Browsing by Subject "Dairy cattle"
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Item Evaluation of Leucaena leucocephala as an alternative roughage source(Texas Tech University, 1996-05) Pollard, Gregory V.During t:he middle of tihe 20"" century, Leucaena leucocephala was discovered to be a possible replacement for alfalfa in many farming systems where alfalfa production is impractical due to cost or climate. Many people in tropical, subtropical and semi-arid areas throughout the world have used this legume as a high quality grazing forage or green-chop, in addition to its use for erosion control and as a fuel-wood source. However, little is known about the feeding value of this plant as a dried or an ensiled forage. Previous research indicates that Leucaena is a suitable fresh forage for dairy cattle, dairy goats, beef cattle, sheep and certain non-ruminant species like rabbits, swine and poultry. However, research is limited as to the value of Leucaena as a harvested and preserved roughage source for cattle. The search for new alternatives to standard forage production systems has lead many researchers to look for new species of plants that can compete with today's forages. In particular, ensiled legumes have not been able to gain in popularity because of the multitude of problems that have been associated with their use, such as high protein loss and effluent leaching, rumen metabolic difficulties and forage production obstacles. Therefore, the objectives of this research were to determine the feeding value of dried, ground Leucaena for lactating dairy cattle on milk production and composition, to ascertain the ensiling characteristics of chopped, wholeplant Leucaena; and to determine the in vitro digestion of Leucaena silage.Item Impact of bovine somatotropin on consumer concern and purchase behavior of fluid milk in Texas(Texas Tech University, 1996-08) Clem, Kyle DwayneThe commercial application of bST, if successfully adopted, promises to benefit the Texas dairy industry. However, the successful adoption will depend on providing information not only about production costs, but also on consumer acceptability to dairy producers in Texas. The general objective of this research was to determine the potential for commercial application of bST in Texas dairy cows. A state-wide consumer survey was conducted to determine attitudes, perceptions, and behavioral intentions toward the use of bST. Further, price and income sensitivity was estimated for bST and conventionally produced milk. A simultaneous qualitative choice model was developed with the aid of information processing theory to estimate consumer behavioral intention. Two separate groups of consumers were identified as those willing-to-purchase and those not willing-to-purchase bST produced milk. Demand relationships were estimated for each using OLS procedures. The elasticity of demand of those willing-to-purchase bST milk was estimated to be -0.9 and the price elasticity of demand of conventional milk purchases was estimated to be -0.5 lending support to the possibility of market segmentation and coexistence of both bST and conventionally produced milk. Further, this study found that older nonwhite, female consumers, with lower income and education levels were less likely to purchase bST produced milk. Human health and lack of information regarding the technology were the two most cited reasons for the higher level of concern. The development of an educational program would be beneficial to decreasing consumer concern and increasing the willingness-to-purchase milk produced using bST The educational program should use extensive research findings on the effects of bST and provide consumers with technical information about bST. Direct communication should be encouraged between university scientists and the public to reduce consumer concern. The findings of this study also suggest that while the government should be more directly involved in educating consumers on food safety issues, private enterprises such as independent regulatory bodies should be responsible for implementation and monitoring of food safety regulations.