Table 2 – Trial performed on a Danish commercial farm testing a dual strain probiotic in grower- finisher pigs.
Average Daily Gain, g/day Feed Conversion Ratio, g/g
Control 922 2.62
Probiotic** 1,016 2.42
** Probiotic product consisting of Bacillus subtilis and Bacillus licheniformis Source: Internal data.
Table 3 – Effect of a dual strain pro- biotic consisting of Bacillus subtilis and Bacillus licheniformis on mor- tality in grower-finisher pigs.
Country Control,% DK 3.1 NL 2.4 PL 3.9 ES 3.1
Probiotic**, % 2.1 1.8 3.3 0.7
** Probiotic product consisting of Bacillus subtilis and Bacillus licheniformis Source: Internal data.
Artist’s impression of Bacilli.
36 nursery trials, it was found that both average daily gain (ADG) and feed conversion ratio (FCR) were improved significantly (Figures 1a and 1b). Whereas antibiotics are often perceived as working every time, or efficacy is rarely challenged, a lot of natural feed ad- ditives have struggled with a reputation that there is not al- ways consistency in effect, or that effect can be farm-specif- ic. The meta-analysis in Figures 1a and 1b shows that this is not the case with this probiotic product, as the improvement in ADG occurred in 97% of the trials and FCR was improved in 86% of the trials. The meta-analysis further shows that improvements of both parameters were found in 83% of the trials. Moving into the grower-finisher space, similar trends in im- provements in FCR have been found (Table 1). Table 2 shows how the probiotic product for these larger animals performed on different genetics and feeding in order to assess consist- ency. The same trend of improving FCR was seen. Besides showing an effect on FCR, this product has also been shown to lower mortality in grower-finisher pigs (Table 3). That can be due to the effect probiotics have in competing with, and excluding, pathogenic harmful bacteria.
Best-practice husbandry Antibiotics still play an essential role in treating clinical dis- ease. However, with growing antibiotic resistance worldwide in humans and animals, their use should be prudent and tar- geted. The days of blanket treatment for prophylaxis or growth promotion are undoubtedly over. Therefore, produc- ers seek alternatives in conjunction with best-practice hus- bandry. Probiotics offer a science-based, research-proven solution in keeping with a sustainable future.
Figure 1a-b - Meta-analysis of trials involving 10.000 piglets
a ADG b FCR
97%
86%
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