Impact of the flour of Jerusalem artichoke on the production of methane and carbon dioxide and growth performance in calves.

Aim: The aim of the research was to evaluate the growth performance, to measure the amount of methane (CH ₄ ) and carbon dioxide (CO ₂ ) in calves' rumen, and to compare the obtained results between the control group (CoG) and the experimental group (Pre12) which received the additional supplement of the prebiotic inulin.
Materials and Methods: The research was conducted with ten Holstein Friesian ( Bos taurus L.) crossbreed calves with an average age of 33±6 days. Calves were split into two groups: 5 calves that were fed with the control non-supplemented diet (CoG) and 5 calves that were fed with the same diet further supplemented with 12 g of flour of Jerusalem artichoke ( Helianthus tuberosus L.) containing 6 g of prebiotic inulin per 0.5 kg of barley flour diet (Pre12). The duration of the experiment was 56 days. CH ₄ and CO ₂ were measured using cavity ringdown spectroscopy device Picarro G2508. The weight and samples from calves' rumen were evaluated 3 times during the experimental period - on the 1 ^st , 28 ^th , and 56 ^th days. Samples were obtained by puncturing the calf rumen.
Results: The weight gain (kg) during the whole experimental period was higher in the Pre12 (65.8±6.57) compared to CoG (36.8±7.98) calves (p<0.001). The daily weight gain was also increased in the Pre12 (1.2±0.12) than CoG (0.7±0.14) calves (p<0.001). There was no difference in the levels of CH ₄ and CO ₂ produced in the rumen of CoG and Pre12 calves (p>0.05).
Conclusion: The main results showed that the prebiotic inulin can promote weight gain in calves, without affecting the mean concentration of CH ₄ and CO ₂ in calves' rumen.