The effects of feeding fresh forage and silage on some nutritional attributes of beef: an overview

Abstract

Consumers are increasingly concerned with the amount and composition of fat present in foods. The nutritional image of cattle fat has suffered because of the association of a high proportion of saturated fatty acids with coronary heart disease. This is leading to a shift in the way milk and beef are produced. Extensive research data from the last decade show that beef from animals finished on green fodder and silages (except for maize silage) has a lower content of intramuscular fat, but a higher proportion of nutritionally favourable n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs), ratio n-6:n-3 PUFAs, vitamin E and ß-carotene, than meat from animals fed on grain-based rations. The differences in beef cholesterol content between the feeding systems are not nutritionally significant.