Organic acids as feed additives: pros and cons
Organic acid salts are often included as feed additives in livestock nutrition as feed preservatives but also as growth promoters, intestinal microbiota enhancers, and...
Biosecurity in poultry farming: an effective tool to fight infectious diseases
This is the first of a series of technical articles on biosecurity in poultry farming produced within the European project “NetPoulSafe - Networking European...
Histopathological evaluation of Histomonas meleagridis on ceca and the bursa of Fabricius in turkeys
Histomoniasis is caused by Histomonas meleagridis, a flagellated protozoan parasite. It causes systemic infection in turkeys and induces characteristic lesions in ceca and liver....
Some common issues of the first week in brooding turkey poults
Turkey poults are very sensitive to environmental conditions and any uncomfortable situation very quickly leads to a problem and even sometimes a disaster. Any...
Requirement of digestible calcium at different dietary concentrations of digestible phosphorus for broiler growers
An experiment was conducted to determine the digestible calcium (Ca) and digestible phosphorus (P) requirements of 11-24 days old broiler chickens.
L.S. David1, M.R. Abdollahi1,...
Researchers evaluate the effects of heat stress in poults
USPOULTRY and the USPOULTRY Foundation announced the completion of a funded research project at North Carolina State University in which researchers evaluated the effects...
Seeking sustainability in the poultry industry
Becoming sustainable is a must for long-term viability and profitability, and the poultry industry has to meet the needs of the industry, consumers, and...
Detection of antibodies against Chlamydia species in chicken serum
Avian chlamydiosis is a bacterial infection caused by Chlamydia bacteria. The currently available tests distinguish Chlamydia species based on genetic material. Researchers from Wageningen...
The importance of minimum ventilation and how to calculate it
Providing birds with the correct house environment is key to unlocking the full genetic potential and performance of a flock. Poultry growers often focus...
Hybrid Feed – New approach in layer hen feed at start of production
The actual genetic improvements in layer hens are providing the market with a layer hen producing saleable size eggs quicker than before and extending...
Researchers investigate how laying hens visually perceive the resources in cage-free housing
USPOULTRY and the USPOULTRY Foundation announced the completion of a funded research project at Purdue University in which researchers investigated how laying hens visually...
Biological control of Salmonella in the poultry industry: a European perspective
Salmonella remains one of the most important foodborne bacterial pathogens worldwide, and is frequently linked with the consumption of contaminated poultry meat and eggs....
Biosecurity, before the beginning…
Almost all of us, the poultry people, know what biosecurity is about. For the investors, it means spending lots of money to prevent disasters,...
Poultry processing ergonomics
No matter the degree of automation of any given poultry processing plant! There will always be a need for laborers, yet just a few...
In ovo injection of oregano essential oil at different pH affects hatchability and post-hatching...
The dynamic complexity of the developing embryo requires the maintenance of differentiated compartments with the capacity to maintain independent environments required to optimise their...
Understanding egg quality
Egg quality is multi-faceted, with physical, functional, and microbial aspects contributing to egg quality. Research has shown that many factors impact egg quality including...
Dietary approaches to control Necrotic Enteritis in broilers
Necrotic Enteritis (NE) occurs in broilers due to an overabundance of C. perfringens and is usually associated with predisposing factors which include coccidial challenge,...
Ammonia control during brooding begins when previous flock ends
The level of ammonia young chicks will be exposed to during the first week of their lives is determined to a large extent by...
Detection and quantification of Gallibacterium anatis and Mycoplasma synoviae
Mycoplasma synoviae is one of the most common preconditions for secondary bacterial infections in poultry. It causes subclinical infections of the upper respiratory tract,...
The ABCs of CDT (Clostridial Dermatitis of Turkeys)
Clostridial Dermatitis of Turkeys (CDT), also referred to as Cellulitis, remains a major disease issue across all geographic regions of the US; the annual...
Controlling water temperature during brooding
Though there is a wide range of opinions on the optimal drinking water temperature for young chicks, the fact is farm managers actually have...
How can the poultry industry become carbon neutral?
Following the Paris climate agreement (COP21), countries and agricultural supply chain companies are setting targets towards net zero greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 2050....
Vencomatic Group and Orbem announce a strategic partnership for in ovo sexing of poultry...
