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What BETA 2025 Taught Us About Horse Nutrition, Fibre and Forage

  • Oct 8, 2025
  • 6 min read

Updated: Jul 17


At the end of September, I attended BETA International 2025, the UK's largest equestrian trade exhibition, where manufacturers, suppliers and retailers come together to discuss new products and developments across the industry.

Alongside the exhibition, several feed companies delivered educational presentations on equine nutrition. Naturally, these sessions reflected the products and expertise of the brands presenting them. However, despite representing different companies, several consistent themes emerged.

Across multiple presentations there was broad agreement that:

Sian Constantine at BETA 2025

  • Forage should remain the foundation of every horse's diet.

  • Bucket feeds and supplements are intended to complement forage, not replace it.

  • Most horses benefit from high-fibre diets with appropriate vitamins, minerals and protein.

  • Both good doers and performance horses often benefit from obtaining as much of their energy as possible from fibre before relying on higher starch feeds.

While very little attention was given to pasture quality or grazing management, grass, hay and haylage were consistently recognised as the primary forage sources for horses. Listening to the presentations reinforced how closely many of the nutritional principles being discussed align with the importance of healthy grazing systems.



What BETA 2025 Revealed About Fibre and Horse Nutrition

Dr. Katie Williams (Dengie Nutritionist) delivered two thought-provoking presentations.


In the first, she shared data showing that the energy intake of horses on grass often exceeded their needs, even when in light work, except during winter. With milder, wetter winters allowing more grass growth, she cautioned that winter grazing may soon supply too much energy as well. She explained that horses consuming the recommended 1.5–2.5% of their body weight in hay or other dry matter frequently exceed energy requirements, yet fall short in trace minerals such as copper, zinc, selenium, and vitamin E. This statement was based on data modelled using the PC Horse analysis software (https://pchorse.se/en/). 


To manage weight without restricting chew time, she suggested incorporating straw to dilute energy density, though this can also reduce nutrient intake according to further analysis with PC Horse. Her conclusion: even good doers benefit from a balancer containing copper, zinc, selenium, protein, lysine, iodine, and vitamins A and E.



Her second presentation focused on performance horses and poor doers. Drawing on Hodgson et al. (2014) and Connysson et al. (2021), she discussed how leakage of muscle enzymes can indicate delayed-onset muscle soreness (DOMS) or myopathies such as recurrent exertional rhabdomyolysis. Notably, studies show that Standardbred trotters fed forage-only diets had lower muscle enzyme activity post-exercise compared with those on high-starch diets.


She also cited Martin (2023), who found that high-fibre diets maintained muscle development without compromise, and that horses fed high-starch diets exhaled more CO₂, suggesting reduced metabolic efficiency. Her takeaway: both good doers and performance horses benefit from fibre-based diets with balanced trace minerals and adequate protein, particularly from alfalfa. It’s worth noting that Dengie’s flagship forage for supporting horses in work and poor doers is alfalfa, which naturally informs their recommendations, but the broader point about high-quality fibre and protein still holds true.


Can Diverse Pasture Improve Horse Nutrition?


One aspect that received relatively little discussion was the nutritional potential of diverse pasture itself. Much of the focus was understandably on balancing diets using manufactured feeds and supplements. However, many of the nutrients discussed are naturally present in a wide range of grasses, herbs, legumes and woody browse when healthy grazing systems are in place.


The table below provides a few examples of plant species that naturally contain some of the nutrients highlighted during the presentations. It is not intended to replace forage analysis or supplementation where appropriate, but to illustrate how increasing botanical diversity may contribute to a broader nutritional profile.

Nutrient

Natural Sources in the UK

Zinc

Ribwort plantain, Sainfoin, salad burnet, dandelion

Copper

Sainfoin, salad burnet, dandelion

Selenium

Ribwort plantain, red clover, Sainfoin, Birdsfoot trefoil, Alfalfa

Vitamin E

Sainfoin, red clover, and most fresh green material

Vitamin A

Wild carrot, red clover

Protein & Lysine

Red clover, Sainfoin, Vetchlings, Birdsfoot Trefoil

Iodine

Seaweeds (Kelp, Bladderwrack) and coastal plants (Sea beet, Sea plantain, Sea purslane, Samphire)

Plants can only provide what’s present in the soil. In the UK, selenium and copper are often low, and iodine is deficient inland. Vitamin E degrades in dried forage, so horses need access to fresh green material.


Improving pasture nutrition takes time and should always begin with understanding your own land. Soil testing can help identify nutrient deficiencies, while increasing plant diversity may broaden the range of nutrients available through grazing. Trees, hedgerows and deep-rooted species can also contribute to nutrient cycling and improve pasture resilience.


Practical approaches include:

  • Testing soil where appropriate to understand nutrient limitations.

