Suchergebnisse

Una corretta nutrizione degli animali d'allevamento permette di ottenere un adeguato livello produttivo e di benessere delle specie allevate, assicurando nel contempo il raggiungimento di ottimali caratteristiche qualitative dei prodotti derivati, in modo da garantire al consumatore alimenti che soddisfino i requisiti richiesti di sicurezza e salubrità e presentino un adeguato valore nutrizionale. In questo contesto, l'applicazione di strategie nutrizionali, inclusa l'aggiunta di additivi, utilizzati per migliorare le caratteristiche nutrizionali dei mangimi, può svolgere un ruolo determinante nella moderna zootecnia e costituisce uno dei temi principali del quadro normativo dell'Unione Europea. Nel presente elaborato sono presentati quattro studi in vivo che valutano gli effetti della dieta sulle performance quanti qualitative di polli da carne e suini; in particolare si sono considerati alcuni interventi quali l'impiego di emulsionanti, di un estratto polpe di oliva ad elevato tenore di polifenoli e di un probiotico nell'intero ciclo produttivo del pollo da carne, mentre per quanto riguarda la specie suina, l'integrazione dell'estratto polpe di oliva ad elevato tenore di polifenoli ha riguardato il periodo compreso tra la fine della gestazione e lo svezzamento dei suinetti, considerati due dei momenti più delicati dell'allevamento di questa specie. La prima prova sperimentale prevedeva l'integrazione di un emulsionante sintetico a 1200 pulcini ROSS 308, equamente suddivisi in maschi e femmine e suddivisi in 4 gruppi costituiti da 12 recinti e 25 animali ciascuno. E' stato utilizzato un disegno sperimentale multifattoriale 2x2 che permette di confrontare il trattamento alimentare (C vs T) e il sesso. L'additivo è stato somministrato in dosi di 1g/kg dal giorno 0 al giorno 12, 0,75g/kg dal giorno 12 al giorno 22 e di 0,5g/kg dal giorno 22 al termine della prova (37 giorni per le femmine e 44 per i maschi). Durante lo svolgimento della prova sono stati valutati i principali parametri produttivi (PV, IMPG, FI e ICA), mentre in fase di macellazione sono stati prelevati campioni di sangue, di tessuto epatico e del contenuto cecale per le successive analisi; è stato inoltre prelevato il petto per la determinazione della resa della carcassa e della qualità della carne. I risultati hanno mostrato che la supplementazione con emulsionante ha aumentato il peso vivo al giorno 12 (P=0.02), l'incremento ponderale nel primo periodo (0-12 giorni; P=0.06) e la resa alla macellazione (P=0.02). Relativamente alla qualità della carne, il gruppo trattato ha mostrato un significativo incremento dell'indice b* (P0.05), la concentrazione di composti fenolici presenti nel fegato rispecchia il livello crescente di integrazione; in aggiunta, è stata osservata una modificazione non significativa dell'espressione dei geni sopra riportati. In conclusione, la somministrazione dell'additivo oggetto della prova ha apportato dei lievi benefici, che tuttavia appaiono interessanti considerando il breve ciclo produttivo dei polli da carne. La terza prova sperimentale ha previsto l'integrazione dell'estratto di polpe di oliva, oggetto della precedente prova, a 18 scrofe pluripare (fase 1), omogenee per età e ordine di parto, suddivise in due gruppi sperimentali di 9 soggetti ciascuno (controllo = C e trattato = T), per un periodo di circa 40 giorni (da circa due settimane prima della data prevista del parto al termine della lattazione). Il gruppo T ha ricevuto una dieta basale (C) addizionata con l'estratto di oliva in quantità di 1,25kg/ton. Al termine della lattazione (25d), tutti i suinetti nati (n=180) sono stati suddivisi in 4 gruppi sperimentali costituiti da 45 soggetti e 9 repliche ciascuno (fase 2), per una durata di 42 giorni. I suinetti appartenenti al gruppo Ctr-Ctr, provenivano da madri C e non hanno ricevuto l'estratto, il gruppo CtrT, proveniva da scrofe controllo, ma ha ricevuto l'additivo; il gruppo T-Ctr nato da madri T non ha ricevuto l'integrazione, infine i soggetti appartenenti al gruppo T-T, nati da scrofe trattate, hanno ricevuto l'estratto di oliva. La fase 2 è stata suddivisa in due periodi (prestarter 0-14d e starter 1542d) e le diete degli animali T sono state integrate con 5,0 e 2,5kg/ton di estratto di oliva, rispettivamente nel primo e nel secondo periodo. Durante la fase 1, sono stati raccolti dati relativi alla condizione corporea e ai parametri riproduttivi delle scrofe, nonché campioni di colostro, per determinare la concentrazione totale di polifenoli e la capacità antiossidante dello stesso. Durante lo svolgimento della fase 2 sono stati invece valutati i principali parametri produttivi dei suinetti (PV, IMPG, FI e ICA). I risultati relativi alla fase 1 non hanno mostrato differenze significative in seguito all'integrazione dell'estratto; tuttavia