Vencomatic Group (VMG), a family-owned supplier of innovative solutions for the international poultry industry, and Orbem, a leading deep-tech imaging and AI technology company,...
Why the difference?
Eggs from the same source delivered to different hatcheries will often give different results, even though their biological quality was identical and they were...
Supplementation of a protected complex of biofactors and antioxidants on the gene expression and...
The objective of this study was to evaluate the dietary supplementation of a protected complex of biofactors and antioxidants P(BF+AOx) on the expression of...
Biofilms – The hidden threat
The cleanliness of the facility is the #1 prerequisite to safeguarding the chicken products’ safety. Food safety wise, cleanliness does not merely mean keeping...
EU Compound feed production in 2021 – Market Outlook 2022
Industrial compound feed production in the EU remained stable in 2021. Looking forward, the spread of animal diseases and the continuing global grain market...
A rationale for elevated free threonine plasma concentrations in chickens offered reduced-crude protein diets
Pronounced elevations in free threonine plasma concentrations have been consistently observed pursuant to crude protein reductions in broiler diets. However, the magnitude of these...
Managing turkeys coming into lay
The first few weeks between transfer of turkeys to the laying farm and the peak of production can have a big influence on flock...
Evaluating the exterior quality of hatching eggs
Quality of eggs has a significant impact on hatchability and chick quality. Since a hatchery manager’s main aim is to produce the highest possible...
Targeted preharvest interventions against Salmonella in turkeys
Salmonella is a foodborne zoonotic pathogen prevalent in poultry production, including turkeys. The pathogen is a constant threat to human public health because of...
Managing live hanging for quality and yield
Once the market-age birds arrive the plant the personnel must concentrate on the preservation of their physical integrity and economic potential. In such scenario,...
Biosecurity, the basics
By biosecurity we mean those measures aimed at reducing the risk of introducing and spreading infectious agents on farms, i.e. bio-exclusion and bio-containment measures.
Luigi...
Broiler management and feed formulation approaches in hot environments
High temperatures can be an obstacle in livestock production particularly in tropical regions. Broilers are more susceptible to high ambient temperatures because they lack...
Researchers investigate the characteristics of Turkey Hepatitis Reovirus
USPOULTRY and the USPOULTRY Foundation announced the completion of a funded research project at the University of Minnesota in which researchers investigated the characteristics of Turkey...
Is no antibiotics ever (NAE) poultry production sustainable?
For many years, commercial poultry feeds in the United States contained sub-therapeutic levels of antibiotics, commonly known as antibiotic growth promoters (AGPs), to maximize...
Transparency, communication and engagement with society
Transparency, communication and engagement are the Aviagen’s powerful tools to achieve supply chain and industry success.
Late US President Dwight D. Eisenhower once said,...
Barley in pelleted broiler starter diets: effects of carbohydrase supplementation and steam-conditioning temperature
The effect of pelleting barley-based diets on bird performance and nutrient utilisation depends, in part, on the conditioning temperature (CT) used. The influence of...
What we do and don’t know related to cage free egg production research
During the early 2000s the pressure was on the U.S. egg industry to increase cage space and to transition from conventional cage systems to...
Turkey dermatitis/cellulitis: where are we headed?
Clostridium septicum is a ubiquitous, spore-forming bacterium associated with spontaneous gas gangrene in both livestock and humans. The spores can persist in harsh environments,...
Carcass picking: removing the feathers and protecting the quality
The poultry feathers are non-edible and need to be thoroughly removed during processing. The defeathering consists of moving the carcasses along the picking line...
Estimated total cereal production in the EU-27 for the 2022 harvest
Experts from the Copa and Cogeca working groups on cereal and oilseed gathered in Brussels, with an estimated total cereal production of 277 million...
Use of comparative genomics to identify vaccine candidates for Campylobacter Jejuni
Interventions to control and reduce the incidence of Campylobacter jejuni colonization in poultry is important in order to reduce the burden of foodborne illness in humans....
Navigating an antibiotic-free and reduced antibiotic use poultry industry
Antibiotics are a type of antimicrobial medication used to treat infections caused by bacteria. In the 1930s, a sulfonamide was the first commercially available...