  • Increasing botanical diversity with suitable grasses, herbs, legumes and wildflowers.

  • Encouraging horse-safe trees and hedgerows that provide additional browse and deep-rooted nutrient cycling.

  • Supporting healthy soil biology by maintaining organic matter and avoiding unnecessary soil disturbance.


While ecological improvements take time, they have the potential to improve pasture resilience, support biodiversity and reduce reliance on purchased forage over the long term.


Local Nature Recovery Schemes (LNRS) can help finance pasture optimisation initiatives that improve biodiversity and charities like the Woodland Trust give away trees and hedges to those willing to plant them.


Rebecca Watson: Gut Microbiomes and the Mind–Body Connection

The other standout talk came from Rebecca Watson, CTO at PlusVital, who explored the equine gut microbiome and its link to health, immunity, and behaviour.


She presented data showing that racehorses with more diverse microbiomes had fewer respiratory and orthopaedic issues and were more likely to succeed in training (Proudman, 2024). Her insights echoed much of what’s emerging across human and equine science. Gut health underpins nearly every aspect of performance and behaviour.


Of particular interest to me was the connection between microbiome diversity and early weaning. As I’ve previously discussed in “Grasses, Ryegrass and Laminitis”, foals weaned too early may miss out on critical microbial and behavioural learning from their dams.


Watson cited evidence that foals not weaned until around 50 weeks developed richer microbiomes (Long, 2024; Weese, 2011). A foal’s gut flora develops through the dam’s birth canal, milk, skin and coat, but also through environmental and forage diversity.


Stress, medications such as NSAIDs, antimicrobials, antacids, and likely dewormers, can all reduce microbial diversity. Watson advocated for a careful balance: treat horses when needed, but support gut recovery after stress or medical interventions with probiotics, prebiotics, and yeast supplements. She noted that while feeding live cultures alongside antibiotics is ineffective, yeast-based supplements can be used concurrently.


Our discussion afterwards touched on the soil–horse connection: healthier soil microbiomes likely support healthier horses, since they interact with soil directly through grazing and rolling. We also spoke about lesser-known forage sources such as fungi and mushrooms, and how they may contribute to both nutrient cycling and microbial diversity.


What I Took Away from BETA International 2025


Although the presentations naturally reflected the perspectives of individual feed companies, several messages were remarkably consistent.

  • Healthy horses depend on fibre.

  • Forage should remain the foundation of the diet.

  • Good nutrition is about far more than simply providing energy.

Where my own perspective differs is that I believe the conversation can start even earlier.


Before deciding which feed, balancer or supplement a horse may need, it's worth asking whether the grazing system itself is providing the widest possible range of fibres, plant species and natural nutrients.

  • Healthy soils support diverse plant communities.

  • Diverse plant communities support healthier forage.

  • Healthy forage supports the gut microbiome.

  • The gut microbiome influences almost every aspect of horse health.


Feed, balancers and supplements all have an important role for many horses, particularly where forage alone cannot meet nutritional requirements. However, they work best when they're supporting a healthy grazing system rather than compensating for one.


If you'd like to understand how horse nutrition, pasture diversity, grazing management and soil health interact, our recorded webinar Nature's Menu explores these principles in much more detail.


Our educational courses also explain how to assess your own pasture, understand why different management approaches work, and make confident decisions for your own horses and land.


Frequently Asked Questions


What is the best forage for horses?

For most horses, forage should form the foundation of the diet. Good-quality grass, hay or haylage provides essential fibre, while increasing botanical diversity may broaden the range of nutrients and fibres available through grazing. The ideal forage depends on the individual horse, its workload and any underlying health conditions.


Why is fibre so important for horses?

Horses evolved to digest fibre almost continuously. Fibre supports the hindgut microbiome, digestive health, normal behaviour and provides a major source of energy through fermentation. Most horses should obtain the majority of their calories from forage rather than high-starch concentrates.


Can pasture quality affect horse nutrition?

Yes. Soil health, plant diversity, grazing management and seasonal conditions all influence forage quality. Improving pasture doesn't remove the need for supplements in every situation, but it can increase dietary diversity and support healthier grazing systems.


Do performance horses still need forage?

Absolutely. Even horses with high energy requirements need forage as the foundation of their diet. Additional energy can then be supplied where necessary through appropriate feeds alongside good-quality forage.


Can diverse pasture replace balancers and supplements?

Not necessarily. Some nutrients remain deficient in many soils, and individual horses have different nutritional requirements. Diverse pasture should be viewed as strengthening the forage base rather than replacing appropriate nutritional advice.


References

Full references for studies I have cited directly are listed below. Research mentioned by Dr. Katie Williams and Rebecca Watson are referenced in-text as cited during their presentations.

 
 
 

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