i parametri produttivi e riproduttivi del gruppo T sono risultati superiori. Per quanto riguarda le analisi del colostro, il potere antiossidante delle scrofe trattate era statisticamente più elevato (P=0.05) rispetto al gruppo C, sebbene la concentrazione di polifenoli totali non ha riportato variazioni significative tra i due gruppi (P>0.05). La fase 2 ha presentato dei risultati più interessanti; il gruppo T-Ctr ha mostrato un maggiore peso vivo al giorno 42 (P=0.03) e un maggior IMPG nel secondo periodo (14-42d) e come media complessiva (0-42d) (P=0.03 e P=0.05, rispettivamente) rispetto al gruppo Ctr-T. Inoltre, l'indice di conversione alimentare (ICA), la resa alimentare e la resa alla trasformazione del gruppo T-Ctr hanno riportato valori statisticamente significativi (P0.01) rispetto agli altri gruppi sperimentali. In conclusione, l'integrazione dell'estratto oggetto della prova ha mostrato i migliori risultati sulle performance dei suinetti, sottolineando l'importanza del latte materno come veicolo di sostanze funzionali e suggerendo possibili effetti benefici del composto d'interesse sulle condizioni generali di salute degli animali; tuttavia l'impiego di estratti vegetali in alimentazione animale presenta un quadro molto complesso, caratterizzato dalla presenza e dall'interazione di molti fattori differenti. La quarta prova sperimentale ha valutato gli effetti della somministrazione di un probiotico costituito da Lactobacillus farmaciminis e L. rhamnosus sulle performance produttive di 960 pulcini ROSS 308 di sesso maschile per una durata di 48 giorni. Gli animali sono stati suddivisi in 4 gruppi sperimentali, costituiti da 12 recinti e 20 soggetti ciascuno; i 3 gruppi trattati (T1, T2 e T3) erano alimentati con una dieta base (CTR) integrata con 600, 400 e 200g/ton di probiotico, rispettivamente. Durante lo svolgimento della prova sono stati valutati i principali parametri produttivi (PV, IMPG, FI e ICA); mentre in fase di macellazione è stato prelevato il petto per la determinazione della resa della carcassa. I risultati relativi alle performance di crescita non hanno evidenziato differenze significative per i parametri analizzati, inoltre, non è stata osservata alcuna differenza statistica per quanto riguarda i rilievi alla macellazione, resa e peso del petto (P>0.05). Per concludere, la somministrazione del probiotico oggetto della prova non ha modificato i parametri considerati, tuttavia non sono da escludere possibili effetti dell'additivo sulla modulazione della flora microbica intestinale e sulle proprietà qualitative delle carni. In tal senso, saranno necessari ulteriori e più approfonditi studi per analizzare le conseguenze sul metabolismo generale di animali a rapida crescita. Analizzando i risultati ottenuti nelle prove sperimentali, è possibile affermare che l'integrazione di sostanze ad azione benefica nell'alimentazione degli animali da reddito è in grado non solo di modificare in maniera significativa i principali parametri di crescita degli stessi e la qualità dei prodotti destinati al consumatore, ma anche di migliorare le condizioni generali di benessere e influenzare positivamente l'equilibrio intestinale degli stessi. ; Optimal animal nutrition allows adequate productive performance and correct welfare conditions of livestock species; moreover, it ensures animal's products with high-quality characteristics that meet safety and security requirements for the consumers and guarantees a suitable nutritional value. In this context, the application of nutritional strategies, including the supplementation of additives, used to improve feed nutrition, may play a significant role in livestock production; it also represents an important issue in the regulatory framework of the European Union. In this paper, four in vivo trials are presented to evaluate the dietary effects on the quali-quantitative performance of broiler chickens and pigs. In particular, the use of synthetic emulsifiers, a polyphenols-enriched olive pulp extract and a probiotic was considered in the whole production cycle of broiler chicken. Whereas, the polyphenol-enriched olive pulp extract was added in the diet of sows and piglets to investigate the positive effects of this supplementation in two critical moments of the productive system of this species: the peripartum of the sows and the weaning of piglets. In the first experimental trial, a total of 1200 one-day-old ROSS 308 broiler chicks were assigned to four experimental groups consisting of 15 pens with 25 birds per pen. A 2×2 factorial design was applied to compare the different dietary treatments [control diet (CTR) or diet supplemented with AVI-MUL TOP (AMT) at 1g/kg from d 0 to 12, 0.75g/kg from d 12 to 22 and 0.5g/kg from d 22 to 44] and gender. Growth performance (BW, ADG, FI and FCR) were