PHOTO: SELKO
In a study in- volving more than 7,000 broil- er chickens chal- lenged with Eimeria, scien- tists evaluated seven different feed additive blends at Scan- dinavian Poultry Research, No- way.
• Blend 2 was a combination of probiotics and prebiotics containing a jejunum isolate, ileum isolate, caeca isolate and plant-derived fructo-oligosaccharides from inulin.
• Blend 3 combined organic acids and plant extracts with benzoic acid and a blend of essential oils
• Blend 4 was a combination of organic acids and plant ex- tracts, including short and medium-chain fatty acids and essential oils.
• Blend 5 included organic acids and plant extracts, phyto- genics with glycerol-esterified SMCFAs and phytogenics, in- cluding essential oils, saponins and bitter and pungent sub- stances.
• Blend 6 was a combination of prebiotic and plant extracts that included Saccharomyces cerevisiae cell wall oleoresins from turmeric, and chili peppers.
• Blend 7 combined organic acids and prebiotics and includ- ed dehydrated Saccharomyces cerevisiae culture with whole cell metabolites and medium nutrients and diformate.
Birds receiving Blend 1 showed a significant (p <0.05) in- crease in BWG and a significant (p <0.05) improvement in FCR. Over the complete growing cycle, birds receiving the first blend exhibited the highest BWG, translating into a 7.8% higher body weight compared to the control group, and 6.6% higher on average than the other blends. Birds receiving Blend 1 also had a 2% improvement in FCR on average com- pared to all other treatments.
As can be seen in the descriptions of each blend, today’s feed additive blends include a wide range of substances. Looking at Blend 1 that delivered performance improvements contrib- uting to a positive ROI, ingredients included organic acids with high pKa, MCFAs and alkyl ester of C12 to reduce total bacteri- al counts and improve microbial diversity of the microbiome. The blend also includes target release butyrates and capsicum
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extract which are known to support gut integrity by support- ing tight junction build-up and increasing villi length. Blend 3 was the only other blend also to deliver a positive ROI.
Developmental milestones Nutritional strategies including the use of blends should also take into account broilers’ developmental challenges. Consid- ering that development of the birds’ microbiome largely oc- curs in the first two weeks of life, the study in Norway includ- ed two phases – an unchallenged phase from 0 to 14 days and a challenged phase from day 14 to day 28. Blend 1 demonstrated an improvement in both BWG and FCR during the first two weeks of life, confirming that ingredients sup- porting a healthy microbiota play a role in helping the bird build a strong and resilient microbiome, enabling efficient production performance. Other research has demonstrated that using a broad-spectrum feed additive can be beneficial when managing severe first-week health challenges. Sometimes research yields unexpected insights. The objec- tive of the study was to consider how Blend 1 performed against other popular blends of feed additive in broilers reared without antibiotics or coccidiostats. However, when the researchers looked at the zootechnical performance im- provements from an economic perspective, it became clear that carefully selected blends can support not only birds but producers as well. As regulatory controls and consumer demand continue to drive reductions and even the elimina- tion of antibiotics in production practices, these findings demonstrate that improved performance does not have to mean diminished profitability. Feed additive blends that de- liver a broad-spectrum approach can both defend against real-world production challenges and support production economics.
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