Alberta Agriculture and Forestry has released a new fact sheet on how livestock producers can deal with the shortage of feed grade vitamins.
Get the Factsheet on the Recent Vitamin Shortage
From the March 19, 2018 Issue of Agri-News
Strategic Vitamin A and E Use for Livestock During a Shortage is the latest Agri-Facts publication now available on the Alberta Agriculture and Forestry publications web page. Vitamins A and E are important nutritional factors in livestock production, and this factsheet discusses the implications of this recent vitamin shortage.
“The fire that occurred at the BASF plant in Germany in October 2017 caused 45 per cent of the world vitamin A production to be lost,” says Barry Yaremcio, beef and forage specialist at the Alberta Ag-Info Centre. “They are expecting that the plant will not be back in production until the middle of April. Hopefully, supplies will be back to normal by September or October of 2018.”
This factsheet allows producers to be aware that changes in the availability of these essential vitamins can have an effect on their operation. “It explains how to identify which animals are at risk, what to do, and how to manage the feeds and vitamin supply that you have, so you don’t run into problems,” adds Yaremcio.
“Without vitamins A, D, and E, especially vitamins A and E for ruminant animals, you can run into reproduction, herd health, and immune function problems,” mentions Yaremcio.
For more information about this factsheet, contact the Alberta Ag-Info Centre at 310-FARM (3276).