determined on days 0, 12, 22, 37 and 44 for males. One female chick (day 37) and one male chick (day 44) from each pen were chosen on BW basis and slaughtered to collect blood, liver samples and caecum content and to determine the dressing and breast muscle percentages. AMT supplementation increased BW on day 12 (P=0.02), ADG from day 0 to 12 (P0.05) on the growth parameters and caecum microbiological analysis among the groups; while the dietary supplementation significantly improved the b* index (yellowness) of animal skin (P=0.003). The extraction and quantification of total polyphenols and the expression of some lipid metabolism related genes (PPARα, ATGL, ACACA, CPT-1, ACOX and FASN) were performed from hepatic samples. The hepatic concentration of phenolic compounds did not show any statistical differences (P>0.05) among the groups, although it reflects the supplementation level. No statistical differences were also found in the gene expression. In conclusion, the olive pulp extract showed minor benefits on the growth performances, which however appear interesting considering the short production cycle of these animals. The third experimental trial was divided into two phases to investigated the effects of the polyphenolsenriched olive pulp extract supplementation on the performance of sows and piglets. During phase 1, 18 multiparous sows, homogeneous by age and birth order, were assigned to two experimental groups of 9 animals each. The dietary treatment were control diet (C) or diet supplemented with 1.25kg/ton of olive pulp extract (T). The compound of interest was added to the diet for a period of about 40 days (from two weeks before the expected date of birth to the end of lactation). Body condition and reproductive parameters were analyzed and colostrum samples were collected to determine the total polyphenols concentration and the antioxidant activity. In phase 2, 180 newborn piglets, homogeneous by body weight, were assigned to four experimental groups consisting of 45 animals and 9 replicates each. The Ctr-Ctr piglets were born from control sows and did not receive the extract, the Ctr-T group was composed by control sow's piglets who received the compound; the T-Ctr piglets group was born from treated sows and they did not receive the olive pulp extract and the T-T group was composed by treated sow's piglets who received the extract. Phase 2 was divided into two periods (prestarter from d 0 to 14 and starter from d 15 to 42) and dietary treatments were control diet (Ctr) and diet supplemented with 5.0 and 2.5kg/ton of olive pulp extract (T) in the first and second period, respectively. Growth performance (BW, ADG, FI and FCR) were determined on days 0, 14 and 42. The supplementation did not show any significant differences (P>0.05) in phase 1; however, it was observed that the body condition and reproductive parameters of the treated animals were higher than the control group. The antioxidant activity of T sows was statistically higher (P=0.05), although the total polyphenol concentrations did not show significant variations (P>0.05) between the two groups. In phase 2, the T-Ctr group showed higher body weight at day 42 (P=0.03) and higher ADG during the second period (14-42d) and overall (0-42d) (P=0.03 and P=0.05, respectively) compared to the other groups. Moreover, FCR, carcass yield and transformation yield of the T-Ctr group were statistically significant (P≤0.01) compared to the other experimental groups. In conclusion, the supplementation of the compound of interest showed the best results on the piglets' performance, underlining the importance of milk as a vehicle of functional substances and suggesting possible beneficial effects on the general health conditions. In the fourth experimental trial, a total of 960 one-day-old ROSS 308 male broiler chicks were assigned to four experimental groups consisting of 12 pens with 20 animals per pen.The dietary treatments were control diet (CTR) and diet supplemented with 600, 400 and 200g/t of METALACT (T1, T2 and T3, respectively). The probiotic additive was composed by a mixture of Lactobacillus pharmacimis and L. rhamnosus and supplemented for a period of 48 days. Growth performance (BW, ADG, FI and FCR) were determined on days 0, 11, 22 and 48. At the end of the trial, one chick from each pen was chosen on BW basis and slaughtered to determine the dressing and breast muscle percentages. The METALACT supplementation did not showed any significant differences (P>0.05) on the growth parameters investigated. In conclusion, the probiotic did not modify the growth performance, but it is not possible to exclude possible beneficial effects on modulation of the microbial intestinal flora and on the qualitative properties of the meat. The overall results showed that the dietary supplementation of beneficial substances is not only able to significantly modify the animal's growth performance and the quality of the products, but it is also able to improve the general welfare conditions and the intestinal balance of the livestock species.

