The canola oil industry generates significant waste as canola meal (CM) which has limited scope and applications. This study demonstrates the possibility of valorization of CM as a sustainable natural filler in a biodegradable polymer composite of Poly(lactic acid) (PLA). Generally, interfacial bonding between natural fibers and the polymer matrix in the composite is weak and non-uniform. One possible solution is to derivatize natural fibre to introduce interfacial bond strength and compatibility with the PLA polymer matrix. Here, CM was succinylated in a reactive extrusion process using succinic anhydride at 30 wt% to get 14% derivatization with 0.02 g of -COOH density per g of CM. The CM or succinylated CM at 5 and 15 wt% was co-extruded with amorphous PLA to get composite fibers. CM-PLA and succinylated CM-PLA biocomposites were foamed using a mild and green microcellular foaming process, with CO2 as an impregnating agent without any addition of organic solvents. The properties of the foams were analyzed using differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), Dynamic mechanical thermal analysis (DMTA), shrinkage, and imaging. The addition of CM or succinylated CM as a natural filler did not significantly change the glass transition temperature, melting point, percent crystallization, stiffness, and thermal stability of PLA foams. This suggests succinylation (modification) of CM is not a mandatory step for improving interphase compatibility with the amorphous PLA. The new PLA-CM foams can be a good alternative in the packaging industry replacing the existing petroleum-based polymer foams.

Apparent ileal digestibility (AID) of P, apparent total tract retention (ATTR) of P, and phytic acid disappearance in canola meal were evaluated in the presence of increasing levels of exogenous phytase. In Experiment 1, a precision-fed rooster assay was used to determine phytic acid (myo-inositol 1,2,3,4,5,6-hexakis; InsP6) and inositol phosphate (InsP6-3; InsP-P) disappearance in conventional and cecectomized Leghorn roosters. Roosters were crop intubated with 25 g of canola meal mixed with 0, 500, 1,000, or 2,000 FTU/kg of exogenous phytase. In Experiment 2, InsP6 and InsP-P disappearance and AID and ATTR of P were determined using ad libitum-fed broiler chickens. Treatments consisted of semi-purified diets containing 45% canola meal as the sole source of P. Phytase was added to increase phytase activity by 0, 500, 1,000, or 2,000 FTU/kg. Experiments contained 6 replicates per treatment. Canola meal contained a high phytase activity (1,630 FTU/kg as-fed) due to contamination with a commercially available phytase at the feed mill from which the canola meal was sourced. In Experiment 1 with precision-fed roosters, there was no effect (P > 0.05) of phytase or bird type on InsP6 and InsP-P disappearance; however, phytase linearly reduced (P < 0.05) InsP3 concentrations in excreta. In Experiment 2 with ad libitum-fed chickens, phytase linearly increased (P < 0.05) ileal InsP6 and InsP-P disappearance, and phytase had a quadratic effect (P < 0.05) on excreta InsP6 and InsP-P disappearance. Increasing dietary phytase activity resulted in a linear increase (P < 0.05) in AID of P and phytase had a quadratic effect (P < 0.05) on ATTR of P. In conclusion, titration of high levels of phytase (1,600 to 3,600 FTU/kg as-fed) reduced InsP3 concentrations in precision-fed roosters but did not affect overall phytic acid hydrolysis, which was 78% or greater for all treatments; however, increasing the total phytase activity from 700 to 2,700 FTU in ad libitum-fed broiler chickens increased phytic acid disappearance and P digestibility.

Canola (Brassica napus L.) meal represents a prominent alternative plant-based source for protein isolation. This work aimed to investigate the combined effect of extraction and purification methods for the production of canola protein isolates (CPIs). CPIs were characterized in terms of process yield, protein recovery, basic composition, amino acid profile, in vitro protein digestibility, techno-functional properties, structural properties, and molecular features. The results showed that the Alk-Uf method enhanced yield (16.23 %) and protein recovery (34.88 %). Meanwhile, the Et-Alk-Uf method exhibited the highest crude protein (89.71 %) and free amino nitrogen (4.34 mg g protein-1) contents. Furthermore, protein digestibility (95.5 %) and protein digestibility corrected amino acid score (1.0) were improved using the Et-Alk-Ac method. Conversely, the amino acid composition, secondary structure, and electrophoretic profiles were generally similar for all CPIs. The Alk-Uf and Et-Alk-Uf methods produced isolates with the highest water solubility (∼39.18 %), water absorption capacity (∼3.86 g water g protein-1), oil absorption capacity (∼2.77 g oil g protein-1), and foaming capacity (∼505.26 %). Finally, the foaming stability (93.75 %) and foaming density (34.38 %) were increased when employing the Alk-Ac method. These findings suggest that, in general, the Alk-Uf and Et-Alk-Uf methods can be used to obtain CPIs with high added value for use in food formulations.

