Factors Influencing Assimilation of Dietary Starch in Beef and Dairy Cattle

• The process of starch assimilation in the ruminant is complex and remains an avenue by which increases in production efficiency can be gained. • Ruminal starch digestion is typically 75 to 80% of starch intake. Starch that escapes fermentation and flows to the small intestine may be more resistant to enzymatic digestion. On average, 35 to 60% of starch entering the small intestine is degraded there, and of the fraction that escapes small intestinal digestion, 35 to 50% is degraded in the large intestine. This suggests that limitations to small intestinal starch digestion do exist.