Duration
37h Th, 13h Pr, 7h FT
Number of credits
| Master in agroecology (120 ECTS) | 6 crédits | |||
| Master in agricultural bioengineering (120 ECTS) | 6 crédits |
Lecturer
Language(s) of instruction
French language
Organisation and examination
Teaching in the second semester
Schedule
Units courses prerequisite and corequisite
Prerequisite or corequisite units are presented within each program
Learning unit contents
Why is this course important for bio-engineers?
Domestic animal feeding practices make up for a significant part of the profitability and sustainability of animal rearing operations. Whether breeding in temperate or hot areas, in intensive or extensive systems, all the feeding management practices use a wide range of resources such as agricultural products and by-products, forage crops and natural and artificial pastures. This course will teach you how to use those resources best as animal feeds. The knowledge and competencies in this field are of utmost importance to the bio-engineers intending to work in fields related to animal production and game management.
Aims of the course
This course aims at (1) introduce the diversity of feed ingredients useful for animal production, their nutritive characteristics, including their pros and cons according to the considered animal species, technological treatments available to change those characteristics; (2) to introduce the basics of feed evaluation as well as diet formulation and (3) to introduce the basics of natural and artificial pastures management as main roughage source for ruminants.
This course is divided in different parts presented hereafter:
- The different classes of feeds
- The technology for producing compound feeds
- Assessing the feeding value (energy and protein) of feed ingredients
- Theory and practical exercises
- Feed formulation
- Visit of feed companies
- Basics of forage production and use
- Origin and botany of range plants
- Grazing resistance mechanisms
- Physiology of the growth of grasses
- Pasture fertilization
- Grasslands feeding value.
- Practical basic knowledge for rangeland assessment and management
- Practical exercise on range carrying capacity, on forage and pasture assessment
Learning outcomes of the learning unit
At the end of the course you will:
- know the positive and negative characteristics of the main classes of feed ingredients;
- recognise the main feed ingredients used around the world;
- know the most important technologies used in the feed industry;
- be able to determine the feeding value of ingredients;
- formulate diets for farm animals;
- understand to biotic and abiotic elements influencing the composition of forage plants, their growth, and their nutritive value;
- understand how to use the tools required for range management in order to secure the long-term production potential of a range;
- be able to identify the most important grasses and know their interests in animal production;
- be able to measure the quality of forage plants and ranges, measure the production potential and determine their carrying capacity.
Prerequisite knowledge and skills
The biological rules of digestive physiology and nutrient metabolism are supposed to be known by the students following this course, as well as the technical itinerary for ruminants and monogatsrics production. We also recommend you to be familiar with botany, plant physiology, and soil science.
Planned learning activities and teaching methods
The theory sections are based on lectures using many pictures and clips from scientific papers, herbariums and collections feed ingredients, as well as short videos in English.
Practical exercises are based on exercises in the classroom, computer-based exercise, pasture assessment and visits.
After an introduction to the formulation software, the students will have to formulate a diet for a given class of animals. How and when the report will have to be prepared will be specified in due time.
We wish for interactive lectures are. Please don't be afraid to speak when we try to interact with the audience during the lectures. You are also free to interrupt us at any time for questions.
Besides videos in English, a part of the course will be taught in English.
Mode of delivery (face-to-face ; distance-learning)
Lectures and practical exercises requiring the presence of the student. Field exercises Personnal work
Recommended or required readings
There are no compulsory readings.
You will have access to the slides presented during the lectures as well as the exercises and their solutions via e-campus. You are likely to have a question on all the topics covered by these slides. You have access to the herbarium and plant collections.
A reference list regarding the topics covered by the lectures will be issued so you'll be able to go further if you like with the topics of the course as well as getting familiar with the vocabulary of the discipline.
Moreover, as the course doesn't cover everything, if you need deeper knowledge, now or during your professional life, on specific topics, we advise you to start with the following references:
For botany and physiology of forage plants:
Barnes RF, Nelson CJ, Moore KJ, Collins M. 2007. Forages. The science of grassland agriculture. Volume II. 6th Ed. Blackwell publishing. Ames.
