NaOH-treated grape seed oil meal in complete diets for intensive bull beef production

Grape seed oil meal is the dried toasted residue after extraction of the oil from crushed grape seeds with hexane. This by-product of the wine industry contains about 11% crude protein and 52% crude fibre in the dry matter. The digestibility of the organic matter amounted to only 27% and could not be increased by treatment with 4% NaOH. Two series of beef production trials were carried out with a total of 196 young store bulls to study the feed value and the usefulness of this feedstuff.

A first series of beef production trials was carried out with 70 young bulls (4 groups) fed with complete dry rations based on 50% dried sugarbeet pulp. Grape seed oil meal (5 or 10% of the ration) was compared with linseed chaff (10%) or pollards (10%). No significant difference in average daily gain could be observed among the different treatments. Energy intake was very similar for the four experimental rations.

A second series of beef production trials was carried out with 126 young bulls fed with complete dry rations based on 70% dried sugarbeet pulp (control group). In the second and third experimental groups 5 or 10% sugarbeet pulp was substituted by 5 or 10% grape seed oil meal. In the fourth experimental ration, 10% sugarbeet pulp was substituted by 10% grape seed oil meal treated with 4% NaOH. Substituting 5 or 10% dried sugarbeet pulp by grape seed oil meal results in a very similar daily growth level, but feed conversion efficiency was lower. A lower feed and dry matter intake per kg gain was observed for the alkali-treated group (4th group: 10% grape seed oil meal + 4% NaOH) compared with the 3rd experimental group (10% grape seed oil meal).