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Papers by Luca Battaglini

Italian Journal of Animal Science, 2015

Nella valle Formazza, valle ossolana all'estremità settentrionale del Piemonte al confine con il ... more Nella valle Formazza, valle ossolana all'estremità settentrionale del Piemonte al confine con il Canton Ticino (Svizzera), è storicamente presente l'allevamento di bovini da latte (razza Bruna Italiana) orientato alla produzione casearia che prevede la pratica di alpeggio. Negli ultimi tempi alcune aziende dell'area hanno attuato rilevanti investimenti nei propri centri aziendali (ad es. impianti di essiccamento dei foraggi, robot di mungitura, ecc.) migliorando nel contempo la commercializzazione dei propri prodotti attraverso punti vendita aziendali. Nel corso dell'estate 2016, in due allevamenti della valle Formazza, differenziati per i sistemi di alimentazione adottati (uno con alpeggio, l'altro, integralmente stallino, con foraggiamento verde e unifeed) è stato effettuato un confronto delle caratteristiche compositive del latte prodotto. I risultati confermano che una dieta basata sull'assunzione esclusiva di erba di pascolo migliori significativamente il profilo nutraceutico del latte. La risposta dell'animale dell'azienda più intensiva si esprime invece con una maggior produzione di latte, dalla qualità nutraceutica di buon valore seppure significativamente inferiore al latte da pascolo. Si ritiene che un miglioramento dell'attuale modello stalla/alpeggio, con opportuni interventi a livello gestionale e con un ritorno a razze autoctone più rustiche (es. Bruna originale) possa portare non solo a vantaggi sulla qualità del prodotto ma, grazie alla gestione delle risorse pastorali, a positivi effetti in termini ecosistemici.

Zootecnica e Nutrizione Animale, 1990

Italian Journal of Animal Science, 2005

RIASSUNTO-Produttività e qualità del latte di razze bovine valdostane in alpeggio. Lo studio rife... more RIASSUNTO-Produttività e qualità del latte di razze bovine valdostane in alpeggio. Lo studio riferisce sulla produttività e qualità del latte di bovine di razza Pezzata Rossa, Pezzata Nera e Castana Valdostana, allevate in dieci alpeggi della Valle d'Aosta. Sono state studiate le caratteristiche del latte individuale prelevato in momenti rappresentativi della fase di pascolamento estivo. I risultati confermano l'elevato grado di adattabilità delle lattifere anche in condizioni climatiche di particolare difficoltà (stagione estiva 2003); tuttavia, la composizione acidica del latte segnala un significativo calo dei PUFA in coincidenza del peggioramento della qualità dell'erba dei pascoli.

Animal Feed Science and Technology, Sep 1, 2020

This is a PDF file of an article that has undergone enhancements after acceptance, such as the ad... more This is a PDF file of an article that has undergone enhancements after acceptance, such as the addition of a cover page and metadata, and formatting for readability, but it is not yet the definitive version of record. This version will undergo additional copyediting, typesetting and review before it is published in its final form, but we are providing this version to give early visibility of the article. Please note that, during the production process, errors may be discovered which could affect the content, and all legal disclaimers that apply to the journal pertain.

World population and global food demand are expected to increase in the next decades. Although so... more World population and global food demand are expected to increase in the next decades. Although some improvements have been achieved, livestock sector remains a major contributor to the impacts of agriculture. One of the sustainability themes that has recently seen an increasing interest is the conflict between feeding edible crops to people or to livestock. Large amounts of cereals and legumes used in conventional systems could instead be used more efficiently by monogastric animals or be consumed directly by humans. Therefore, reducing human-edible crops in animals' diets represents a promising way to increase the sustainability of ruminants with noticeable ethical implications. Two indicators are available in literature to assess the potential human-edible content in animal diets. In two experimental trials carried out with dairy cows, these two indexes improved significantly both when hazelnut skin, a byproduct from hazelnut industry, was included in the diet of cows and with increasing level of grazing in mountain dairy farms. Ruminants play a major role in food supply chain: thanks to the microbiota in the rumen, they are able to convert fibrous feedstuffs (unsuitable for human consumption) into high valuable and nutrient-dense food (i.e. milk and meat), with increased nutraceutical quality of the products if grass or by-products are used. Moreover, the use of grasslands and pastures by ruminants, especially when land is unsuitable for crop production like in mountain areas, provides ecosystems services. It preserves land abandonment and provides a livelihood for populations living such areas, conserves local traditions and cultural heritage related to cheese-making activity, enriches biodiversity of pastures consequently increasing the accessibility for tourists. Using by-products in livestock diets transforms waste into source of nutrients, feeding the virtuous cycle of circular economy. Confirming previous findings, our results show that both grass-based feeding and use of by-products are effective feeding strategies to make dairy systems more sustainable, considerably reducing the feed-food competition as well as providing ecosystem services with relevant ethical and socio-cultural advantages.

