Sludge Watch ==> Feeding cattle distillers grain causes EcoliO157 to spike

[Maureen Reilly]

K-STATE researchers find that feeding cattle a byproduct of ethanol 
production causes E. coli O157 to spike
04.dec.07
K-State Media Relations
Erinn Barcomb-Peterson

MANHATTAN -- Ethanol plants and livestock producers have created a symbiotic 
relationship. Cattle producers feed their livestock distiller's grains, a 
byproduct of the ethanol distilling process, giving ethanol producers have 
an added source of income.

But recent research at Kansas State University has found that cattle fed 
distiller's grain have an increased prevalence of E. coli 0157 in their 
hindgut. This particular type of E. coli is present in healthy cattle but 
poses a health risk to humans, who can acquire it through undercooked meat, 
raw dairy products and produce contaminated with cattle manure.

"Distiller's grain is a good animal feed. That's why ethanol plants are 
often built next to feedlots," said T.G. Nagaraja, a professor of diagnostic 
medicine and pathobiology at K-State's College of Veterinary Medicine.

The growth in ethanol plants means more cattle are likely to be fed 
distiller's grain, therefore harboring 0157 and potentially a source of 
health risks to humans, Nagaraja said. That's why he and Jim Drouillard, 
K-State professor of animal sciences, have been collaborating on testing 
distiller's grain-fed cattle for 0157. Nagaraja and Drouillard, who studied 
the carcass quality of cattle fed distiller's grain, are joined by Megan 
Jacob, a K-State doctoral student in pathobiology. Through three rounds of 
testing, Nagaraja said the prevalence of 0157 was about twice as high in 
cattle fed distiller's grain compared with those cattle that were on a diet 
lacking the ethanol byproduct.
"This is a very interesting observation and is likely to have profound 
implications in food safety," Nagaraja said.


Food safety and animal health are research priorities at K-State, which 
since 1999 has dedicated more than $70 million on research related to animal 
health and food safety. More than 150 K-Staters are actively involved in 
these areas.

Nagaraja said research in the next few years will focus on finding out why 
0157 is more prevalent in cattle fed a distiller's grain diet. He said it 
could be something that changes in the animals' hindgut as a result of 
feeding distiller's grains, or maybe the byproduct provides a nutrient for 
the bacteria.
"Feeding cattle distiller's grain is a big economic advantage for ethanol 
plants," Nagaraja said. "We realize we can't tell cattle producers, 'Don't 
feed distiller's grain.' What we want to do is not only understand the 
reasons why 0157 increases, but also find a way to prevent that from 
happening."