research in this area. More feed additives enter the market space and also more additives are used at the same time in one diet. It is therefore important to know how to make them work in the total feed matrix, without losing their characteris- tics and performance. In our research we focus on combining nutrition, techniques and formulation of new products to make them work better and more efficiently,” explains Mr Lepauvre. “But next to the technical and formulation chal- lenges of products, we also strongly focus on increasing our knowledge of raw materials and product quality amongst others. Raw materials research delves into digestibility, palat- ability and nutritional quality of conventional feed ingredi- ents. In addition, we look at new raw materials and protein sources that enter the world of animal feed, such as protein concentrates, insects and algae for example,” he added.
Many diets tested in poultry With almost 300 trials per year and over 1,600 different ani- mal diets tested, MRC is one of the biggest research facilities in Europe. The premises consist of a number of farms, housing
220 sows, 6,000 piglets, 1,500 fattening pigs, 6,000 broiler birds (chicken and turkey), 1,200 layers, 160 rabbit does, 1,200 fattening places for rabbits, 10,000 produced rabbits and 120 bulls. A new cow building with a capacity of 140 cows was built three years ago, giving the cow nutrition re- search a big boost. Like for all farms at MRC, the poultry facili- ties function like a commercial farm. However, the barns are designed a bit different than real life farms, as in having more pens per building. This is needed to be able to test different diets for smaller group of birds. At the poultry facilities at MRC, zootechnical, palatability and digestibility trials are be- ing done. The digestibility trials involve individual measuring, allowing to study the animals in different stages in their pro- duction cycle, from day old chicks to heavy turkeys. The dedi- cated barns for zootechnical trials can house 400 birds at the same time. Those trials are done for all fowl species. The Ross 308 is the basic breed used on the farm. For the roosters, for digestibility, MRC uses Isa Brown genetics. “We always use the same breeds in our trials and we work according to the Euro- pean protocol for digestibility trials, consisting of a floor
▶ POULTRY WORLD | No. 2, 2019
The French ani- mal nutrition company MiX- science, part of the Avril Group, has the luxury of owning its own research centre located in Pays de la Loire, a re- gion in western France.
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