Performance of crossbred steers post-weaned in an integrated crop-livestock system and finished in a feedlot

Abstract

The objective of this work was to evaluate the performance of crossbred steers post-weaned in an integrated crop-livestock system (ICL) and finished in a feedlot, fed either a high-level concentrate diet or whole corn with no roughage. Weaned calves of two breed groups – ½ Angus × ½ Nellore, and ½ Charolais × ¼ Angus × ¼ Nellore – were allotted in a completely randomized experimental design (CRD). During the rainy season, the ½ Angus × ½ Nellore animals showed a higher performance than the ½ Charolais × ¼ Angus ×¼ Nellore ones, with 0.748 and 0.490 kg average daily gain, respectively. The productivity in the post-weaning period was 926 kg ha^-1 body weight in a 11-month period, in the ICL system. Subsequently, the animals were confined and fed high-concentrate diet or whole corn with no roughage, in a CRD with a 2×2 factorial arrangement. In the feedlot, the ½ Charolais × ¼ Angus × ¼ Nellore animals showed lower values for carcass average daily gain, carcass yield, and slaughter weight than the ½ Angus × ½ Nellore animals. The high productivity in the ICL shows that this strategy, associated with the use of crossbreeding during the post-weaning and finishing stages, can be indicated for the new demand for a sustainable livestock activity.