NUTRITION ▶▶▶
The journey towards zero ZnO begins in the gut
In the European Union, pharmacological levels of zinc oxide can no longer be applied in pig feed from June this year. The question now is how to get piglets through weaning well. One part of the answer lies in keeping the animals’ guts as healthy as possible.
BY DR HAZEL ROONEY, PIG TECHNICAL COORDINATOR, ALLTECH I
n commercial pig production, the post-weaning period is frequently characterised by poor growth performance and diarrhoea, as the piglet quickly adjusts to new envi- ronmental and nutritional conditions (e.g. new nursery
accommodation, a sudden dietary change from sow milk to a solid diet of different composition and feed form, a change in housing conditions). Following the stress experienced by pig- lets during this critical life stage is a damaging effect on both the gastrointestinal tract and immune system of piglets, and the reason that producers observe this “growth check” and increased susceptibility to diarrhoea after weaning. Historically, antibiotic growth promoters were used in piglet feeds to improve pig growth performance in the initial period after weaning by controlling pathogenic Escherichia coli infec- tions and, thereby, reducing the incidence of post-weaning diarrhoea (PWD). After the phase-out of antibiotics as growth promoters worldwide, the use of zinc oxide (ZnO) at medici- nal levels (2,000 ppm or higher) in piglet diets was then rec- ognised as an efficient and low-cost nutritional tool to help maintain gut disorders and performance losses at weaning. However, in more recent times, the prolonged utilisation of
Figure 1 - The Seed, Feed, Weed (SFW) programme* plays a crucial role in helping producers work toward antibiotic- and ZnO-free production.
high dietary ZnO levels has been linked to environmental pollution, increased antimicrobial resistance, adverse chang- es in the piglets’ bacterial composition and microbiota, zinc toxicity and various other health concerns. For these many reasons, using ZnO at pharmacological doses (above 150 ppm total dietary zinc) in piglet feeds will be banned in the EU beginning June 2022. Pig producers across the EU are now desperately seeking alternative strategies for preventing bacterial infections and alleviating PWD in their pig units.
A successful strategy starts with the gut For producers to successfully transition away from ZnO, they need to ensure that piglets get off to a healthy start in life. A critical piece in the overall strategy to achieving this is to promote optimal maternal gut health and development, followed by supporting the gut health of the piglet as soon as possible after birth. The sow can often be overlooked when seeking alternatives to ZnO. However, with over 40 years of research and technical expe- rience in monogastric gut health, Alltech has designed com- prehensive gut health management programmes specifically for sows, as we believe that maternal gut health is funda- mentally linked to that of the offspring and, therefore, is an important determinant of the lifetime health, performance and survival of piglets. The gut health concepts are designed to support animal per- formance by promoting favourable microbial communities, building natural immunity and maximising growth. Once producers have achieved good gut health in their sow herd, they can then focus on supporting gut health in piglets by promoting favourable microbial populations within the gut (because the piglet gut microbiota is strongly correlated to performance parameters) and optimising gut morphology to ensure maximum nutrient absorption. So, overall, alternatives to ZnO should focus on modifying the gut microflora to es- tablish more diverse and favourable microbial populations.
Seeding the gut for improved performance
* Developed by Alltech. 48
tolerant to acidic environments, unlike most pathogens
environment to provide a competitive advantage to favorable bacteria, which are
Feeding a beneficial gut
unfavorable bacteria by selective exclusion
Weeding out
Zinc oxide-free piglet production In addition to working with pig producers on the adoption of a holistic on-farm strategy when transitioning away from ZnO (i.e. one that combines optimal feeding, management, health and welfare practices), working closely with those in
▶ PIG PROGRESS | Volume 38, No. 3, 2022
PHOTO: ALLTECH
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