In order to evaluate the effects of ARG sources (arginine [ARG] and Guanidinoacetic acid [GAA]) and phenylalanine (PHE) supplementation on performance, susceptibility to ascites, intestinal morphology, and nutrient digestibility in the cold-stressed broilers fed a canola meal (CM)-based diet, a 2×2 factorial experiment with four treatments was conducted. The dietary treatments included CM-based diet + 2.57 g/kg ARG, CM-based diet + 2.57 g/kg ARG + 1.5 g/kg PHE, CM-based diet + 1.8 g/kg GAA and CM-based diet + 1.8 g/kg GAA + 1.5 g/kg PHE. The corn-CM diet without supplementation was used as a negative control (NC) group in the fifth treatment that excluded the factorial arrangement. The results showed that adding ARG to diets without PHE supplement increased (p < 0.05) feed intake. Also, birds fed diets containing ARG had higher (p < 0.05) body weight gain (BWG) compared to those fed GAA added diets. Supplementation of PHE improved (p < 0.05) the FCR compared to groups fed diets without added PHE. Further, ARG addition increased (p < 0.05) plasma nitric oxide (NO) concentration, carcass, breast and leg yields, duodenal, jejunal, and ileal villus height (VH) to crypt depth (CD, and dry matter digestibility, while decreasing (p < 0.05) ascites mortality and right ventricle (RV) to total ventricle (TV) ratio compared to GAA added groups. Supplementation of PHE also declined susceptibility to ascites by reducing (p < 0.01) RV to TV ratio while increasing (p < 0.05) plasma NO level. The digestibility of ether extract also increased (p < 0.05) in broilers fed GAA supplemented diets versus those fed ARG added diets. The findings suggested that ARG may improve BWG and lower ascites incidence in broilers fed a diet based on CM under cold stress because of its antihypertensive effects. Moreover, the findings of this study demonstrated the importance of including PHE formulation in ARG-deficient diets to attenuate the adverse effects of cold stress on broilers. It was also concluded that GAA could be efficaciously used in cold-stressed broilers fed an ARG-deficient diet.

The objectives of this experiment were to determine the AMEn content of different samples of corn gluten meal (CGM) and canola meal (CM) by a reference diet method and to develop prediction equations based on the chemical composition to estimate the AMEn value of CGM and CM in broilers. A total of 300 one-day-old male broiler chicks were randomly assigned to fifteen treatments (14 experimental diet and 1 reference diet) with 4 replicates of each with 5 birds per replicate. At first, birds were fed a starter diet from 0 to 10 d of age, and then, a grower diet from 11 to 23 d of age. To determine the AMEn content, the test diet consisted of 60% reference diet, 38% each test CGM or CM, and 2% minor ingredients. To adaptation, the broilers were fed experimental diets for 4 d, and then feces were collected on 28 d. The gross energy values and chemical compositions among the CGM and CM from different origins were significantly different. The AMEn values of the CGM samples varied from 3,123 to 3,918 kcal/kg, and for the CM, the range was from 1,578 to 2,109 kcal/kg. At the end of the experiment, data were analyzed with SPSS software, and a regression equation was obtained based on the chemical composition. The best equations were selected based on the standard of prediction and regression adjusted R2. The equation, AMEn = 49.196 × CP + 80.87 × EE (SEP 180.99; adjusted R2 0.97), was selected to predict the AMEn value of CGM, and the equation, AMEn = 631.55 × EE + 16.716 × CP (SEP 55.3; adjusted R2 0.94), was selected to predict the AMEn value of CM.

