Holistic approach to post-weaning challenges


Therapeutic use of zinc oxide (ZnO) will decrease in the coming years and come to an end in 2022. It is well known that this can lead to increased pig health challenges with an impact on growth. This requires a strong holistic approach from the beginning.


BY LUCIE OUINE, KAAT GORIS, MAUD LE GALL AND GRAZIANO MANTOVANI, CARGILL W 0.4


Y = 0.129x + 0.2073 R2 = 0.9933


0.35


eaning is a crucial phase in pig production. At this time, the piglet’s immune system is inex- perienced and immature, and continuously challenged by pathogenic bacteria. Around


weaning, young piglets in standard farm conditions often suf- fer gastrointestinal changes because of the sudden transition from mother’s milk to solid food. This may cause a reduction in the length of intestinal villi height and the crypt depth, which reduces digestive and absorptive capacities. In this fragile state of equilibrium, the development of diseases can have a signifi- cant impact on farm productivity. The shift from sows milk to dry feed induces a period of fasting during the first hours fol- lowing weaning. This weaning anorexia has a negative impact on growth and leads to mobilisation of fat reserves. One approach to improve the gut health of piglets is dietary manipulation: • Consider the nutrient needs of the gut due to impacts on overall nutrient utilisation


Figure 1 - Effect of fermentable protein intake on the incidence of diarrhoea on post-weaning piglets (visual scoring). 0.45


• Recognise the microflora contribution to nutrient utilisa- tion as they are first consumers of nutrients


• Finally, combined with the right nutrition, the use of func- tional additives and raw materials can contribute to accel- erating animal responses for healthy growth.


Challenging time for growability The litter size increases yearly with around +0.5 piglet in the high productive European region, generally leading to lower piglet quality at weaning in terms of body weight and growth potential but also gut development. The weaning period is rec- ognised as a period when acute changes in environment and feed type make nutritional control hard to achieve. Over the years, antibiotics have been widely used to help support pig- lets that, for several reasons, are unable to cope with the transi- tion. On the other hand, medication-free programmes offer the opportunity to increase feed security around weaning. Still, this hardly guarantees good growth particularly when we take small and/or immature piglets into consideration.


0.3 0.25 0.5 0.7 0.9 Research Cargill Innovation Center Velddriel, 2016 1.1 1.3 1.5 Fermentable Protein Intake (grams/piglet) 1.7 1.9


Supporting healthy piglet growth Cargill European swine team has spent several years research- ing the ingredients and formulations that allow these modes of action to be incorporated in one concept, Neopigg Shield. Understanding these mechanisms is critical when aiming to maintain piglet growth while reducing the reliance on antibi- otics and therapeutic ZnO. It is of such importance, that Car- gill continuously improves this concept to ensure that the solution is sustainable, now and in the future. Striving to maintain optimal and healthy piglet growth while reducing the reliance on antibiotics and therapeutic ZnO re- quires a holistic approach. Four modes of action are critical in reducing the need for antibiotics and therapeutic zinc in weaned piglets: 1. Protein digestion 2. Mucin effect 3. Immunity regulation 4. Intestinal flora Each mode of action has a role to play and requires specific nutritional ingredients to maximise its ability to function properly in the piglet digestive system. Among the different additives targeting gut microflora and the gut barrier, Cargill, develops also nutrition solutions which promotes the use of “postbiotics”, peptides from yeast fermentation, which play a role in immunity regulation.


24 ▶ WEANING | JUNE 2020


Incidence of Diarrhoea using visual scoring


PHOTO: CARGILL


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