Abstract

The Australian dairy industry is heavily reliant on pasture as the main feed base for milk production. However, dietary energy intake is limited in pasture-based dairy systems and lactating cows tend to suffer from negative energy balance due to insufficient dry matter intake. As a result, low milk production and reproduction performances occur later on in the cow’s life-cycle. Spirulina is a highly nutritious feed source rich in proteins, lipids, minerals and vitamins, thus meeting the criteria as a potential and novel alternative feed source for the dairy industry. To our current knowledge, experimental and anecdotal information on the productive response of pasture-based dairy cows to the inclusion of Spirulina to lactating diets is lacking and warrants further elucidation. There is the need to understand the influence of Spirulina inclusion in a lactating cow’s diet on lactation and Live-weight parameters. This paper reviews the past and present research results on the effect of supplementation with Spirulina on animal production outcomes, summarises identified knowledge gaps and highlights future directions for research in the dairy industry.

Keywords: Spirulina; Dairy cows; Lactation; Live-weight; Milk fatty acid