Brief Summary of Minutes of Annual Meeting

In addition to the annual face-to-face meeting, conference calls are scheduled regularly throughout the year.  Minutes from conference calls and meetings, as well as a strategic plan update, are included in the attachment.

A major undertaking lead by the Coordinating Committee in conjunction with representatives of both the Feed Composition and Modeling committees was to initiate a significant overhaul of the NANP website. A website sub-committee was formed to oversee changes based on user and NANP member feedback. Several potential vendors/contractors were identified and interviewed. A contractor was selected and engaged to create a new underlying structure that incorporates a content management system that designated committee members can manage while continuing to facilitate use of the data resources already created and being used by the stakeholder community. The initial redesign has been completed and launched under www.animalnutrition.org.  NANP members have been surveyed for feedback and improvements in response are ongoing. The new site provides for better user navigation and interface while allowing for faster content updates with many of the changes targeted for younger professional stakeholders who are capable with, and demanding of, state-of-the-art technological advancements.

As part of the website revamp, the committee decided to revisit the domain names owned by the NANP.  The committee desired a publication-friendly URL that was easier to remember than the previous www.NANP-NRSP-9.org.  The current URL was obtained and used for the new website, though the previously published domain is still owned by NANP and continues to direct users to the new site.  Outside funding was secured to cover the costs of purchasing the new domain name.

NANP has had success in securing significant in-kind support from industry for populating the feed ingredient database, particularly for beef.  Of note was the acquisition of the amino acid ingredient data from Evonik. Solicitations of contributions to the database for other species are continuing in 2017. 

Major accomplishments toward meeting the project’s objectives and anticipated outcomes include:

• Completed dairy cattle feed composition database and auxiliary tables for the upcoming National Academies of Science, Engineering and Medicine (NASEM) Nutrient Requirements of Dairy Cattle report.
• Under the new website platform, the Feed Composition Committee has begun developing a single feed ingredient database for all species (the previous website hosted separate databases for each species). This will provide a better underlying database structure and facilitate the addition of new data and its use by all species rather than the individual species for which it was input. Though individual studies will still be identifiable within the resource, the results can be filtered by species, constituent, etc.
• Pursued the development of a multispecies interface for diet optimization using the NASEM/NRC models. The group has made strides in navigating the legal issues related to altering the NASEM source code and restricting use for educational (including extension) purposes. Specific disclaimer language is being finalized for use in conjunction with source code access.
• Worked with Elsevier to improve the utility of the Scopus data they are providing for the Global Animal Nutrition Expert Network (GANN); search terms were developed by the committee and provided to ensure better capture of relevant literature and expert contacts. An updated dataset has been received and is being reviewed by the database developer to ensure integration with the existing GANN website will go smoothly.
• An all-day modeling workshop was held during the 2017 American Dairy Science Association Meeting in Pittsburg, PA. The workshop provided hands-on experience with several modeling approaches.  The workshop’s maximum capacity of 100 attendees was met with a waiting list of more than 10 others desiring to participate.  Costs of the workshop were offset by a modest registration fee, the inclusion of which, obviously, did not negatively impact attendance. Over half of the participants completed an evaluation survey, the result of which will be used to design future workshops. Respondents indicated a mean satisfaction rating of 8 on a 10-point scale.
• Symposia are being planned for 2018. A proposal titled “The Future of Livestock Research: Knowledge Gaps, Data Collection and Quality, and the Role of Supporting Tools for Sustainable Production” was submitted by the Modeling Committee for the summer ASAS meeting and was accepted for presentation. A proposal for another symposium on a discussion and review of either the small ruminant or swine NASEM/NRC reports is being discussed for submission to the Western or Midwest regional meeting.  
• Evaluation of the progress and impact of the NANP program to date was initiated. An internal review and update of the project’s strategic plan was used to chart progress toward objectives to date and outline strategies for the near- and long-term.  To better assess the impact of NANP, an external program evaluator has been engaged by the Coordinating Committee to conduct a review. The evaluation is expected to be completed in early 2018. 

Additional detail on accomplishments and activities can be found in the attached meeting minutes and strategic plan update.

R. White, Y. Roman-Garcia, J. L. Firkins, M. J. VandeHaar, L. E. Armentano, W. P. Weiss, T. McGill, R. Garnett, and M. D. Hanigan. 2017. Evaluation of the National Research Council (2001) dairy model and derivation of new prediction equations. 1. Digestibility of fiber, fat, protein, and nonfiber carbohydrate. J. Dairy Sci. doi: 10.3168/jds.2015-10800.

R. R. White, Y. Roman-Garcia, J. L. Firkins, P. Kononoff, M. J. VandeHaar, H. Tran, T. McGill, R. Garnett, and M. D. Hanigan. 2017. Evaluation of the National Research Council (2001) dairy model and derivation of new prediction equations. 2. Rumen degradable and undegradable protein. J. Dairy Sci. doi: 10.3168/jds.2015-10801.