This article discusses the proliferation of on-line commercialism on the Internet and the various problems related to the increase of commercialism. Spamming, which is defined as the distribution of large amounts of unsolicited information, has been the major form of commercialism and arguably the most problematic. The article emphasizes the attempts to reduce the problem of on-line commercialism through preventative measures, such as self-governance on the Internet. While the author states that self-governance may be a solution to the problem of excessive commercialism, he also states that self-governance may give rise to problems, such as intervention by the federal government and anti-trust violations. The formation of trade associations for the Internet is one way to address the problem of on-line commercialism on the Internet. Trade associations can implement standards which bring uniformity to Internet regulations. Trade associations exist primarily to aid users of the Internet in more efficient and effective use of the Internet. One main goal of trade associations is to encourage self-regulation, which may in turn discourage intervention from the government. However, as the author states, trade associations create greater problems than they solve. According to the author, executives of private companies are also members of trade associations, and there is sometimes a tendency for the companies to attempt to suppress competition. These companies may use trade associations as a tool to harm on-line competition, which inevitably invoke antitrust. Finally, the analysis explores some of the cases in which the Sherman Act was at issue due to the attempt of trade associations to create standards for of self-governance on the Internet.

This article discusses the proliferation of on-line commercialism on the Internet and the various problems related to the increase of commercialism. Spamming, which is defined as the distribution of large amounts of unsolicited information, has been the major form of commercialism and arguably the most problematic. The article emphasizes the attempts to reduce the problem of on-line commercialism through preventative measures, such as self-governance on the Internet. While the author states that self-governance may be a solution to the problem of excessive commercialism, he also states that self-governance may give rise to problems, such as intervention by the federal government and anti-trust violations. The formation of trade associations for the Internet is one way to address the problem of on-line commercialism on the Internet. Trade associations can implement standards which bring uniformity to Internet regulations. Trade associations exist primarily to aid users of the Internet in more efficient and effective use of the Internet. One main goal of trade associations is to encourage self-regulation, which may in turn discourage intervention from the government. However, as the author states, trade associations create greater problems than they solve. According to the author, executives of private companies are also members of trade associations, and there is sometimes a tendency for the companies to attempt to suppress competition. These companies may use trade associations as a tool to harm on-line competition, which inevitably invoke antitrust. Finally, the analysis explores some of the cases in which the Sherman Act was at issue due to the attempt of trade associations to create standards for of self-governance on the Internet.

This book analyzes the impacts that family control of firms has on capital structure choices, leverage and the risk of financial distress, earnings management practices, and the relation between accounting choices and firm market value. For these purposes, longitudinal data on Italian family and non-family non-financial firms are closely analyzed. The Italian setting is of special interest in this context because family businesses account for 94% of GDP, families are particularly committed to maintaining control of firms, and the economy is bank based rather than market based. The analyses draw on the socioemotional wealth approach, which emphasizes the importance of the stock of emotional value in family firms, in combination with financial theories such as Pecking Order Theory, Trade-off Theory, and Agency Theory. The findings cast significant new light on differences between family and non-family firms and the effects of different forms of family influence. The book will have broad appeal for academics, managers, practitioners, and policymakers.