OBJECTIVE: The present study is to examine the effect of high inclusion of co-products in pig diets (referred to as an alternative diet) during the finishing stage on pig growth performance, meat quality and boar taint compounds.
METHODS: Growing pigs were fed an alternative diet made with distillers dried grains with solubles (25%), canola meal (20%), and wheat middling (15%) or a control diet based on barley and soybean meal to investigate the impact of co-products on pig performance and meat quality. Sixteen female and sixteen entire male Duroc×(Large White×Landrace) pigs (22.6±2.07 kg, body weight±standard error) were equally allocated to the diets.
RESULTS: Pigs fed the alternative diet had a lower feed intake; however, growth rate and feed conversion efficiency were unaffected by diet. A diet by sex interaction was found for gain:feed whereby males fed the alternative diet had the best feed conversion (p<0.01). Pork from pigs fed the alternative diet had lower a* and Chroma and protein % (p<0.05), while other meat quality characteristics were unaffected. The alternative diet reduced backfat skatole levels (p<0.001).
CONCLUSIONS: A diet containing high inclusion levels of co-products can be fed to pigs during the finishing stage without detrimental effects on pig performance or meat quality and with the potential to enhance pork flavour. This finding suggests a solution to increase the sustainable development of pig production.

This study was performed to investigate the effect of feeding Brassica spp. including full-fat rapeseed, canola meal, and allyl isothiocyanate (AITC) to broiler chicken challenged with E. maxima. A total of 576 one-day old male broiler chicks were completely randomized to 8 treatments with 6 replicated cages and 12 birds per cage. The treatment diets consisted of nonchallenge control (NC, corn-SBM based diet), challenge control (CC), 10% rapeseed (10RS), 30% rapeseed (30RS), 20% canola (20CLM), 40% canola (40CLM), 500 ppm AITC (500AITC), and 1,000 ppm AITC (1000AITC). At d 14, all birds were challenged, except NC group, with a subclinical dose of E. maxima. Intestinal permeability was conducted on 5 d post-infection (dpi) and for oocyst shedding 5 to 6 dpi feces were pooled and collected. On 6 dpi, growth performance, lesion score, histomorphology, and gene expression were measured. The growth performance result showed that 10RS and 30RS groups had lower BW, BWG, FI, and higher FCR (P < 0.0001). During the challenge and overall periods, NC group had highest BW, BWG, and FI, and lowest FCR. The inclusion of canola meal showed lower performance during prechallenge period but was able to catch up BWG during challenge period. The AITC levels showed similar growth performance to CC group. Intestinal permeability for 20CLM, 40CLM, 500AITC and 1000AITC was similar to NC group, whereas CC, 10RS, and 30RS had higher permeability compared to NC (P < 0.0001). Oocyst shedding was significantly lower for 40CLM and NC, whereas all other treatments had higher oocyst shedding (P < 0.0001). All the challenged treatment groups had higher lesion score and microscore than NC (P < 0.0001). Histomorphology data showed that jejunum villus height (VH) for 1000AITC was similar to NC group, whereas CC group had the lowest VH (P = 0.01). The 30RS group had lower VH: crypt depth (CD) ratio in the jejunum and ileum. The gene expression at 6 dpi for claudin1, occludin, IL2, IL6, GLUT5, EAAT, BoAT, and LAT1 was significantly changed among the treatments. The results suggest that 30RS retards growth performance and deteriorate gut health during coccidiosis and should not be fed to chicken during the starter phase. Canola meal showed decline in growth prechallenge but maintained growth and intestinal health during the challenge period at 40% inclusion. AITC at 1,000 ppm showed similar growth as control group, but with improved gut health during the challenge period. Canola meal could be a good alternative to SBM especially during coccidiosis, whereas AITC needs to be tested vigorously in animal feeding regime.

It is hypothesized that heat processing may increase P digestibility in different protein sources fed to growing pigs. A study was conducted to determine the apparent total tract digestibility (ATTD) and standardized total tract digestibility (STTD) of P in soybean expeller (SBE) produced from oil extraction using dry extrusion and expelling and to investigate the effects of heat treatment on the ATTD and STTD of P in SBE, canola meal (CM), and canola expeller (CE) fed to growing pigs. Thirty-six growing barrows with an initial body weight of 19.0 ± 1.0 kg (mean ± SD) were assigned to 1 of 6 experimental diets in a completely randomized design to give 6 replicates per diet. The experimental design was a 3 × 2 factorial arrangement including three oilseed meals with or without heat treatment. The diets were formulated to contain non-autoclaved or autoclaved (at 121 °C for 60 min) SBE, CM, and CE as the sole source of P. Limestone was included in diets to maintain a Ca:total P ratio of 1.3:1 across diets. Pigs were individually housed in metabolism crates for 12 d, including 7 d for adaptation and 5 d for total collection of feces. Pigs were offered their daily ration at 2.8 times their maintenance energy requirement. Data were analyzed using the PROC MIXED of SAS. Heat treatment increased (P < 0.05) the ATTD and STTD of P. Pigs fed the SBE diets had greater (P < 0.05) ATTD and STTD of P than pigs fed CM and CE diets. For the autoclaved ingredients, the values of STTD of P were 49.4%, 23.2%, and 25.8% for SBE, CM, and CE, respectively, whereas STTD of P in non-autoclaved SBE, CM, and CE were 48.5%, 20.2%, and 22.5%. Heat treatment increased (P < 0.05) the ATTD of Ca. In conclusion, heat treatment increased ATTD and STTD of P and ATTD of Ca in SBE, CM, and CE fed to growing pigs. The ATTD and STTD of P in SBE determined in the current study were 41.0% and 48.5%, respectively.

