Chromium Concentration in Soil, Feeds and Plasma of Animals in Chittoor District of Andhra Pradesh

Heavy metal such as chromium is potential bioaccumulative toxins of dairy production system. The heavy metal content of dairy feeds however, remains poorly documented, particularly in India. In this survey chromium content of 142 soil, 142 water, 608 dairy ration components and 790 plasma samples of crossbred cattle sampled from 66 mandals of Chittoor district of Andhra Pradesh was detected. The chromium concentration in soil was below the permissible limit, the dry forages like paddy straw and groundnut straw contained Cr to a considerable extent (<1.6 mg/Kg), while all the green forages except Sweet Sudan Grass did not contain chromium in detectable concentration. Highest chromium concentration was found in particularly mineral mixtures and to a lesser extent in concentrates like rice bran, wheat bran home made concentrate mixtures and compounded cattle feeds. Plasma chromium concentration of anoestrous cows was more (P<0.01) followed by pregnant cows, heifers, anoestrous heifers and lactating cows. The study indicated that there are no toxic levels of chromium in soil and dairy feeds.