Our objective was to better understand the importance of flavor and nu
trients in food preferences of lambs. Three foods differing in flavor
and nutritional quality were created by grinding and mixing grape poma
ce, barley, alfalfa pellets, and soybean meal in different proportions
: food 1 (2.21 Mcal/kg DE, 8.1% DP), food 2 (2.42 Mcal/kg DE, 11.0% DP
), and food 3 (2.68 Mcal/kg DE, 13.8% DP). Intake of each food, offere
d singly and together, was assessed when foods 2 and 3 were flavored w
ith 1% onion or 1% oregano. Lambs (n = 24) preferred food 3 > 2 > 1, r
egardless of flavor (P < .05), and they continued to prefer food 3 > 2
> 1, even when they received the toxin LiCl after eating one of the t
hree foods (P < .05). When offered a choice, lambs always ate substant
ial amounts of all three foods, even though they might have been expec
ted to eat food 3 exclusively. We hypothesize selection of a varied di
et resulted from a decrease in preference for food just eaten as a res
ult of sensory input (taste, odor, texture, i.e., a food's flavor) and
postingestive feedback (effects of nutrients and toxins on chemo-, os
mo-, and mechano-receptors) unique to each food. Thus, we submit that
offering different foods of similar nutritional value, offering foods
of different nutritional value, and offering the same food in differen
t flavors are all means of enhancing food preference and intake.