Challenges of Trace Mineral Diagnosis

Trace elements deficiencies are commonly seen in cattle herds in Europe and in some parts of the USA. Many reasons are involved: economics of the cattle industry, nutrients formulation and legislation, depletion of soil and roughages quality. The clinical signs of the deficiencies are rarely pathognomonic but loss of production, impaired reproduction performances or increased morbidity/mortality rates are mostly observed. In a European critical economic context, especially for milk production, it is not easy to convince the farmer to invest in diagnosis and/or trace mineral supplementation. Nevertheless, it is important to investigate the nutritional status of the herd to improve global herd health. This presentation aims to present the interest of the diagnosis of trace mineral deficiencies as well as the different manners to investigate this nutrition trouble at a herd level. Trace mineral supplementation solutions will be briefly discussed.