title: Potential of milk fatty acid composition to predict diet composition and authenticate feeding systems and altitude origin of European bulk milk.
abstract: The aims of this work were to elucidate the potential of using milk fatty acid (FA) concentration to predict cow diet composition and altitude of bulk milk collected in 10 different European countries and to authenticate cow-feeding systems and altitude of the production area using a data set of 1,248 bulk cow milk samples and associated farm records. The predictions based on FA for cow diet composition were excellent for the proportions of fresh herbage [coefficient of determination (R2)=0.81], good for hay, total herbage-derived forages, and total preserved forages (R2>0.73), intermediate for corn silage and grass silage (R2>0.62), and poor for concentrates (R2<0.51) in the cow diet. Milk samples were assigned to groups according to feeding system, level of concentrate supplementation, and altitude origin. Milk FA composition successfully authenticated cow-feeding systems dominated by a main forage (>93% of samples correctly classified), but the presence of mixed diets reduced the discrimination. Altitude prediction reliability was intermediate (R2<0.62). Milk FA composition was not able to authenticate concentrate supplementation level in the diet (<58% of samples correctly classified). Similarly, the altitude origin was not successfully authenticated by milk FA composition (<76% of samples correctly classified). The potential of milk FA composition to authenticate cow feeding was confirmed using a data set representative of the diversity of European production conditions.
authors.affiliation: Department of Agricultural, Forest and Food Sciences (DISAFA), University of Turin, Largo Braccini 2, 10095, Grugliasco, Italy.
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Coppa
authors.affiliation: Clermont Université, VetAgroSup, UMR 1213 Herbivores, BP 10448, F-63000 Clermont-Ferrand, France; INRA, UMR 1213 Herbivores, F-63122 Saint-Genès-Champanelle, France.
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Chassaing
authors.affiliation: Clermont Université, VetAgroSup, UMR 1213 Herbivores, BP 10448, F-63000 Clermont-Ferrand, France; INRA, UMR 1213 Herbivores, F-63122 Saint-Genès-Champanelle, France.
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Ferlay
authors.affiliation: Clermont Université, VetAgroSup, UMR 1213 Herbivores, BP 10448, F-63000 Clermont-Ferrand, France; INRA, UMR 1213 Herbivores, F-63122 Saint-Genès-Champanelle, France.
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Agabriel
authors.affiliation: Clermont Université, VetAgroSup, UMR 1213 Herbivores, BP 10448, F-63000 Clermont-Ferrand, France; INRA, UMR 1213 Herbivores, F-63122 Saint-Genès-Champanelle, France.
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Laurent
authors.affiliation: Department of Agricultural, Forest and Food Sciences (DISAFA), University of Turin, Largo Braccini 2, 10095, Grugliasco, Italy.
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Borreani
authors.affiliation: Veneto Agricoltura, Istituto per la Qualità e Tecnologie Agroalimentari, Via S. Germano 74, I-36016, Thiene (VI), Italy.
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Barcarolo
authors.affiliation: Research Institute of Organic Agriculture (FiBL), Ackerstrasse, 5070 Frick, Switzerland.
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Baars
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Organic Agricultural Sciences, Kassel University, Nordbahnhofsstrasse 1, 37213 Witzenhausen, Germany.
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Kusche
authors.affiliation: Department of Animal and Aquacultural Sciences, Norwegian University of Life Sciences, Arboretveien 6, 1430 Ås, Norway.
authors.forename: O M
authors.initials: OM
authors.lastname: Harstad
authors.affiliation: Agricultural Institute of Slovenia, Hacquetova 17, SI-1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia.
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Verbič
authors.affiliation: Plant Production Research Center (PPRC), Grassland and Mountain Agriculture Research Institute (GMARI), Mladeznicka 36, 974 21 Banska Bystrica, Slovakia.
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Golecký
authors.affiliation: Clermont Université, VetAgroSup, UMR 1213 Herbivores, BP 10448, F-63000 Clermont-Ferrand, France; INRA, UMR 1213 Herbivores, F-63122 Saint-Genès-Champanelle, France.
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Delavaud
authors.affiliation: Clermont Université, VetAgroSup, UMR 1213 Herbivores, BP 10448, F-63000 Clermont-Ferrand, France; INRA, UMR 1213 Herbivores, F-63122 Saint-Genès-Champanelle, France.
authors.forename: Y
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Chilliard
authors.affiliation: Clermont Université, VetAgroSup, UMR 1213 Herbivores, BP 10448, F-63000 Clermont-Ferrand, France; INRA, UMR 1213 Herbivores, F-63122 Saint-Genès-Champanelle, France. Electronic address: bruno.martin@clermont.inra.fr.
authors.forename: B
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Martin
mesh_terms: D000531:Altitude; D000818:Animals; D002417:Cattle; D004032:Diet / Q000662:veterinary*; D019587:Dietary Supplements; D005060:Europe; D005227:Fatty Acids / Q000032:analysis*; D008892:Milk / Q000737:chemistry*; D006109:Poaceae; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D012820:Silage / Q000032:analysis*; D003313:Zea mays
chemical_list: D005227:Fatty Acids
keywords: altitude; authentication; dairy cow; feeding system; milk fatty acid