Fortification of dairy goats’ products with various selenium sources

The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of two dietary selenium (Se) sources in dairy goat’s milk and cheese. Twentyone goats were allocated to 3 dietary treatments: control (C) with 0.07 mg of Se/kg dry matter (DM); Se yeast (SeY) with 0.14 mg of total Se/kg DM; and sodium selenite (SeNa) with 0.14 mg of total Se/kg DM supplementation. Individual blood and milk samples were collected to determine the Se content. Three cheese wheels were made from each group at three different time, and the Se content was determined. The enumeration of dairy microorganisms was also performed. The SeY group showed a significantly higher milk Se content (P<0.05) than the SeNa group with 44.71 vs 39.29 μg/l, respectively. Both values were also significantly higher (P<0.01) than that of the group C (31.19 μg/l). The SeY group showed a significantly higher Se carryover value (31.29%, P<0.05) than the SeNa group (26.95%). Both values were significantly (P<0.01) lower than in the C group (49.66%). Significant differences were also observed in cheese Se content among the 3 groups. The average Se content in cheeses from groups C, SeY, SeNa was 230 μg/kg, 353 μg/kg and 306 μg/kg, respectively. Se yeast supplementation influenced Se concentration in goat’s milk and cheese but, unlike other authors, we also observed an increase of Se concentration in milk and cheese supplemented with SeNa, although to a smaller extent. Our results indicate that Se yeast supplementation seems to be the best fortification source for dairy goat’s products. In several countries the selenium intake is considered to be low in the human diet, the consumption of Se-enriched products could represent a good way to prevent the deficit in the Se intake currently reported in many countries.