... Questo, infatti, si presenta bruno o bruno-rossiccio con striature sul dorso e balzane di pel... more ... Questo, infatti, si presenta bruno o bruno-rossiccio con striature sul dorso e balzane di peli più o meno lunghi, di color grigio ... allevate insie-me a soggetti appartenenti ad altre razze caprine diffuse sul territorio regionale (Camosciata e Alpina comune) formando greggi di ridotta ...

ABSTRACT The chain of "Noble Milk" in Piedmont: livestock farms characteristics... more ABSTRACT The chain of "Noble Milk" in Piedmont: livestock farms characteristics and nutraceutical and sensory quality of the product  The project "Làit Real - High quality drinking milk (Latte Nobile) to improve the competitiveness of mountain dairy farms" is funded by Regione Piemonte under the Rural Development Programme 2007-2013. Its primary objective is to define the Production Regulations for drinking milk produced by cows mainly fed with local fresh grass and hay. The experimental trials set up within the project aim at obtaining data on all stages of the production chain, from the characteristics of the forage resources to those of the herds, up to the chemical, microbiological and sensory qualities of milk. Four farms, located in the provinces of Torino and Vercelli, are involved in the project. In these farms 15 to 35 lactating cows are bred; the cows belong to Valdostana Pezzata Rossa, Grigio Alpina, Bruna Alpina, Montbéliarde and Abondance breeds and yield, on average, 4500 to 6000 kg per lactation. The cows are predominantly fed with hay in winter and fresh grass from alpine pastures in summer; in spring and autumn the animal diet includes both hay and fresh grass from the lowlands. Festuca gr. rubra and Agrostis tenuis, Bromus erectus, and Brachypodium rupestre are the three most abundant vegetation types identified at farm level (32%, 15% and 13% of the total area, respectively), with an average pastoral value of 31. The “noble milk” has high nutraceutical value and it is healthier if compared to milk available at piedmontese retail market: the ratio of polyunsaturated fatty acids of the series 6 and 3 is less than 2 throughout the course of the year, and the concentration of total conjugated linoleic acid (CLA) isomers reaches, in summer, the average value of 1.35 g 100g-1 of fat. Sensory evaluation of milk (untrained panel) and fresh cheese (trained panel) showed that “noble” dairy products are clearly distinguishable and preferred than analogous products purchased at retail market.

Italian Journal of Animal Science, 2015

Nella valle Formazza, valle ossolana all'estremità settentrionale del Piemonte al confine con il ... more Nella valle Formazza, valle ossolana all'estremità settentrionale del Piemonte al confine con il Canton Ticino (Svizzera), è storicamente presente l'allevamento di bovini da latte (razza Bruna Italiana) orientato alla produzione casearia che prevede la pratica di alpeggio. Negli ultimi tempi alcune aziende dell'area hanno attuato rilevanti investimenti nei propri centri aziendali (ad es. impianti di essiccamento dei foraggi, robot di mungitura, ecc.) migliorando nel contempo la commercializzazione dei propri prodotti attraverso punti vendita aziendali. Nel corso dell'estate 2016, in due allevamenti della valle Formazza, differenziati per i sistemi di alimentazione adottati (uno con alpeggio, l'altro, integralmente stallino, con foraggiamento verde e unifeed) è stato effettuato un confronto delle caratteristiche compositive del latte prodotto. I risultati confermano che una dieta basata sull'assunzione esclusiva di erba di pascolo migliori significativamente il profilo nutraceutico del latte. La risposta dell'animale dell'azienda più intensiva si esprime invece con una maggior produzione di latte, dalla qualità nutraceutica di buon valore seppure significativamente inferiore al latte da pascolo. Si ritiene che un miglioramento dell'attuale modello stalla/alpeggio, con opportuni interventi a livello gestionale e con un ritorno a razze autoctone più rustiche (es. Bruna originale) possa portare non solo a vantaggi sulla qualità del prodotto ma, grazie alla gestione delle risorse pastorali, a positivi effetti in termini ecosistemici.

Zootecnica e Nutrizione Animale, 1990

Italian Journal of Animal Science, 2005

RIASSUNTO-Produttività e qualità del latte di razze bovine valdostane in alpeggio. Lo studio rife... more RIASSUNTO-Produttività e qualità del latte di razze bovine valdostane in alpeggio. Lo studio riferisce sulla produttività e qualità del latte di bovine di razza Pezzata Rossa, Pezzata Nera e Castana Valdostana, allevate in dieci alpeggi della Valle d'Aosta. Sono state studiate le caratteristiche del latte individuale prelevato in momenti rappresentativi della fase di pascolamento estivo. I risultati confermano l'elevato grado di adattabilità delle lattifere anche in condizioni climatiche di particolare difficoltà (stagione estiva 2003); tuttavia, la composizione acidica del latte segnala un significativo calo dei PUFA in coincidenza del peggioramento della qualità dell'erba dei pascoli.