For extensive range management:
Holechek JL, Pieper RD, Herbel CH. 2011. Range management. Principles and practices. 6th Ed. Prentice Hall. Boston.
For the description of tropical forage plants we recommend the following website: www.tropicalforages.info
Ta access tables with the nutritive value of feed ingredients :
Sauvant D, Perez JM, Tran G. 2004. Tables de composition et de valeur nutritive des matières premières destinées aux animaux d'élevage. 2nd Ed. INRA. Paris (English version available)
The website Feedipedia : www.trc.zootechnie.fr
Assessment methods and criteria
The final mark will be the weighted average of the marks obtained for the different parts of the course if each individual mark is greater than or equal to 10. If this condition is not fulfilled, the lowest mark will be the final mark.
Oral examination
The oral examination will cover:
- the pros and cons of a class of feed ingredients as well as the rules for their use for a specific animal category ;
- identification of 2 ingredients and one mixture;
- open question on the basics of forage production or use or the range management or assessment methods
During the oral examination (see above), a comment on the written test will be issued for each student and a new mark will be asked to the student. The possible descripency between both marks will be discussed.
Personal work
- The diet formulated by the student will have to be reported in a written report. The mark regarding this report will consider the following aspects: respect of the instructions, ability to use the software, meaning of the result, quality of the explanations, pertinence of the cited litterature and quality of the presentation. During the oral examination (see above), the written report will be discussed and a mark on 20 will be discussed.
- Each group of students will be asked to produce 2 reports on the floristic and the ensilability assessment. These report will yield the mark entering in the global mark for the course.
- An oral presentation of personnal works will be organized
Work placement(s)
Organizational remarks
The slides will be made available at the beginning of the classes. Participation at the practical exercises and visits are compulsory. Any student not able to attend those activities must warn the teachers. The condition to participate to the examination is to fulfill the obligation regarding the written reports a.o. to give in the report in due time.
Contacts
You can always ask us questions during the classes or by making an appointment by phone or via email (yves.beckers@ulg.ac.be, +32 81 62 21 19, jérôme.bindelle@uliege.be, +3281622606).
Adaptation of teaching commitments following the COVID-19 pandemic for the May-June 2020 session
Teaching methods implemented : distance-learning
Course schedule will be followed as much as possible and the course will be taught through: - podcasts - PPT commented - live sessions on Collaborate - self-learning sessions - personal work Alternating party schedule Y. Beckers and J. Bindelle. Questions either during the live sessions or via the e-campus interface (FAQ forum ¿ subscribe) Oral exam using the media communicated by the student and via teleconference.
Assessment subjects
Partim Beckers: Main objective: demonstrate competence in formulating a diet for a given animal category (report) Ability to use formulation software: nutritional and technological constraints and price minimization (1 course + tutorial) Identify the animal category food recommendations (info provided) Identify and justify the foods eligible for the food formula by integrating the minimum and maximum utilization rates according to the animal category (Course series presenting the main categories of food) Identify and justify the use of food additives (1 course) Propose and justify the industrial treatments necessary for the preparation of the food formula (1 course) Propose a commercial name integrating marketing elements Partim Bindelle Main objective: to become an expert in grassland management through grazing thanks to the mastery of ecological concepts of plant-animal interaction. Theoretical framework based on podcasts: Chapter 1: distribution and function of grassland Chapter 2: organography and physiology of fodder plants Chapter 3: planning a grazing operation Chapter 4: grazing from a plant point of view Chapter 5: grazing from an animal point of view Chapter 6: diagnostics and monitoring of grazing. Exercises in pseudo-professional context (use of tools, analysis and advice) and illustration and / or exploration of theoretical concepts giving rise to personal reports (3-4 pages). The exercises will be the subject of clarification discussion during prior live sessions: feed budget planning; grassland diagnosis; Grazing management mind map for the day of the oral exam Exam (partim Bindelle): discussion based on reports and mind map.
Examen (partim Beckers) : discussion based on the report on the proposed diet
Assessment methods
Personal reports on the requested practical works + individual discussion by teleconference.
Contacts
Via the e-campus course FAQ discussion forum and by email (jerome.bindelle@uliege.be/yves.beckers@uliege.be)