The comparison of lactation performance and milk fatty acid composition of Sarabi indigenous and Holstein cows

Abstract

The objective of this study was to specify fatty acid content of milk from Sarabi indigenous cows and compare it with milk fatty acid profile of Holstein cows. Ten Holstein and twelve Sarabi confinement cows that have been fed on total mixed ration with corn silage, alfalfa hay and dairy concentrate were used in a completely randomized design. Holstein cows had greater milk production (P<.0001), whereas Sarabi cows on average had higher milk content of fat (P=0.0540), protein (P=0.0340) and lactose (P=0.1794). Milk from Sarabi and Holstein cows had similar content of the cis-9 trans-11 conjugated linoleic acid (0.28 and 0.30%, respectively) and short and medium chain fatty acids (18.58 and 18.62%, respectively) Sarabi cows numerically produced higher concentrations of saturated fatty acids (60.51 and 59.29%, respectively), and long chain fatty acids (43.32 and 41.26%, respectively), as well as lower concentrations of mono unsaturated fatty acids (20.75 and 21.65% respectively) than Holstein. The percentage of C16:0 main saturated fatty acid in milk fat was not different between the groups. Concentrations of C14:0 and C18:0, second and third prominent milk saturated fatty acids were respectively 9.98 and 9.93% in Sarabi and 10.10% and 9.60% in Holsteins. In summary, despite the slight differences between fatty acid content of milk from Sarabi and Holstein cows, we did not find any statistical significance. Key words: Breed, Sarabi cow, milk fatty acid, conjugated linoleic acid.