Cattle feeding
There are different systems of feeding cattle in animal husbandry. For pastured animals, grass is usually the forage that composes the majority of their diet. In turn, this grass-fed approach is known for producing meat with distinct flavor profiles. Cattle reared in feedlots are fed hay supplemented with grain, soy and other ingredients to increase the energy density of the feed. The debate is whether cattle should be raised on fodder primarily composed of grass or a concentrate. The issue is complicated by the political interests and confusion between labels such as "free range", "organic", or "natural". Cattle raised on a primarily foraged diet are termed grass-fed or pasture-raised; for example meat or milk may be called grass-fed beef or pasture-raised dairy. The term "pasture-raised" can lead to confusion with the term "free range", which does not describe exactly what the animals eat.
Types of feeding
Grazing
Grazing by cattle is practiced in rangelands, pastures and grasslands. According to the Food and Agriculture Organization, about 60% of the world's grassland is occupied by grazing systems. "Grazing systems supply about 9 percent of the world's production of beef... For an estimated 100 million people in arid areas, and probably a similar number in other zones, grazing livestock is the only possible source of livelihood."Integrated livestock-crop farming
In this system, cattle are primarily fed on pastures, crop residues and fallows. Mixed farming systems are the largest category of livestock system in the world in terms of production.Feedlot and intensive finishing
Feedlot and intensive finishing are intensive forms of animal production. Cattle are often "finished" here, spending the last months before their slaughter gaining weight. They are fed nutritionally dense feed, also known as "concentrate" or "filler corn", in stalls, pens and feedlots at high stocking densities in enclosures. This achieves maximal rates of liveweight gain.Types of cattle feeds
Many distinct types of feed may be used, depending on economics, cattle type, region, etc. Feed types may also be mixed together, such as with total mixed ration.Grass-fed
Grass and other forage compose most or the majority of a grass-fed diet. There is debate whether cattle should be raised on diets primarily composed of pasture or on a concentrated diet of grain, soy, and other supplements. The issue is often complicated by the political interests and confusion between labels such as "free range", "organic", and "natural".File:African boy transporting fodder by bicycle edit.jpg|thumb|Cut fodder being transported to feed cattle in Tanzania
Cattle reared on a primarily forage diet are termed grass-fed or pasture-raised; meat or milk may be called "grass-fed beef" or "pasture-raised dairy". The term "pasture-raised" can lead to confusion with the term "free range" which describes where the animals reside, but not what they eat. Thus, cattle can be labelled free-range yet not necessarily be grass-fed, and vice versa, and organic beef can be either or none. Another term adopted by the industry is grass-finished, for which cattle are said to spend 100% of their lives on grass pasture. The Agricultural Marketing Service of the United States Department of Agriculture previously had a regulated standard for certification as "Grass Fed" meat, but withdrew the standard in 2016. However, producers must still apply the USDA's Food Safety and Inspection Service for the right to put "grass fed" on a label.
Image:Cattle sale 1.JPG|thumb|200px|Grass-fed cattle at a Walcha, New South Wales sale
Corn-fed
Cattle called corn-fed, grain-fed or corn-finished are typically raised on maize, soy and other types of feed. Some corn-fed cattle are raised in concentrated animal feeding operations known as feed lots.In the United States, dairy cattle are often supplemented with grain to increase the efficiency of production and reduce the area needed to support the energy requirements of the herd.
A high-energy diet increases milk output, measured in pounds or kilograms of milk per head per day.
Barley-fed
In Western Canada beef cattle are usually finished on a barley-based diet.Flax
In some parts of the world flax is used to make linseed oil, and the substance is mixed with other solid cattle feed as a protein supplement. It can only be added at low percentages due to the high fat content, which is unhealthy for ruminants. One study found that feeding flax seeds may increase omega-3 content and improve marbling in the resultant beef, while another found no differences.Other
There are many alternative feeds which are given to cattle, either as a primary or supplemental feed. These range from alfalfa and other forages, silages of diverse plants, crop residues such as pea regrowth, straw or seed hulls, residues from other production such as oilseed meal cake, molasses, whey, and crops such as beets or sorghum.Drought fodder for extensive rangeland agriculture
Drought events put rangeland agriculture under pressure in semi-arid and arid geographic areas. Innovative emergency fodder production concepts have been reported, such as bush-based animal fodder production in Namibia. During extended dry spells, farmers have turned to use woody biomass fiber from encroacher bush as a primary source of cattle feed, adding locally available supplements for nutrients as well as to improve palatability.Image:Feeding hay.JPG|thumb|200px|Stud Murray Grey cows receiving supplementary feeding during a drought
Medicinal and synthetic additives
Cattle feed may also include various substances such as glycerol, veterinary drugs, growth hormones, feed additives or nutraceuticals to improve production efficiency.Antibiotics
are routinely given to livestock, which account for 70% of the antibiotic use in the United States. This practice contributes to the rise of antibiotic-resistant bacteria. Antibiotic resistance is a naturally occurring phenomenon throughout the world due to the overuse and/or inappropriate use of antibiotics. In an effort to curb antibiotic resistance, the Food and Drug Administration created a "5 Year Veterinary Stewardship Plan", which eliminated over-the-counter availability of antibiotics for use in cattle in June 2023. Antibiotics for bovine use are now only available for purchase through veterinary prescription.The most common form of antibiotics are called ionophores. Ionophores were originally developed as coccidiostats for poultry, and prevent coccidiosis in cattle as well. Ionophores work by improving both feed efficiency and growth rate, and lower methane production as one result. These effectively work as growth promoters due to an increase in food and water uptake and increase the digestive effectiveness of the animal.
