PHOTO: RONALD HISSINK


PHOTO: MICHEL ZOETER


NEWS ▶▶▶ Piglet’s gut profits from adding fibres


Functional fibres in diets in pre-weaning nu- trition can positively alter gut health and the function of the gastro-intestinal tract (GIT). The article in All About Feed’s sister publica- tion – Pig Progress – addresses that there is a growing need to provide suckling piglets ap- propriate supplemental feeding. This is main- ly due to larger litters, which are putting pres- sure on sows to produce more milk. As a result, a gap has arisen between the quantity of milk sows can produce and the amount of energy and protein piglets in large litters need. Trouw Nutrition aims to further explore ways of optimising supplemental milk and/or feed to accelerate the development of the young GIT into a healthy and well-matured organ. Recent work at the company’s Swine Research Centre in the Netherlands has shown that selected fibres are important die- tary constituents in this respect. In one study for example, wheat bran (fibre) was added to the milk supplement and dry creep feeds (re- placing corn starch). The results were com- pared with a conventional low-fibre (control)


China’s corn price remains high


A healthy GIT system is key for pigs.


group. All sows were managed in the same way, and weaning took place at 3.5 weeks. Overall, the high-fibre treatment resulted in a numerical improvement in the intake of dry matter from supplemental feed (817g com- pared to 450g), while weaning weights were not significantly affected. The most striking differences, however, were found in the dimensions of the small and large intestines.


Impact of larvae further explored


In the coming four years, scientists from Wageningen University & Research in the Netherlands, together with the industry will investigate whether insect larvae are a sus- tainable source of nutrition for piglets and broilers. For the first time the full environ- mental impact will be identified. This will determine whether providing in- sects could lead to a reduction of the envi- ronmental impact of livestock production. At the same time, the potential benefits for chicken and pig welfare will be explored. There is growing awareness of the potential contribution of insects as livestock feed to the sustainability of meat production, but facts are lacking at this moment. That is the reason for starting a research pro- ject in spring 2018, in which researchers and industry join forces to assess the sustainabili- ty of feeding insect larvae to pigs and broil- ers. Wageningen researchers will conduct the research using a unique, multidiscipli- nary approach. The project focuses on the


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environmental and welfare effects of provid- ing black soldier fly larvae (a non-harmful insect) to chickens and pigs. This project will, for the first time, assess a complete nutrient balance of insects that grow on different waste streams. This makes it possible to determine the integral environmental impact of feeding these insects. Researchers want to find an- swers to questions such as: How efficient do the insects grow on different waste streams, what do they excrete and what is the envi- ronmental impact of this? Can insect larvae serve as environmental enrichment for pigs and broilers and, in this way, reduce welfare problems? The project, which will be carried out by two PhD students and a technician, is subsidised by division Applied and Engineering Sciences (TTW) of the Netherlands Organisation of Scientific Research (NWO). In addition, For- Farmers N.V., HatchTech B.V. and Bestico B.V. invest in the project.


▶ ALL ABOUT FEED | Volume 25, No. 10, 2017


China’s corn price remains stable in this har- vesting season, due to less output of corn, hindered by extreme weather occurrences. The harvesting season of corn in China in September and October is traditionally the times when new corn is brought into the market which lowers the price significantly. This year, the price of corn remains high and the main reason can be found in extreme weather occurrences in the major corn planting region of Northeast China. On the one hand, the output of corn in China was lowered significantly, due to drought occurrences in the traditionally corn-plant- ing area of northern China. Those have forced farmers to switch their crops to soybeans and other substitute grains. On the other hand, the beginning of Octo- ber has witnessed persistent rainy weather, which has not only hindered the corn har- vesting, but also made transportation much more difficult and hence slowed down the market supply.


Risk profile Canada changed


For Canada, the risk profile for Aflatoxin B1 changed from ‘Medium’ to ‘Low’. This means that maize originating from this country has to be analysed less frequently. This is the re- sult of the regular evaluation of the available analysis results of Aflatoxin B1 in maize by GMP+ International, together with other accepted scheme holders. The results are gathered in the GMP+ Monitoring database.


Canadian maize is a bit safer now.


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