less remaining to re-bind nutrients as the pH rises in the small intestine, meaning more nutrients remain available for up- take in the animal and less are excreted. Balancing the phytase concentration added to the feed against the amount of phytate present will maximise the release of nutrients for the animal while also producing less waste, which is both economically and environmentally beneficial.
Phytate content variability Phytate phosphorus levels in commonly used raw materials vary markedly (Table 1) due to various factors, including crop genetics, harvest year, growing conditions, latitude, climate, fertiliser application, storage and processing methods. With such wide variations it is clear that relying on published values for ingredient phytate content has its limitations, particularly when multiple raw materials are combined. Figure 1, for exam- ple, shows what effect the variation in ingredient phytic phos- phorus content has on feed levels in European broiler grower/ finisher feeds. There is significant variation between feeds with clear phase differences in the phytate concentrations seen. Higher phytate levels are typically found in starter diets, as they tend to contain higher levels of soybean meal. So the question
for nutritionists is: can average phytate concentrations be relied upon to decide on phytase additions? Clearly not.
Intelligent phytase nutrition Just like any other enzyme and its substrate, the level of phytase added needs to match the amount of phytate present in the diet. If too little phytase is added, not all the phytate will be broken down. Birds will not be able to use all of the protein, calcium and phosphorus in the diet because a proportion will remain inaccessible. This wastes money spent on the diet and is potentially damaging to the environment. If too much phytase is added, all the accessible phytate will be destroyed, but there will be an excess of enzyme. Thus costing the producer money. Getting this balance right is at the heart of DSM’s Intelligent Phytase Nutrition concept. The first step is to measure how much phytate there is in a given diet.
Feed analysis In the past we have relied on wet chemistry to measure phytate-P but this is slow and costly to conduct on a routine basis. By contrast, NIR spectroscopy testing offers a fast, reliable and economical way of checking levels in raw
▶ POULTRY WORLD | No. 2, 2021 21
DSM has tested many thousands of feed and raw material sam- ples, using both NIR and wet chemistry methods. This has enabled the company to de- vise a robust phytate-P NIR equation for in- gredients and complete feed.
PHOTO: FOSS
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