The objective of this study was to evaluate the characteristics of the milk obtained from dairy cows fed a diet including mycorrhized maize during early lactation. MICOSAT F® containing symbiotic fungi, rhizosphere bacteria, saprophytic fungi and yeast was applied at maize sowing. A feeding trial was carried out with two groups of Italian Holstein dairy cows during early lactation. One group was fed a diet containing mycorrhized maize, and the other group was fed a diet containing nonmycorrhized maize.
The group fed mycorrhized maize (M) showed a significantly higher and smoother feed intake over the first period of the trial compared with the group fed nonmycorrhized maize. This trend suggests that the mycorrhized group was less subject to the physiological disorders caused by lack of energy during the first part of lactation.
The average daily milk yield was higher in modulus in the mycorrhized group (+1.6 kg) than in the nonmycorrhized group. The lactose content was higher in the M milk than in the nonmycorrhized milk. No significant difference was found in the somatic cell count (5.26 log₁₀/ml vs 5.32 log₁₀/ml). In addition to the somatic cell count, milk amyloid A was also used as a marker of mastitis. The value of milk amyloid A was higher in the milk of the group fed nonmycorrhized maize (NM) than in the group fed mycorrhized maize.
The use of mycorrhized maize led to an improvement in some milk quality traits, particularly the coagulation properties. The effect of mycorrhized maize on the milk quality and properties reflects the positive effect on the animals’ overall condition, confirmed by a higher dry matter intake. We speculate that treatment could affect some intrinsic characteristics of the maize and ration, such as palatability and degradability.