Preliminary Feasibility of Near-Infrared Spectroscopy to Authenticate Grazing in Dairy Goats through Milk and Faeces Analysis.

Consumers are increasingly prone to request information about the production systems of the food they buy. For this purpose, certification and authentication methodologies are necessary not only to protect the choices of consumers, but also to protect producers and production systems. The objective of this preliminary work was to authenticate the grazing system of dairy goats using Near-Infrared Spectroscopy (NIRS) analyses of milk and faeces of the animals. Spectral information and several mathematical pre-treatments were used for the development of six discriminant models based on different algorithms for milk and faeces samples. Results showed that the NIRS spectra of both types of samples had some differences when the two feeding regimes were compared. Therefore, good discrimination rates were obtained with both strategies (faeces and milk samples), with classification percentages of up to 100% effectiveness. Discrimination of feeding regime and grazing authentication based on NIRS analysis of milk samples and an alternative sample such as faeces is considered as a potential approach for dairy goats and small ruminant production.