The NRC covers the dietary and nutrient requirements for horses based on breed, age, exercise intensity, and reproductive state (i.e., pregnant or lactating). | Photo: iStock

The National Research Council’s Nutrients Requirements for Horses, which lists the appropriate nutrient levels that should be included in equine diets, could be getting an update in the future. But how and when does an update to such an important resource happen? And how might the public be able to help an update come to fruition? Here’s what you need to know.

Established by an Act of Congress and signed by President Abraham Lincoln in 1863, the National Academy of Sciences (NAS), is a private nonprofit society of distinguished scholars charged with providing independent, objective advice to the nation on matters related to science and technology. The National Research Council was established in 1916 as a NAS operation to investigate how the study of science and resulting data could help develop American industries and contribute to national security. Since then, the NAS and the National Research Council have provided independent, objective advice to a variety of agencies, including the USDA and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDS).

In 1989, the National Research Council published the first edition of Nutrient Requirements of Horses (colloquially called the NRC), which covered the dietary and nutrient requirements for horses based on breed, age, exercise intensity, and reproductive state (i.e., pregnant or lactating)