Heat stress is the body's physiological response to an imbalance between ambient temperature and the heat it produces, taking the animal outside its comfortable thermoneutral zone

Programme 1.
Increase feed intake, optimise digestion, minimise productivity losses and support reproductive function. This helps stabilise body temperature, improve feed palatability and the supply of energy and nutrients, and maintain reproduction by sustaining feed intake and digestibility during heat stress.

Programme 2.
Stabilise body temperature, prevent nutrient losses from feed and preserve palatability while maintaining feed intake and digestibility, which is particularly important in summer.

Diagram: adverse consequences of heat stress in ruminants

Increasing dietary energy and protein, feeding in the evening, and using fans and sprinklers can help cool animals and maintain feed intake. However, cows may still move outside their thermoneutral zone, resulting in milk losses. The aim is therefore to minimise the adverse effects of heat stress on biological processes and production performance. Specialised feed additives provide an additional tool.


LIVE YEAST

Active Yeast contains highly active yeast strains at 2 × 10¹⁰ CFU/g. They support rumen digestion, stabilise rumen pH and stimulate cellulolytic bacteria. This improves feed digestion, increases milk fat and microbial protein production in the rumen, and supplies additional energy and nutrients. Microbial protein is a major amino acid source for the cow.

Dosage for cows: 10 g/head/day.


PLANT EXTRACTS AND ESSENTIAL OILS

OleobiotEc is a combination of digestive and metabolic regulators. It is designed to increase feed intake, stimulate saliva production, optimise carbohydrate and protein nutrition, balance the gastrointestinal microbiota and enzyme production, and minimise the effects of pathogens on physiological processes.

• The active essential-oil components carvacrol, thymol and cinnamaldehyde promote antioxidant processes and production of glutathione, a major antioxidant in the body. It neutralises free radicals and facilitates their removal, helping prevent oxidative stress, disease and reduced productivity. These components also have antibacterial and anti-inflammatory properties, providing protection against pathogens.
• Carefully selected combinations of spice extracts and essential oils can improve feed flavour, intake and digestibility. This allows cattle to obtain more energy from feed, supporting liveweight gain, reproduction, productivity and product quality.
• Spice extracts stimulate saliva production and bicarbonate recycling. Bicarbonate is a natural buffer that helps maintain blood pH; the normal ratio of HCO₃⁻ to CO₂ is approximately 20:1 (Baumgard et al., 2006).

Dosage for cows: 2 g/head/day.


ORGANIC ACIDS

BelAchid

Organic acids stimulate the growth of Selenomonas ruminantium, a dominant rumen bacterium accounting for 21–51% of rumen bacteria. This increases microbial biomass and the production of volatile fatty acids and propionate. Changes in blood flow as the body protects itself against overheating damage intestinal epithelial cells and reduce resistance to pathogens. These processes impair immunity and nutrient absorption and can cause diarrhoea, worsening losses of water and electrolytes and the energy deficit. BelAchid is an organic acid blend that stimulates Selenomonas ruminantium, which accounts for 21–51% of rumen bacteria. This increases rumen microbial biomass, volatile fatty acids and propionate. The acids also have strong antimicrobial and fungicidal activity in both feed and the animal, helping prevent feed heating and fermentation at the feed bunk. They provide an additional energy source through the Krebs cycle.


Dosage for cows: 50–100 g/head/day.


ELECTROLYTES AND METABOLIC REGULATORS

Neotherm combines components that help prevent heat stress and minimise its adverse effects. It improves resilience, supports restoration of alkaline balance, prevents dehydration, normalises circulation, respiration and thermoregulation, and optimises metabolism. It reduces oxidative reactions while maintaining reproductive performance.

Dosage for cows: 70–120 mL/head/day.


ANTIOXIDANTS

Winox is a natural organic source of vitamin P that protects animals against oxidative processes during heat stress while maintaining reproductive function.

It suppresses pathogenic fungi, including Fusarium and Aspergillus, and bacteria, including Listeria, Pseudomonas, E. coli, Staphylococcus aureus and Aeromonas hydrophila. It protects neurons, macrophages and cell membranes from lipid peroxidation and increases glucose and lipid metabolism. Its active components also promote protective intestinal mucus formation, reduce histamine, serotonin and arachidonic acid synthesis, and increase progesterone secretion. Grape seed extract supports oocyte maturation and embryo development, reduces oxidation of vitamins E and C in feed and increases their activity in the animal.

Dosage for cows: 200–250 g per tonne of compound feed.