The efficiency of feed utilization on dairy farms can be influenced by a variety of practices that are beyond the scope of this paper, including many aspects of the harvesting, storage, mixing, and delivery of feed components, as well as the grouping of animals according to nutritional needs. Two practices that will be addressed are: 1) improvement of the biological efficiency of lactating cows...

The so-called 936-type phages are the most frequently encountered lactococcal phage species in dairy fermentations, where they cause slow or even failed fermentations with concomitant economic losses. Several dairy phage population studies, performed in different geographical locations, have detailed their dominance in dairy phage populations, while various phage-resistance mechanisms have been...

The expansion of sugarcane for biofuels is a highly contentious issue. The growth of sugarcane area has occurred simultaneously with a reduction of dairy production in São Paulo state, the primary production region for sugar and ethanol in Brazil. This paper analyses different dairy farm rationales to continue dairy production in the context of a dramatically expanding sugarcane economy. Combin...

Dairy calcium may help prevent excess weight gain and obesity when consumed in adequate amounts (three or more servings per day) and combined with energy balance. This prospective cohort study was conducted to evaluate dairy intake and examine the association between low-fat dairy intake and body weight and composition changes in college students. Seventy-six college students (65 women and 11 m...

OBJECTIVE To identify and critique tools for the assessment of Ca and/or dairy intake in adults, in order to ascertain the most accurate and reliable tools available. DESIGN A systematic review of the literature was conducted using defined inclusion and exclusion criteria. Articles reporting on originally developed tools or testing the reliability or validity of existing tools that measure Ca...

Taste is the number one reason for selecting food, but interest in nutritional content and special health benefits is also important. Consumers respond positively to the taste of many dairy products, but perceptions of health benefits are not as positive as they could be, perhaps because of the strong association of dairy with high fat. An increasing number of consumers are aware that food can ...

The aim of our study was to determine the occurrence and diversity of economically important spore-forming bacteria in New Zealand dairy farm systems. Farm dairy effluent (FDE) collected from Waikato dairy farms were tested for the presence of spore-forming bacteria, using a new culture-based methodology followed by genomic analysis. An enrichment step in which samples were inoculated in cooked...

BACKGROUND Dairy consumption has been postulated to reduce the risk of obesity and metabolic disturbances. OBJECTIVE The aim of this study was to evaluate the associations of dairy consumption with body weight and other components of the metabolic syndrome. DESIGN We used cross-sectional data for 2064 men and women aged 50-75 y who participated in the Hoorn Study. The metabolic syndrome was...

BACKGROUND Dairy foods and lactose may impair fertility by affecting ovulatory function. Yet, few studies have been conducted in humans and their results are inconsistent. We evaluated whether intake of dairy foods was associated with anovulatory infertility and whether this association differed according to fat content. METHODS We prospectively followed 18,555 married, premenopausal women wi...

OBJECTIVE To examine the association between intake of dairy products and indicators of diet quality among a sample of Australian children. METHODS Three 24-hour recalls were collected from 222 children aged 8-10 years living in western Sydney. Analysis of covariance was used to examine differences in mean intakes of foods and nutrients among 3 dairy consumption groups (<1 serve, 1-2 serves, ...