Enhancing the fatty acid profile of milk through forage-based rations, with nutrition modeling of diet outcomes - PubMed (original) (raw)

. 2018 Feb 28;6(3):681-700.

doi: 10.1002/fsn3.610. eCollection 2018 May.

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Enhancing the fatty acid profile of milk through forage-based rations, with nutrition modeling of diet outcomes

Charles M Benbrook et al. Food Sci Nutr. 2018.

Abstract

Consumer demand for milk and meat from grass-fed cattle is growing, driven mostly by perceived health benefits and concerns about animal welfare. In a U. S.-wide study of 1,163 milk samples collected over 3 years, we quantified the fatty acid profile in milk from cows fed a nearly 100% forage-based diet (grassmilk) and compared it to profiles from a similar nationwide study of milk from cows under conventional and organic management. We also explored how much the observed differences might help reverse the large changes in fatty acid intakes that have occurred in the United States over the last century. Key features of the fatty acid profile of milk fat include its omega-6/omega-3 ratio (lower is desirable), and amounts of total omega-3, conjugated linoleic acid, and long-chain omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids. For each, we find that grassmilk is markedly different than both organic and conventional milk. The omega-6/omega-3 ratios were, respectively, 0.95, 2.28, and 5.77 in grassmilk, organic, and conventional milk; total omega-3 levels were 0.049, 0.032, and 0.020 g/100 g milk; total conjugated linoleic acid levels were 0.043, 0.023, and 0.019 g/100 g milk; and eicosapentaenoic acid levels were 0.0036, 0.0033, and 0.0025 g/100 g milk. Because of often high per-capita dairy consumption relative to most other sources of omega-3 fatty acids and conjugated linoleic acid, these differences in grassmilk can help restore a historical balance of fatty acids and potentially reduce the risk of cardiovascular and other metabolic diseases. Although oily fish have superior concentrations of long-chain omega-3 fatty acids, most fish have low levels of α-linolenic acid (the major omega-3), and an omega-6/omega-3 ratio near 7. Moreover, fish is not consumed regularly, or at all, by ~70% of the U. S.

Keywords: GrassmilkTM; dairy farming; dairy fatty acids; grass milk; omega‐6/omega‐3 ratio; organic milk.

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Figures

Figure 1

Figure 1

Monthly variation in mean ω‐6/ω‐3 ratio over all geographical regions, 2014–2016 (429 samples). The vertical bars show _SE_s from the least squares analysis

Figure 2

Figure 2

Decreases in dietary

LA

/

ALA

ratios for an adult woman consuming two levels of conventional, organic, and grassmilk dairy products and two types of nondairy fat. The diets contain moderate “Mod.”(3 servings/day) or “High” (4.5 servings/day) amounts of dairy products made from conventional (“Conv.”), “Organic,” or “Grassmilk,” in the contexts of total fat contributing 20%, 33%, or 45% of energy, and nondairy fat containing typical amounts of

LA

(left side) or low amounts of

LA

(right side)

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