Sunflower (Helianthus annuus L.) and their coproduct in animal feed

Abstract

The use of co-products of agro-industries in animal feed has already been done for many years. With the encouragement of domestic production of Biodiesel generation of these products had increased significantly, allowing its use in animal feed, by increasing the supply of meals or pies from the extraction of oil from oilseeds. Soybean meal is the main source of protein fed to ruminants and monogastric animals, but with increasing global demand for food high in protein, not competitive with human food, boosts the use of these co-products in animal feed, mainly for ruminants, due to its unique ability to transform non-digestible fibers by the human body, products of high biological value such as meat and milk. Among the crops used to produce Biodiesel, sunflower had a significant increase in production and productivity in recent years, thanks to its adaptability to various soil and climatic conditions. The co-products of sunflower have favorable nutritional characteristics of feed animals of zootechnical interest, minimizing production costs and maximizing production of meat and milk.