its impacts on immune health, oxidative stress, and skin and hair coat health in dogs.

The American Society of Animal Science and the Editors of the Journal of Animal Science invite you to have a look at the latest infographic and paper which explores how a fermentation product included in the diet of dogs may impact immune cells, oxidative stress/inflammation and skin and coat health.

The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) has announced through the Regional Conservation Partnership Program, that it will be awarding $197 million for 41 locally-led conservation projects. The Regional Conservation Partnership Program (RCPP) leverages partner resources to advance innovative projects that address climate change, enhance water quality, and address other critical challenges on agricultural land.

The House recently passed the Inflation Reduction Act, sending the legislation to the desk of President Joe Biden. The Act aims to lower healthcare costs, combat climate change, raise taxes on some large companies, and reduce the deficit.

A federal judge in Massachusetts has agreed to delay the enforcement of Question 3, the state law that would ban the sale of pork that comes from animals not housed according to the state’s housing standards. Massachusetts’s Question 3 requirements are like those in California’s Proposition 12, which has been challenged in a case that will be heard by the Supreme Court this term, National Pork Producers Council v. Ross.

The United States Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Science and Technology Directorate (S&T) has released a request for information regarding capabilities for science support for the S&T Food, Agriculture, and Veterinary Defense Program (FAV-D). DHS recently established the Office of Health Security to refocus department efforts on human and agriculture security.

The Gus Schumacher Nutrition Incentive Program (GusNIP) brings together stakeholders from various parts of the food and healthcare systems. The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) has announced almost $8 million to GusNIP’s Produce Prescription Project, as part of the American Rescue Plan to be administered by the USDA’s National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA).

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) has released the FAO Food Price Index (FFPI) for July 2022. The FFPI is a measure of the monthly change in international prices of a basket of food commodities.

Expanding Local Meat Processing Act, a companion act to the Amplifying Processing of Livestock in the United States Act (A-Plus Act), has been introduced to the Senate. The bill would reduce regulatory red tape to enable livestock auction market owners to invest in small meat packing operations.

The Creating Helpful Incentives to Produce Semiconductors for America Act or the CHIPS and Science Act of 2022 was passed by both the House and Senate with bipartisan support. The Act will strengthen American manufacturing, supply chains, and national security while investing in research and development, science and technology, and the workforce of the future to keep the United States as the international leader in specific industries.

The Solicitor General of the United States, Elizabeth Prelogar, has filed a brief in support of the National Pork Producers Council (NPPC) and the American Farm Bureau Federation’s (AFBF) lawsuit against California’s Proposition 12. The Proposition mandates farm animal confinement standards and directs the Department and the Department of Public Health to jointly promulgate regulations to implement the provisions for specified farm animals and the sale of specified products derived from them.

A new study from researchers at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign looked at how American food-buying behaviors have changed as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. The researchers also examined how these behaviors changed through the development of vaccines and as case numbers fluctuated.

For more than a decade, starch-degrading enzymes (amylolytic enzymes) have been used as a strategy to increase total-tract starch degradation to increase milk yield of dairy cows. Therefore, we conducted a meta-analysis to evaluate the effectiveness of starch-degrading enzymes on starch digestion and milk yield in dairy cows.