History of Animal Nutrition

Dr. P. K. Malik
Assistant Professor, (Animal Nutrition)
Navsari Agricultural University, Navsari 396 450
email: malikndri@gmail.com
History of animal nutrition

Year Contribution
1743-1791 Antoine Lavoisier, who frequently referred as founder of
animal nutrition. He introduced balance and thermometer
in nutrition studies. He also discovered that combustion
was an oxidative process. He further told that respiration
involved the combination of C and H with inspired O2 and
that of CO2 given off. With Laplace, he designed a
calorimeter and demonstrated that respiration is the
essential source of body heat.
1788 Crawford and Lavoisier developed water jackated and ice
jackated chamber calorimeters.
1804 A. Thaer noted that well cured hay kept the animals in
good conditions for a long time. He developed the Thaer
hay equivalent of 10lb of meadow hay.
Stephem M. Babcock opined that when the animals are
1843-1931 fed on a diet composed of various plant sources, one can
not predict the contribution of each ingredient for the
animal needs
 History of animal nutrition
Year Contribution

1836 Magendie: first to separate foods into protein, fat and carbohydrates

1842 Leibig opined that protein, fat and carbohydrates are the components of
food which burned in the metabolism.

1855 G. Haubner was the first to conduct digestion trial and to discover that fiber
is infect partly digestible.

1860-1864 The principle of total digestible nutrients system emerged in Germany,

perhaps in Liebeig,s University and from the use of Henneberg and
Stohmann,s table.
1864 Henneberg and Stohmann developed the system for proximate analysis at
Weende Research Station, Germany.

Regnault and Reiset developed a close circuit respiration chamber and

conducted refined measurements

1885 Rubner formulated the Isodynamic law. Food nutrients are interchangeable
on an energy equivalent basis.
History of animal nutrition
Year Contribution

1844-1907 W.O. Atwater constructed first human respiration calorimeter for farm
animals, which he later employed in his pioneer studies of heat
production.
1847-1920 Nathan Zuntz did the pioneer work in the field of basal metabolism
and in respiration studies with farm animals. He developed the first
portable respiration apparatus.
1851-1921 He constructed a respiration calorimetery for farm animals and
studied heat production in cattle.

1902 Rubner formulated or popularized the surface law. According to

which, heat production in body is equivalent to 1000KCal/m2 surface
area.
1910 J. L. Hills first time used the term TDN
History of animal nutrition
Year Contribution

1921 Laboratory of Physiological Chemist was established at IARI, Pusa Bihar

under the headship of Dr. F. J. Warth

1923 Physiological Chemist Laboratory was shifted to Imperial Institute of Animal

Husbandry and Dairying at Banglore

1923 Lander and Dharmani started the proximate analysis in India at Layalpur,
Faislabad (now in Pakistan)

1928 Animal Nutrition Division at Indian Veterinary Research Institute, Izatnagar

was established under the chairmanship of lord Linlinthgow
History of animal nutrition
Year Contribution
1935 Physiological Chemist Laboratory was again shifted from Banglore to IVRI,
Mukhteshwar

1952 4 Regional Research stations at Anand, Banglore, Kalyani and Palampur

were established to conduct the research in animal nutrition

1953 Work up to the period of 1948 in animal nutrition was compiled by Sen in
monogram entitled “Animal nutrition research in India”

1956 Dairy Cattle Nutrition Dept. was started at National Dairy Research Institute,
Karnal

1961 Kleiber observed that heat production from animal body is most appropriate
with body weight raised to the 3/4

1967 Indian Council of Agricultural research started “ all India coordinated research
project (AICRP) on utilization of agro-industrial by products” at 4 centers
which latter on extended to the 8 centers.
1970,s Species wise animal science institute were established under the ICAR
throughout the India with Animal Nutrition Dept. to conduct the research on
species specific nutritional aspects.
History of animal nutrition
Year Contribution

Dr. N. D. Kehar, Dr. K. C. Sen and Dr. S. N. Ray laid the solid foundation for animal
nutrition research in india. In early 1970,s Dr. U. B. Singh at IVRI and Dr. S. P. Arora,
V. D. Mudgal, Dr. B. N. Gupta worked on rumen digestion and metabolism by using
radioisotopes.

1970 P. J. VanSoest developed the fibre analysis system.

1978 Chemical Composition of indian feedstuffs has been compiled by

Sen, Ray and Ranjhan.

1995 National Institute of Animal Nutrition and Physiology was established

at Banglore.

2000 Hulbert and Else provide an extensive review mechanism underlying

of metabolic rate or the cost of living. The review suggested that
increasing proportion of active organs per BW accounts for part the
high metabolic rate of small animals.