ADDITIVES ▶▶▶


GAA boosts pig and poultry performance


Increasing muscle bulk is a key objective for profitable pig and poultry production. The nutrient content of feed is obviously an important factor, but there are less obvious nutrients that also play a significant role. One such nutrient is guanidinoacetic acid (GAA).


BY LUKAS BAUER AND JOHN HTOO, EVONIK G


plus GAA 460 450 440 430 420 410 400 390 380


455a 1.62


AA is an amino acid derivative that is metabolised in the liver to produce to creatine, which in turn plays an essential part in energy metabolism in muscle cells. Among other metabolic roles, cre-


atine acts as a high-energy reserve for the ADP/ATP (adeno- sine diphosphate/adenosine triphosphate) system which makes muscles work. More than 90% of the body’s store of creatine is found in the muscles, but other high energy tis- sues such as brain, bone and sperm also need a good supply in order to work efficiently. Feed raw materials are often unable to supply sufficient cre- atine for the body’s day-to-day needs: plant protein sources don’t contain any creatine at all, and animal protein sources have widely varying creatinine contents. Pigs and poultry can


Figure 1 – Comparative weight gain and FCR for pigs receiving a control diet, energy-reduced diet, and energy-reduced diet


452a 411b 1.55 1.55


1.64 1.62 1.60 1.58 1.56 1.54 1.52 1.50


Control Weight gain 36 Energy-reduced Feed conversion ratio ▶ ALL ABOUT FEED | Volume 30, No. 3, 2022


Energy-reduced plus GAA


synthesise some GAA from the amino acids glycine and argi- nine in renal tissues, but in young, fast-growing animals it is estimated that this accounts for only two thirds of the amount required for optimal growth. Research has confirmed that GAA supplementation can in- crease the level of creatine in muscles by 10-20%, depending on the dose. For example, supplementing the diet of grow- er-finisher pigs with GAA has been shown to improve feed conversion ratio (FCR), growth rate, and meat quality. The question for producers is how to use this knowledge to their best advantage.


Two options The advent of proven GAA feed supplements for farm animals gives producers a choice of different feed strategies. One op- tion is to add a GAA supplement to the existing diet. This has the potential to improve return on investment by enhancing FCR, increasing body weight gain and meat yield, but those gains have to be offset against the cost of the supplement. The second option is to add GAA to the diet, allowing the re- duction of existing high-cost ingredients, such as oils, and thus cut feed costs without losing performance. A study carried out at the Zootests Research Center in France


The environmental impact of the broiler life cycle from egg to slaughter has shown an improvement of about 1.9% when GAA is added to a standard diet.


Weight gain, g/d


FCR, kg feed/kg weight gain


PHOTO: HENK RISWICK PHOTO: PETER J.E.ROEK


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