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Fats

IMPORTANT INFORMATION: This datasheet is pending revision and updating; its contents are currently derived from FAO's Animal Feed Resources
Information System (1991-2002) and from Bo Göhl's Tropical Feeds (1976-1982).

Common names
Fats

Related feed(s)
Feed categories
Animal by-products Plant oils and fats Animal fats and oils Plant products and by-products

Species
Description
Throughout the world fats of different origins are being produced in ever greater quantities. At the same time the conventional market for
fat has been decreasing, largely because of the introduction of synthetic detergents; hence a surplus of fat is available at a low cost for
the feeding of animals.
Fat is described by its origin, melting point (titre), amount of free fatty acids, colour and impurities. Animal fats are described as tallows
when they are solid above 40 C, as lards when they are solid between 20 C and 40 C, and as oils when they are liquid below 20 C.
Generally, tallows come from cattle or sheep, lards from hogs, horses or bones of all kinds, and oils from marine animals or vegetables.
The lard from pigs and poultry can be highly variable depending on the diet. The water content of lard should be checked, as it is possible
by using certain chemicals to make it take up extra water.
Fish-liver oil, especially cod-liver oil, was formerly widely used as a source of vitamins A and D. It has been found, however, that it oxidizes
very quickly in mixed feed and loses its potency within a few days; thus its inclusion in mixed feeds is wasteful. Fish-liver oil is of value in
animal nutrition, but to retain its vitamin content it must be kept in a cool, airtight container and away from strong light.
Palm oil is very rich in beta-carotene. The amount varies greatly depending on the method of processing and stage of maturity of the fruit.
Unripe fruit contains about 1 mg of beta-carotene per kilogram, while ripe and overripe fruit have about 3 mg and 2.5 mg per kilogram. For
cattle this corresponds to 600, 1900 and 1600 i.u. of vitamin, respectively.
Soapstock is a by-product of the refining of crude vegetable oil, which contains free fatty acids and traces of protein that must be removed
before the oil is sold for eating. After adding sodium hydroxide, the oil is heated. At a certain temperature, the sodium reacts with the free
fatty acids and combines with heat-coagulated protein in globules which settle to the bottom of the vessel. The clear refined oil is
siphoned off the top. This material is known as soapstock because it is used in the production of soaps. It is rich in free fatty acids, usually
containing more than 35%. Soybean soapstock also contains xanthophyll. In one experiment 6% soybean soapstock gave egg yolks a
good colouring. Small amounts of soapstock have been included in pig and poultry diets. It has no harmful effects and can be used in the
same way as fat.

Nutritional attributes
Fats and oils may be added to feeds with the following effects:

Fat is very rich in energy and increases the energy value or the ration to levels unattainable with other ingredients.
Pure fat is often the cheapest available energy source. The economy of using fat is often enhanced by the increased growth rate and the shorter time required for
production; also the addition of fat permits the inclusion of other low-energy, low-cost materials.
Some of the fatty acids are essential to animals. For this reason it may be necessary to add pure fat in some formulas, especially calf rations.
Fats increase palatability.
Fats eliminate dustiness in compounded feeds and reduce wear on pelleting dies.
Experiments indicate that it is possible to decrease the amount of excrement to less than one half by adding about 7% fat to feed for monogastric animals, thereby
minimizing waste disposal problems.

The digestibility of animal fat is about 80% for monogastric animals and 85% for ruminants. The energy value on a dry matter basis is
190% TDN for ruminants and 180% TDN for pigs. Homogenized animal fat is about 92% digestible, and the energy value is 207% TDN for
ruminants. Animal fat contains no minerals or vitamins.

Potential constraints
Antioxidants are added to fats to prevent them from becoming rancid. Rancid fats are unpalatable to animals and may even be toxic. This
is usually manifested in the form of diarrhoea, liver problems or encephalitis. Vegetable fats and oils are usually extracted with
antioxidants which occur naturally in plants. It is necessary to add an antioxidant to animal fats, such as BHA (butylated hydroxyanisole),
BHT (butylated hydroxytoluene) or ethoxyquin; the usual amount is 125-200 g per ton of fat.
Antioxidants are effective only in newly extracted fats. These chemicals break the chain reaction of fat oxidation, in which process the
antioxidants themselves are consumed. When all of the antioxidant is consumed, the fat turns rancid. It is not possible to increase the
keeping quality of fat by adding more of the antioxidant because all excess will, on the contrary, speed up the process. The rapid
consumption of antioxidants can be slowed down by adding 50-100 g of citric acid per ton of fat to regenerate the consumed antioxidants
and by adding EDTA (ethylene-diamine-tetra- acetic acid) to conjugate mineral traces that initiate oxidative chain reactions. The addition of
EDTA is especially recommended if the fat will come into contact with copper, nickel, cobalt, manganese or, to a lesser degree, zinc or
iron.
Stabilized animal fat in compounded feeds will keep fresh for at least four months if a mineral mix is not included. In a feed containing a
mineral mix the keeping quality of fat is rather poor.

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Ruminants
Much research has been done on the effect of added fat in dairy feeds. The results have varied greatly and have indicated that it is not
advisable to allow the total fat content to exceed 8-10%. The brown lard is added to feed for ruminants as they can usually consume
low-priced fats, although acceptability may decrease after the first few days. The use of artificial milk containing 14-30% fat in intensive
feeding is rapidly spreading. Milk replacer starters (for calves and lambs up to a month old) contain 14-18% fat. Generally these products
have a base of skim milk powder, to which homogenized fat is added together with minerals, antibiotics and emulsifiers (usually soya
lecithin at a level of 6-9% of the total fat). Milk replacers for finishing beef cattle may contain up to 30% fat. It is advisable to use only
stabilized fat in these types of feed.

