A Texas researcher has an “a-peeling” addition to microbial use in cattle and is pursuing it with zest.
Todd Callaway, a microbiologist with the Agricultural Research Service, found that orange peels and pulp fed to cattle can reduce E. coli, salmonella and other harmful bacteria in the gut. That means a lower risk of harmful bacteria contaminating meat during and after slaughter.
Cattle producers in Florida and California have fed orange peels to cattle for years, but peel and pulp aren’t readily available in Canada.
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Callaway is now working on a pelleted form that captures the essential oils in citrus peel. A powdered top dressing is another focus of his research.
In those forms, it might be economically feasible to ship product and make it available to Canadian cattle producers.
“It doesn’t seem that the dry product works quite as well as the fresh peel,” he said.
“What we’re trying to do is get the active ingredient now, the essential oils, and I think that’s something that can be shipped up there.”
He and other researchers have investigated the microbial value of citrus peel as cattle feed for several years and have found it reduces harmful bacteria in the animal’s gut without harming normal gastrointestinal bacteria needed for digestion. It also provides roughage and vitamins.
As a feed additive, citrus peel in some form could be another tool to use in reducing antibiotic use in food animals.
“It’s not the silver bullet, unfortunately, that we would love to be able to say, ‘hey we’ve solved the problem,’ but it’s an excellent tool that we can use today in the industry,” Callaway said.
His research has found that raw orange peel has the best antimicrobial effect, but it is difficult to transport and feed from a logistical standpoint.
Pellets aren’t necessarily the answer, either.
“As you dry them down and pelletize them, the effect goes away somewhat. Maybe half the effect goes away. The fresh peel seems to be the way to go, if you can.”
Palatability isn’t an issue. Callaway tested rations of 10 percent and 20 percent on sheep.
“They like it up to a certain point,” he said. “They ate just fine for about two days and then the 20 percent group decided they really didn’t like orange peel anymore and they cut back what they were eating.”
He concluded that animals will likely eat a 10 percent ration consistently, which reduces E. coli and salmonella levels in the gut by about 10-fold.
Citrus companies are showing interest in his research, he said.
