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Animal mechanisms research is spawning new strategies to enhance natural Conjugated Linoleic Acid levels in dairy and beef products.

Cow not producing enough milk? Steer gobbling too much feed for what it produces? No problem, just take it in for a tune up.

That may still remain far-fetched, but in reality the study of "animal mechanisms" – in essence, the mechanics of how cattle work and how they produce what they produce – is playing a major, increasingly important role in creating a bright future for dairy and beef industries and for consumers who enjoy those products.

"There's great potential," says Dr. Erasmus Okine, a leading researcher and educator in ruminant nutrition. "To use the car analogy, it's a matter of looking more under the hood – in this case, inside the rumen and other key parts of the animal - to see how things work and look for ways to support or fine tune important processes."

Today, much of Okine's work involves using the animal mechanisms approach to examine how cattle produce conjugated linoleic acid (CLA).

This may not yet be a question on the tongue tips of producers and industry leaders, but its answer could mean hundreds of millions dollars annually for Canada's dairy and beef industries, along with new health-boosting food options for consumers.

CLA is a type of beneficial fat produced by ruminant animals that is found naturally in dairy and beef products. Though little has been known about CLA and its effects, early animal studies, primarily over the past decade, have indicated this unique food component has considerable potential for a range of human health benefits related to cancer, heart disease, obesity, diabetes, kidney disease and bone density.

"The more we understand about how CLA is produced in the animal, the better we can develop strategies to optimize and enhance the level of CLA that is transferred to dairy and beef products," explains Okine, Chair of the Department of Agricultural, Food and Nutritional Science at the University of Alberta. "It's a very important area to help open the door to new marketing opportunities based on natural CLA, as well as to generate potential for increased production efficiencies."

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'Cattle mechanics' explore the inner frontier