The authors investigate the question of whet her qualitative characteristics are likely to explain the survival of family firms in case of financial distress and whether these variables improve the explanatory power of quantitative variables in clarifying the different probability of distress between family and non-family firms. They focus their attention on the impact of the controlling owner and, using the Socioemotional Wealth theory (SEW), study the role of the family involvement in mitigating or accentuating the likelihood of distress. Using a dataset of 1,137 Italian family and non-family firms during 2004–2013, the authors found that family firms are significantly less likely to incur distress than non-family firms. The board dimension and the number of family members on board affect the probability of distress even controlling for some firm risk characteristics such as beta and ROA volatility, and there is also evidence of a gender mitigating effect in case of a female CEO.

This paper addresses the issue of financial communication quality by studying the determinants of earnings management practices in family and non-family businesses. Previous literature has highlighted the effect of a company's size, as a form of visibility, on earnings management practices. This study focuses on the analysis of the relationship between different forms of visibility—exposure to financial press, proximity to the consumer, size of assets, sales and firm age—and earnings quality. The results show that the forms of visibility taken into consideration have a different effect on earnings management practices. Furthermore, they show that family businesses are less likely to resort to these unethical practices, especially in the presence of financial press exposure and proximity of the business to the consumer.

This review describes the principal causes of poor welfare in beef cattle and veal calves raised in intensive husbandry systems in Italy. Nowadays there are no specific regulations in force for beef cattle welfare. However, a document produced in 2001 by the Scientific Committee on Animal Health and Animal Welfare of the European Commission on Health and Consumer Protection identified the main causes of inadequate welfare levels in the different cattle rearing systems in Europe. In Italy and in the Po Valley in particular, the beef cattle farms are mainly finishing units characterised by animals kept at high density in multiple pens and fed high starch diets. Under these rearing conditions the limited space allowance is one of the most important issues impairing animal welfare. Other risk factors for poor welfare related to the housing structures are type of floor, space at the manger, number of water dispensers and lack of specific moving and handling facilities. Microclimatic conditions can be critical especially during the summer season when cattle can experience heat stress. The feeding plan adopted in the Italian beef farms may be another factor negatively affecting the welfare of these animals due to the low content of long fibre roughage which increases the risk of metabolic acidosis. In the veal calf rearing systems there has been a mandatory introduction of the new system of production according to the European Council Directives 91/629/EEC and 97/2/EC. Farms had to adopt group housing and to provide calves with an increasing amount of fibrous feed in addition to the all-liquid diet. Despite this specific legislation, several risk factors for calves' welfare can still be identified. Some of them are related to the housing system (type of floor, air quality, feed and water supply equipment and lack of loading facilities) and some others to the feeding plan (type and amount of roughage, quality of milk replacers). Recent studies have shown that the welfare of veal calves and beef cattle can be severely affected by the quality of the stockmanship and particularly by negative human-animal interaction.

In this paper, we investigate the relationship between common risk factors and average returns for Italian stocks. Our research has identified the Italian stock market's economic variables by using the results from factor analyses and time series regressions.We study several multi‐factor models combining the relevant macroeconomic variables with the mimicking equity portfolios SMB (small minus big) and HML (high minus low) proposed by Fama and French (1993). The key question we want to ask ourselves, is whether the influential role of the size and book‐to‐market equity factors in explaining average stock returns can stand up well when competing with some macroeconomic factors. In other words, do stock returns carry some risk premium that is independent of either the market return or the economic forces that underlie the common variation in returns?Our empirical work estimates risk premiums using both traditional two‐pass procedures and one‐pass (full information) methodologies. We show that only the market index and variables linked to interest rate shifts are consistently priced in the Italian stock returns. The role of other factors, and in particular both the size and the price‐to book ratio, are crucially dependent on the estimation procedure.(J.E.L.: G11, G12).