ARTICLE 76 FEED & ADDITIVE MAGAZINE December 2025 “Studies show that feeding choline around calving helps cows eat more and produce more milk when the dose is right. A 2025 review of thirty experiments by the Institute of Animal Science at the University of Bonn, Germany, evaluated the dose–response to identify how much choline is needed to maximize feed intake and milk production, providing producers with practical guidance for transition cow programs.” The weeks around calving are the toughest part of a cow’s life. Feed intake usually drops just as milk production starts, forcing cows to burn body fat. This breakdown releases free fatty acids (FFA), also known as NEFA in scientific literature, into the bloodstream. When too much reaches the liver, it can build up as “fatty liver,” lowering appetite, health, and productivity. Supporting the liver during this time directly improves performance. Helping the liver means making it easier for the cow to manage the extra fat that floods in after calving. When the liver can move this fat out instead of storing it, the cow eats better, stays healthier, and produces more milk. Choline is a small, water-soluble molecule with a structure that helps the cow in three key ways: it acts as a building block for cell membranes, as a carrier to move fat out of the liver, and a supporter of key metabolic pathways. In short, its functions are: 1. Moving fat safely by forming phosphatidylcholine, which the liver uses to package fat into very-low-density lipoproteins (VLDL). These particles carry fat out of the liver and into the bloodstream, where it can be used for energy or milk production instead of building up in the liver (Figure 1). 2. Building healthy cells because choline is a key part of cell membranes in the liver, mammary gland, and immune system, helping these tissues function properly during the stressful transition period. ECONOMIC RETURN OF FEEDING CHOLINE TO TRANSITION COWS Dr. Alvaro Garcia Feeds Specialist and Nutritionist Dellait Animal Nutrition and Health Choline
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