Antibiotics are used in the cattle industry for therapeutic purposes in the clinical treatment of infections and prophylactically for disease prevention by controlling the growth of potentially harmful bacteria. Because of their effectiveness in the treatment and prevention of diseases, there is an increased efficiency of the farm. This results in reduced costs for cattle producers, and for consumers. Antibiotics are also present in antibacterial cleaning products, and in disinfection products used in farm and veterinary practices.
A critical journalist has claimed that the lower population density in free-range animals need decreased antibiotics usage, and has conjectured that cattle would not get sick if they were not fed a corn-based diet. However, bovine respiratory disease, the most common reason for antibiotic therapy, has risk factors common in both forms of production.
Safety
Due to concerns about antibiotics residues getting into the milk or meat of cattle, there are regulatory agencies and measures in place in order to ensure that foods produced do not contain antibiotics at a level which will cause harm to consumers in the United States and Canada.Growth stimulants
The use of supplemental growth hormones is controversial. The benefits of using growth hormones includes improved feed efficiency, carcass quality and rate of muscle development. The cattle industry takes the position that the use of growth hormones allows plentiful meats to be sold for affordable prices. Using hormones in beef cattle costs $1.50 and adds between to the weight of a steer at slaughter, for a return of at least $25.Bovine somatotropin, or bovine growth hormone, is a naturally produced protein in cattle. Recombinant bovine somatotropin, or recombinant bovine growth hormone, is growth hormone produced using microbes with modified DNA. The manufactured product Posilac, which was approved in the United States in 1993, was Monsanto's first genetically-modified venture in that country; however, its use has been controversial. As of 2002, testing could not yet distinguish between artificial hormones and those naturally produced by the animal itself, but as of 2011, it was remarked that the amino acids differ. Some studies report an increased presence in humans of rBGH and its IGF-1 product molecule.
Safety
There exists customer concern about growth hormone use being linked to a number of human health problems, such as precocious puberty or cancer. However, there is no concrete evidence to give credence to these concerns. In Canada, all veterinary drugs used in food production processes are required to pass tests and regulations set by the Veterinary Drugs Directorate and are enforced by the Food and Drug Act of Health Canada. The Canadian Food Inspection Agency monitors all food products in Canada by sampling and testing by veterinarians and inspectors working on behalf of the provincial and federal governments. They monitor the food supply to condemn and destroy any product that is unacceptable. In the rare case where the CFIA have found a residue, it has been substantially below the Maximum Residue Limit acceptable for safe consumption, this is the maximum amount of a drug residue that may remain in a food product at the time of human consumption based on Acceptable Daily Intakes. The ADI level is determined from toxicology studies to be the highest amount of a substance that can be consumed daily throughout a lifespan without causing adverse effects. Beef hormone residues are MRLs that have been established by the Joint Expert Committee on Food Additives of the United Nations. The World Health Organization stated that the hormone levels are indistinguishable between implanted and non-implanted animals.There are three natural hormones, naturally present in cattle and humans, their synthetic alternatives have been approved by the for use in Canadian beef production. Studies show that the contribution of hormones from beef consumption is minuscule compared to the quantities produced naturally in the human body. For comparison, an adult male will produce 136,000 ng of estrogen on a given day; whereas the estrogen levels present in a 6-ounce serving of beef from a treated animal is only approximately 3.8 ng. In other words, a human being will produce almost 36,000 times the amount of estrogen in one day that would be present in a piece of beef produced with the growth hormones. Thus, current scientific evidence is insufficient to support the hypothesis that any diseases are caused by ingested hormones due to hormonal substance use in animals. However, the differences between levels in treated and non-treated animals were deemed significant enough for the EU to ban imports of U.S. beef.