Published online by Cambridge University Press: 20 November 2017
Increasing the ratio polyunsaturated:saturated fatty acids (P:S) in beef muscle by nutrition is hampered by the high levels of ruminal biohydrogenation of dietary polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA). Effective ruminal protection of dietary fatty acids, such as that provided by encapsulation of PUFA in formaldehyde-treated protein may ameliorate this situation. This study evaluated the effects of including in the diet a ruminally protected lipid supplement (PLS), containing linoleic (C18:2) and α -linolenic (C18:3) acids, on the fatty acid composition of the m. longissimus.