Amino Acids Essential for Raising Livestock

Meat in our diets provides an important source of protein, minerals and other nutrients for the body. Amino acids have been used for animal nutrition for roughly half a century. Much of the chicken and pork that is eaten around the world today is raised using amino acid-containing feed that promotes healthy and efficient growth.

Livestock Produce Nitrogen Compounds that Pollute the Environment

Do you enjoy eating meat? Although high quality, animal-based proteins from meat are essential to our diets livestock excrete excessive nitrogen compounds that pollute the environment.

Excess Excretion Caused by Poor Amino Acid Balance in Feeds

Pigs are raised on feeds that mainly consist of grains such as corn and wheat mixed with plant-based proteins such as soy meal. Roughly one-third of the proteins in these feeds are digested and absorbed by pigs but the remaining two-thirds of the proteins are excreted as nitrogen compounds. Nitrogen compounds generate ammonia that pollutes the air, leaches into soil and pollutes water in rivers and lakes.

Pigs excrete excessive nitrogen compounds because of the poor balance of amino acids in their feeds. This prevents their bodies from effectively using the proteins they eat so that excess amino acids are excreted as nitrogen compounds.

Kyushu Agricultural Experiment Station News, No. 79 (2000)

Supplementing Feeds with Amino Acids Significantly Reduces Excreted Nitrogen Compounds

Unfortified feeds lack certain amino acids including lysine, threonine and tryptophan. By fortifying feeds with these amino acids animals can more effectively use the proteins they eat and excrete less excess amino acids as nitrogen compounds. The total nitrogen excretion can be reduced by about 30% and the one for ammonia by 50%. This reduces the burden for soil and water quality.