Dr. Heiko Scholz

Anhalt University of Applied Sciences
Germany

Abstract Title: Relationship between CF or NDF in Feed and Content of Fatty Acids in Sow Feces

Biography:

Professor Dr. Heiko Scholz completed an apprenticeship as a skilled worker in plant production, specializing in arable farming and crop production. He then attended the agricultural college in Haldensleben, graduating as a state-certified agricultural technician with a focus on agricultural informatics. This was followed by five years of agricultural studies at Anhalt University of Applied Sciences in Bernburg, specializing in agricultural economics. After a three-year research stay at the State Teaching and Research Institute for Animal Production and Technology of Saxony-Anhalt in Iden-Rohrbeck, Professor Scholz earned his doctorate in agricultural sciences from the Institute of Animal Breeding and Husbandry with Veterinary Clinic at the Faculty of Agriculture of Martin Luther University Halle-Wittenberg.

Since 2008, he has been a research associate at Anhalt University of Applied Sciences in Bernburg, specializing in animal production and the economics of animal production. His work includes both research and lectures.

Research Interest:

In recent years, in addition to crude fiber, the analysis of structural carbohydrates via NDF and ADF has also been emphasized in the analysis of pig feed in order to better meet the requirements for intestinal health and thus also animal welfare. The nutritional situation of sows appears to be very complex. It is therefore necessary to check whether fecal sample analyses are suitable for describing the fermentation pattern.

In the first step, 5 companies were selected for the investigations. The rations of sows in the transit phase were then analyzed and the faecal samples of at least 6 sows per farm were also recorded. The feed and fecal samples were analyzed in an accredited external laboratory. In addition to fatty acids, the levels of nitrogen and selected minerals were also analyzed in the faeces.

There were no differences between the farms in terms of manure particle distribution, but more than 80% of the manure had a particle size of less than 0.063 mm. The ratio of the fatty acids acetic, propionic and butyric acid in the feces of the sows was on average 60 % - 24 % - 16 %. However, very strong variations in the SCFA content of the feces ranging from 2.1 g to 7.0 g per kg DM could be detected. Very high correlations were found between the levels of fatty acids in the feces and the NDF content of the feed (e.g.: NDF and acetic fatty acid: r = + 0.839; p = 0.005). An exponential regression with a coefficient of determination of 79 % was calculated between the NDF content of the feed and the concentration of acetic acid in the sows' feces.