ARTICLE FEED & ADDITIVE MAGAZINE April 2022 55 ronment by modifying the rumen and its microbes in such a way that they are more efficient in digesting a typical dairy cow diet, full of high fibre material. An effective nutritional approach is the use of the yeast probiotic Actisaf® Sc 47. This yeast probiotic has been proven to be effective for improving efficiency in dairy cows and helps to improve rumen health and feed conversion efficiency, leading to better herd performance and improved overall stock condition. Actisaf® Sc 47 stabilizes the rumen microbiota by making the environment more reducing, which helps to increase the pH, which is likely to favor some beneficial bacterial communities. A study performed at the University of Nottingham’s Center for Dairy Science Innovation (2020) clearly showed the effects of Actisaf® Sc 47 on milk yield and milk components, compared to non-supplemented cows (Table 1). The supplemented cows had significantly better productivity at the same dry matter intake (DMI) which is related to better feed efficiency. In addition, it has been shown that cows supplemented with Actisaf® Sc 47 had higher digestibility coefficients for dry matter, neutral-detergent fibre (NDF), and tended to have higher digestibility coefficient for nitrogen than control cows (Table 2). CONCLUSION Accelerating the adoption of existing best practices and technologies to further improve production efficiency can help reduce emission intensity and make ruminant farming more sustainable. The implementation of nutritional strategies, including the use of feed additives such as yeast probiotic, has been suggested as effective approaches. By optimising and stabilising the rumen microbiota, Actisaf® Sc 47 increases feed efficiency through improved digestibility of fibre, unlocking more energy from the same amount of feed without jeopardising fertility or cow health. It allows the dairy farmer to do more with less and avoid nutrients waste and to increase milk performance and animal health. Table 1. Effect of Actisaf® Sc 47 on milk yield Difference +0.01 +2.6 +2.8 +2.9 +122 +72 +106 P-value 0.929 0.033 0.009 0.008 0.022 0.06 0.066 Actisaf® Sc 47 24.0 50.1 50.5 49.2 1945 1593 2343 Control 23.9 47.5 47.7 46.3 1823 1521 2236 DMI, kg/d Milk yield (kg/d) Energy corrected milk (kg/d) Fat corrected milk (kg/d) Fat (g/d) Protein (g/d) Lactose (g/d) Table 2. Effect of Actisaf on digestibility of dry matter, neutral-detergent fibre (NDF) and nitrogen Actisaf® Sc 47 0.798 0.706 0.786 P-value 0.034 0.020 0.052 Control 0.773 0.665 0.759 Digestibility Dry matter NDF Nitrogen About Dr Valentin Nenov Dr Valentin Nenov DVM, MBA joined Phileo Lesaffre Animal Care in 2014 as global ruminant manager. He is responsible for the global ruminant strategy of the company, development of innovative solutions and building the technical communication. He manages product development and launches in close collaboration with R&D, marketing, and commercial teams. Dr. Nenov obtained his master’s degree in veterinary medicine from Trakia University, Bulgaria. He obtained his MBA from New Bulgarian University. He started his career as a practicing veterinarian for several years after which he joined the pharmaceutical business and worked as a ruminant technical manager for leading animal health care companies in different countries. Dr Nenov has broad experience in intensive and extensive dairy and beef systems in Europe, Middle East, North America and Asia.
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