Technical-economic assessment of supplementation frequency over grazing steer in Córdoba, Colombia

Abstract

Introduction. Beef production is affected by stationarity forage production and fed cost. Feed frequency evaluations according to pasture could suggest an appropriate practice for profitability improvement. Objective. To evaluate technically and economically the frequency of supplementation of Brahman fattening steers in grazing. Materials and methods. In the middle valley of the Sinú river, Colombia, 108 steers were used distributed in a split-plot design into three pastures (Cynodon nlemfuensis, Megathyrsus maximus, and Brachiaria hybrida, main plot) and three supplementation schemes (subplot): daily (STD), every two days (SDpM) and without supplementation (SS). The daily weight gain (GPD) and morphometric characteristics were evaluated in steers. In the carcass: weight, yield, length, leg perimeter, fat thickness, and compactness index. The biophysical data results fed the financial evaluation of the implemented technology. Results. An interaction of pasture and supplementation frequency over daily weight gain was detected (p<0.05). The highest GPD was observed in animals of the STD treatment for the grass C. nlemfuensis (680 g day-1), while a B. hybrida cv Mulato II in SDpM recorded the lowest GPD with 500 g day-1. An effect (p<0.05) of the diet on body length was observed (150 vs. 152 cm for not supplemented and supplemented steers, respectively). There were no differences (p<0.05) between treatments over carcass characteristics. Conclusions. The biological response in GPD did not compensate for the differential operating cost in the supplemented animals. It is necessary to evaluate new diets with raw materials and inclusion levels that contribute to the increase in animal production, to generate a detectable change in the animal and economic response.