Educational offer - University of Padova

Syllabus

Prerequisites:	The student will learn the principles of organic chemistry and have a solid foundation in anatomy of the digestive system and the processes of digestion, absorption and metabolism in companion and farm animals The students needs to have knowledge on general and organic chemistry and cell biology. No special prerequisite are requested to attend the course of Economics. Prerequisites: Veterinary Physiology I and Ethology
Target skills and knowledge:	The course provides the knowledge on the factors influencing digestibility and utilization of feeds in the animals. This course focuses on the special feature of the different parameters for the nutritional evaluation of feeds. The student will acquire the basic concepts of general botany and, in particular, the characteristics of plants used in animal feeding. Other objectives are to provide each student with main processes of preservation and utilization of forages, concentrates, mixed feeds and additives in the diets with some references to regulation of feed preparation and trade. Moreover, a special attention will be paid on the nutritional requirements of the companion and farm animals. Finally, the students should be able to formulate a balanced diet. The evaluation criteria are based on the specific knowledge of the contents of the 4 modules and on the critical ability to elaborate the acquired knowledge in analyzing from an economic perspective different operational contexts, products and companies in the agri-business sector.
Examination methods:	Identification of crop seeds Possible replacement of final exam with tests based on multiple choice questions and/or open questions (written test). Students are allowed to ask for an oral examination to integrate the written text.
Assessment criteria:	Students’ knowledge will be evaluated considering both specific definitions given during the course but also by analyzing their capacity of applying the acquired knowledge: - to evaluate chemical, physical and nutritional characteristics of feeds for farm animals and commercial foods for companion animals - to recognize the symptoms of nutritional deficiencies and excesses in farm and companion animals - to calculate daily nutritional requirements for the different species - to formulate balanced rations - to recognize crop seeds and cultivated plants - to identify the plants most suitable for feeding different animals The evaluation criteria for Economics are based on specific knowledge of contents of 4 modules and on the critical ability to elaborate the aquired knowledge to evaluate, from economic point of view, different contexts, products and farms.
Course unit contents:	Animal Feeding and Nutrition (4 CFU) Role of animal nutrition. The nutrients: functions and interactions, minimum requirements, optimal intake, recommended allowances. The concept of essentiality. Nutritional evaluation of feeds: chemical composition. Digestibility of feeds. The nutritive value of feeds: utilization of energy and systems for the evaluation of energy in feeds. Estimation of protein value of feeds for ruminants and monogastric animals: rumen degradation and biological value. Palatability and voluntary intake. Nutritional requirements for maintenance, growth, lactation and pregnancy, physical activity. Classification of feeds based on the origin and the nutrients content: nutritional and dietetic characteristics. Labeling. Current regulation on the preparation and trade of feed and additives in animal nutrition. Practical activities: laboratory of chemical-physical and biological analyses of feeds. Crop production (3 CFU) Variety and morpho-physiological characteristics, nutritional value and digestibility, harvest technique and preservation, contamination risks (mycotoxins), antinutritional factors, physical and chemical treatments on feeds, utilisation in ruminants and monogastrics, effects on animal health and quality of animal productions, in the main herbaceous crop species. Winter cereals: wheat, flour and by-products in milling, barley and by-products in beer production, oats, rye, secalotriticum, buckwheat, quinoa. Summer cereals: maize for grains and silage, sorghum, rice and by-products. Plant for roots: forage beet, sugar beet and by-products in sugar production (molasses, beet slices, dead wash). Plant for proteins: soybean. Meals after oil extraction: sunflower, oilseed rape. Forages: meadows and pastures of Gramineous and Leguminous. Lab sessions: identification of the main crop products for animal feed (grains). Economics (3 CFU) The structure and dynamics of agro-food markets and the basic elemrets for the economic evaluation of sectoral projects will be presented. The course is organized in 4 modules. 1. Introduction to economics: scarcity and market economy, demand and supply, market models, elasticity. 2. Business plan: strategic planning, marketing mix, Business Plan components, profitability indicators. 3. Agro-food markets. Agro-food products and food consumption. Quality of agro-food products. The Life Cycle concept. The components of the agro-food system. 4. Agro-food markets: a description of the various components of the system.
Planned learning activities and teaching methods:	The course is organized as follows: Nutrition, 4 CFU Direct room teaching activity = 40 Crop production, 3 CFU Direct room teaching activity = 20 hours Exercises and seminars in room = 8 hours External activities (technical visits) = 2 hours Economics, 3 CFU Direct room teaching activity = 20 hours Exercises and seminars in room = 10 hours
Additional notes about suggested reading:	The slides used for lectures are available on the Moodle platform. Office hours: daily by appointment with the teacher.
Textbooks (and optional supplementary readings)	National Research Council, Nutrient requirements of beef cattle. Washington, D.C.: The National Academies Press, 2000. National Research Council, Nutrient requirements of dairy cattle. Washington, D.C.: The National Academies Press, 2001. National Research Council, Nutrient requirements of horses. Washington, D.C.: The National Academies Press, 2007. Antongiovanni M. e Gualtieri M., Nutrizione e alimentazione animale. Bologna, I: Ed. Edagricole, 1998. National Research Council, Nutrient requirements of swine. Washington, D.C.: The National Academies Press, 2012. Baldoni R., Giardini L., Coltivazioni erbacee. Bologna, I: Patron Editore, 2000. National Research Council, Nutrient requirements of dogs and cats. Washington, D.C.: The National Academies Press, 2006. Case L.P., Carey D.P., Hirakawa D.A. and Daristotle L., Canine and Feline Nutrition. St. Louis, Missouri, USA: Mosby, 2000. Arienti G., Le basi molecolari della nutrizione. Padova, I: Piccin Editore, 2003. Sauvant D., Perez J.M., Tran G., Tables of composition and nutritional value of feed materials. Paris, F: Wageningen Academic Publishers, INRA Editions., 2002. Van Soest P.J., Nutritional Ecology of the Ruminant. Cornell, USA: Ed Cornell University Press, USA., 1994. Hand M.S., Thatcher C.D., Remillard R.L., Roudebush P., Novotny., B.J., Small Animal Clinical Nutrition. Topeka, Kansas, USA: Mark Morris Institute, 2010. Mc Donald P., Edwards R.A., Greenhalgh J.F.D. Morgan C.A., Animal Nutrition. Essex, UK: Prentice Hall, 2002. Pilati L., Marketing agro-alimentare. --: UNI Service, --.