The effects of minor oilseeds cakes on rumen metabolism and productive performances of ruminants

Abstract The article focuses on the chemical composition, nutritional value and the effects of four minor oilseeds’ cakes when used in ruminants’ nutrition. Although less abundant than the well-known major oilseeds, mechanical extraction of oils from the minor oilseeds retrieves important quantities of cakes which, beside a high content of crude protein have variable, yet important proportions of residual fat, upon the efficiency of the extraction processes and retains some nutritional properties of the seeds, including the content in bioactive substances. The browse of the literature on minor oilseeds cakes retrieved scattered and contradictory data, implying a need for systematic comparison, among them and against a reference feed. Although specific literature is scarce, a number of articles reported the chemical composition of the four cakes, allowing their hierarchization and their comparison with the rapeseed cake, considered as reference feed. On the other hand, the review identified numerous knowledge gaps, concerning the effects of the four cakes on rumen metabolism and their effects on animals’ productive performances. However, the literature review confirmed that the four cakes can be good substitutes of rapeseed cakes or similar feeds in ruminants’ nutrition, as long as the potential effects of bioactive substances taken into consideration.