RapidOxy® 100 is an automated instrument originally designed for measuring the oxidative stability of both solid and liquid samples. The compact and portable design of RapidOxy® 100, and its built-in pressurized heating chamber, provides a suitable environment for studying processing conditions. The feasibility of using oxygen or an inert atmosphere provides the ideal environment to study the effect of dry heat pre-treatment on canola antioxidants. The current study used RapidOxy® 100 to examine the impact of pressurized dry heat pre-treatment, under nitrogen, on the ultrasonic extraction of phenolic compounds. The effect of different pre-treatment temperature-time combinations of 120, 140, 160, and 180°C for 2, 5, 10, 15, and 20 min on the subsequent extraction of canola phenolic compounds was examined. The major sinapates identified by HPLC were sinapine, sinapic acid, and canolol. The optimum RapidOxy® condition for the maximum recovery of canolol was 160°C for 10 min. RapidOxy® 100 proved to be a novel and versatile instrument for enhancing the extraction of phenolic compounds.

An experiment was conducted to evaluate the effects of including canola meal (CM) in diets for weaning pigs challenged with a F18 strain of Escherichia coli on growth performance and gut health. A total of 36 individually housed weaned pigs (initial body weight [BW] = 6.22 kg) were randomly allotted to one of the three diets (12 pigs/diet). The three diets were corn-soybean meal (SBM)-based basal diet (control diet) and the basal diet with 0.3% zinc oxide, 0.2% chlortetracycline, and 0.2% tiamulin (antibiotic diet) or with 20% CM diet. The diets were fed in two phases: Phase 1: days 0 to 7 and Phase 2: days 7 to 20. All pigs were given an oral dose of 2 × 109 CFU of F18 strain of E. coli on day 7. Fecal score was assessed daily throughout the trial. Dietary antibiotics increased (P < 0.05) overall average daily gain (ADG) and average daily feed intake (ADFI) compared by 48% and 47%, respectively. Dietary CM increased (P < 0.05) overall ADG and ADFI by 22% and 23%, respectively; but the ADG and ADFI values for CM-containing diet did not reach those for the antibiotics-containing diet. Dietary antibiotics reduced (P < 0.05) fecal score; however, dietary CM unaffected fecal score. Dietary antibiotics decreased (P < 0.05) liver weight per unit live BW by 16% at day 20, whereas dietary CM did not affect liver weight per unit live BW (29.2 vs. 28.6). Also, dietary antibiotics increased (P < 0.05) serum triiodothyronine and tetraiodothyronine levels for day 14, whereas dietary CM did not affect the serum level of these hormones. Dietary antibiotics reduced (P < 0.05) the number white blood cells and neutrophils by 38% and 43% at day 20, respectively, whereas dietary CM tended to reduce (P = 0.09) the number white blood cells by 19% at day 20. The number white blood cells for CM diet tended to be greater (P < 0.10) than that for antibiotics diet. The dietary antibiotics decreased (P < 0.05) the concentration of individual volatile fatty acids and hence of total volatile fatty acid in cecum by 61% at day 20, whereas dietary CM decreased (P < 0.05) cecal butyric acid concentration by 61% and tended to reduce (P < 0.10) total volatile fatty acid concentration by 30% at day 20. In conclusion, the dietary inclusion of 20% CM improved ADG and tended to reduce white blood cell counts. Thus, inclusion of CM in antibiotics-free corn-SBM-based diets for weaned pigs that are challenged with F18 strain of E. coli can result in their improved performance partly through a reduction of the inflammatory response.