Animal Feed Science and Technology, Sep 1, 2020

This is a PDF file of an article that has undergone enhancements after acceptance, such as the ad... more This is a PDF file of an article that has undergone enhancements after acceptance, such as the addition of a cover page and metadata, and formatting for readability, but it is not yet the definitive version of record. This version will undergo additional copyediting, typesetting and review before it is published in its final form, but we are providing this version to give early visibility of the article. Please note that, during the production process, errors may be discovered which could affect the content, and all legal disclaimers that apply to the journal pertain.

World population and global food demand are expected to increase in the next decades. Although so... more World population and global food demand are expected to increase in the next decades. Although some improvements have been achieved, livestock sector remains a major contributor to the impacts of agriculture. One of the sustainability themes that has recently seen an increasing interest is the conflict between feeding edible crops to people or to livestock. Large amounts of cereals and legumes used in conventional systems could instead be used more efficiently by monogastric animals or be consumed directly by humans. Therefore, reducing human-edible crops in animals' diets represents a promising way to increase the sustainability of ruminants with noticeable ethical implications. Two indicators are available in literature to assess the potential human-edible content in animal diets. In two experimental trials carried out with dairy cows, these two indexes improved significantly both when hazelnut skin, a byproduct from hazelnut industry, was included in the diet of cows and with increasing level of grazing in mountain dairy farms. Ruminants play a major role in food supply chain: thanks to the microbiota in the rumen, they are able to convert fibrous feedstuffs (unsuitable for human consumption) into high valuable and nutrient-dense food (i.e. milk and meat), with increased nutraceutical quality of the products if grass or by-products are used. Moreover, the use of grasslands and pastures by ruminants, especially when land is unsuitable for crop production like in mountain areas, provides ecosystems services. It preserves land abandonment and provides a livelihood for populations living such areas, conserves local traditions and cultural heritage related to cheese-making activity, enriches biodiversity of pastures consequently increasing the accessibility for tourists. Using by-products in livestock diets transforms waste into source of nutrients, feeding the virtuous cycle of circular economy. Confirming previous findings, our results show that both grass-based feeding and use of by-products are effective feeding strategies to make dairy systems more sustainable, considerably reducing the feed-food competition as well as providing ecosystem services with relevant ethical and socio-cultural advantages.

... Questo, infatti, si presenta bruno o bruno-rossiccio con striature sul dorso e balzane di pel... more ... Questo, infatti, si presenta bruno o bruno-rossiccio con striature sul dorso e balzane di peli più o meno lunghi, di color grigio ... allevate insie-me a soggetti appartenenti ad altre razze caprine diffuse sul territorio regionale (Camosciata e Alpina comune) formando greggi di ridotta ...

ABSTRACT The chain of "Noble Milk" in Piedmont: livestock farms characteristics... more ABSTRACT The chain of "Noble Milk" in Piedmont: livestock farms characteristics and nutraceutical and sensory quality of the product  The project "Làit Real - High quality drinking milk (Latte Nobile) to improve the competitiveness of mountain dairy farms" is funded by Regione Piemonte under the Rural Development Programme 2007-2013. Its primary objective is to define the Production Regulations for drinking milk produced by cows mainly fed with local fresh grass and hay. The experimental trials set up within the project aim at obtaining data on all stages of the production chain, from the characteristics of the forage resources to those of the herds, up to the chemical, microbiological and sensory qualities of milk. Four farms, located in the provinces of Torino and Vercelli, are involved in the project. In these farms 15 to 35 lactating cows are bred; the cows belong to Valdostana Pezzata Rossa, Grigio Alpina, Bruna Alpina, Montbéliarde and Abondance breeds and yield, on average, 4500 to 6000 kg per lactation. The cows are predominantly fed with hay in winter and fresh grass from alpine pastures in summer; in spring and autumn the animal diet includes both hay and fresh grass from the lowlands. Festuca gr. rubra and Agrostis tenuis, Bromus erectus, and Brachypodium rupestre are the three most abundant vegetation types identified at farm level (32%, 15% and 13% of the total area, respectively), with an average pastoral value of 31. The “noble milk” has high nutraceutical value and it is healthier if compared to milk available at piedmontese retail market: the ratio of polyunsaturated fatty acids of the series 6 and 3 is less than 2 throughout the course of the year, and the concentration of total conjugated linoleic acid (CLA) isomers reaches, in summer, the average value of 1.35 g 100g-1 of fat. Sensory evaluation of milk (untrained panel) and fresh cheese (trained panel) showed that “noble” dairy products are clearly distinguishable and preferred than analogous products purchased at retail market.