Pigs
In pig rations the type of fat is more important than the amount. Rancid fats or fish oils should not be fed to pigs, with the possible
exception of breeding animals. The softening effect of fat on pork depends mainly on the degree of saturation of the fatty acids in the fat
included in the diet. The following table gives the approximate percentage of polyunsaturated fatty acids in the more common fats:
Percent Percent
Butter oil 5 Olive oil 8
Cocoa fat 3 Palm oil 10
Coconut oil 1 Rapeseed oil 70
Cod-liver oil 80 Sesame seed oil 40
Cottonseed oil 50 Soybean oil 60
Groundnut oil 30 Sunflower seed oil 65
Herring oil 80 Walnut oil 75
Lard 10 Whale oil 40
Maize germ oil 55 Tallow 3

When the ration is properly balanced in protein and other nutrients, the addition of fat to the pig diet modifies the thickness of the backfat
very little. It is advisable as a general rule to increase the protein level 0.5-1 % for each percent increase in the amount of fat added. It is
also important to increase the supply of minerals and vitamins by the same amount. Generally the feed conversion of a diet with added fat
increases by the same percentage as the fat added (up to a maximum depending on species, other ingredients, etc.), and it is necessary
to increase the contents of proteins, minerals and vitamins by the same percentage so that the proportion or the dosage received by the
animal will not be reduced. Vitamin B, choline, calcium and magnesium should be increased by greater amounts than is usually indicated
by the change in feed conversion alone.

Poultry
With the inclusion of fat in poultry diets it is possible to increase the energy content and at the same time have a high level of other
nutrients. In this way the genetic potential for rapid growth is better exploited. Broiler diets with up to 34% fat have been used, and for
broilers the fat dosage seems to be limited only by economic considerations. Using fat in broiler diets may also be a method of overcoming
the poor performance of broilers in hot environments, as it has been shown that fats have a lower heat increment than carbohydrates and
proteins. It is therefore possible to improve the performance of chickens during high temperature stress by replacing carbohydrate calories
with fat calories and by reducing the total protein while maintaining appropriate rations of amino acids and energy. As a rule the first 3-4%
of fat added will pay with the double advantage of growth stimulation and improved feed utilization; above this level only the advantage of
improved feed utilization remains. In practical feed formulations the economic level of fat addition is 5-6%. By increasing the protein,
mineral and vitamin contents and adding fat, smaller amounts of the feed need to be eaten and the presence of fat inhibits the heat-
producing conversion of carbohydrate to body fat. For layers the addition of fat must be proportional to egg production. When production
is less than 30% (30 eggs per day from 100 layers), no more than 3% should be used. When production is over 70%, up to 6% may be
used.

Tables of chemical composition and nutritional value

References
Amich-Gall, J., 1966. Technology of the use of fats in feeds. Rome, National Renderers Association. European Office
Anon., 1971. Animal protein and fats. Feedstuffs, 43 (16): 49
Grisdale-Helland, B. ; Ruyter, B. ; Rosenlund, G. ; Obach, A. ; Helland, S. J. ; Sandberg, M. G. ; Standal, H.;Rosjo, C., 2002. Influence of high contents of dietary
soybean oil on growth, feed utilization, tissue fatty acid composition, heart histology and standard oxygen consumption of Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar) raised at
two temperatures. Aquaculture, 207 (3-4): 311-329
Izquierdo, M. ; Obach, A. ; Arantzamendi, L. ; Montero, D. ; Robaina, L. ; Rosenlund, G., 2003. Dietary lipid sources for seabream and seabass: growth
performance, tissue composition and flesh quality. Aquacult. Nutr., 9 (6): 397-407
Longe, O. G. ; Tona, G. O., 1988. Metabolizable energy values of some tropical feedstuffs for poultry. Trop. Agric. (Trinidad), 65 (4):358-360

Moore, J. A. ; Swingle, R. S. ; Hale, W. H., 1986. Effects of whole cottonseed, cottonseed oil or animal fat on digestibility of wheat straw diets by steers. J. Anim.
Sci., 63 (4): 1267-1273
O'Kelly, J. C., 1987. Influence of dietary fat on some metabolic responses of cattle to hyperthermia induced by heat exposure. Comparative Biochemistry and
Physiology, A Comparative Physiology, 87 (3): 677-682
Omole, T. A. ; Onwudike, O. C., 1983. Effect of palm oil on the use of cassava peel meal by rabbits. Trop. Anim. Prod., 8 (1): 27-32
Regost, C. ; Arzel, J. ; Robin, J. ; Rosenlund, G. ; Kaushik, S. J., 2003. Total replacement of fish oil by soybean or linseed oil with a return to fish oil in turbot
(Psetta maxima) - 1. Growth performance, flesh fatty acid profile, and lipid metabolism. Aquaculture, 217 (1-4): 465-482
Sibbald, I. R. ; Kramer, J. K. G, 1977. The true metabolizable energy values of fats and fat mixtures. Poult. Sci., 56 (6): 2079-2086

van Ruth, S. M. ; Rozijna, M. ; Koota, A. ; Perez Garcia, R. ; van der Kamp, H. ; Codony, R., 2010. Authentication of feeding fats: Classification of animal fats, fish
oils and recycled cooking oils. Anim. Feed Sci. Technol., 155: 65-73
Waliszewski, K, 1987. Fatty acid composition of different oils and their soapstocks. Nutr. Rep. Int., 35 (1): 87-91

12 references found

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