Using accelerometers and artificial intelligence to predict presence of woody breast
The broiler industry has been challenged with a condition referred to as "woody breast" for the past 8-10 years, which can affect a significant...
The role of early experience on the behavior of hens housed in cage-free aviaries
Understanding the consequences of rearing experiences on the behavior and bone integrity of laying hens can help inform solutions to animal welfare and management...
Influence of age on the standardised ileal amino acid digestibility of maize and barley...
Grains are the major energy sources in broilers. However, they also supply about 40% of the total dietary protein and contribute significantly to the...
Apparent metabolisable energy of common cereal grains for broiler chickens is influenced by bird...
The current study was conducted to investigate the influence of broiler age on the apparent metabolisable energy (AME) and nitrogen-corrected AME (AMEn) of four...
LIFE CHIMERA: the revaluation of chicken manure used “as is” to produce quality fertilizer...
A new circular economy model for the poultry market thanks to an innovative technology based on two patents for the transition to smart agriculture.
Rosalino...
Managing feed withdrawal with food safety and carcass yield in mind
The feed withdrawal program aims at minimizing the occurrence of fecal contamination at plant, thus shielding the products’ safety. It happens that while off...
Understanding and managing water for successful flocks
Water is the single greatest input into the production of poultry products such as eggs and meat. The fact water is a relatively inexpensive...
Effect of multi-xylanase system on growth performance and gut health in broilers
Non-starch polysaccharides (NSP), particularly arabinoxylans (AX), with complex biochemical structures are one of the main causative factors for impaired growth performance and poor gut...
Feed physical quality
The effect of feed form is well established, however, feed physical quality is often seen as an issue in the field (see Figure 1)....
The effect of monochromatic photo-stimulation on growth and reproduction of broiler birds
Broilers in-ovo or with post hatch photo-stimulation with green light (GL) were heavier from dark incubated birds. Furthermore, we defined the cellular and molecular...
Researchers investigate the cause and prevention of False Layer Syndrome
USPOULTRY and the USPOULTRY Foundation announced the completion of a funded research project at the University of Georgia in which researchers investigated the cause and prevention...
How Marek’s disease may directly affect the chicken immune system
Marek’s disease virus (MDV) causes disease in chickens and is estimated to cost the global poultry industry up to US $2 billion each year.
In...
The future of brooding
It is essential that newly hatched poults are provided with the best possible starting conditions in brooding. This is a fundamental first step to...
Protein digestive dynamics influence growth performance of broiler chickens
Three apical diets were formulated to stimulate different protein digestion rates dependent on the major constituents: standard (soybean meal), rapid (whey protein) and very...
Managing eggs and chicks from young breeders
First week mortality is often higher in chicks from very young breeders (25-30 weeks) than in chicks from older breeders. What causes these chicks...
The economic importance of the abdominal fat pad
In an integrated chicken meat producing company, the processing plant is the only revenue-generating area, whose worth-making capability depends strongly on the performance of...
AAT’s CHEGGY as a tool for in ovo sex determination of layer chicken embryos
A largescale field study
Germany has as first European country stopped by law culling of male day-old chicks from 1st January 2022 onwards. In February 2022,...
Effects of beta glucans in poultry health and nutrition
Immune modulators such as beta glucans have today a major role in poultry production.
The poultry production industry has seen astonishing improvements over the past...
Management and stockmanship – Essential to sustainable poultry production
Experts agree that the way in which animals and poultry are managed can affect 70 to 90% of their health, welfare and productivity.
Poultry producers,...
Nutritional modulation of broiler intestine in the starter period and intestinal integrity
Gut health which is characterized by intestinal integrity, intestinal microflora, mucin and enterocyte functionality, may be of greatest concern among poultry producers because it...
Obtaining the most benefit from an anticoccidial sensitivity test
The poultry industry has been using the same anticoccidial drugs for the prevention of coccidiosis for several decades. The last approval of a new...
A Box-Behnken assessment of fishmeal and sorghum inclusions in broiler diets
The objective of this study was to investigate the impacts of starch and protein digestive dynamics on broiler growth performance using Box-Behnken response surface...
The importance of broilers’ uniformity
The interaction between the live production department and the processing plant across the global poultry industry is governed by an internal supplier-client relationship. Hence,...
Salmonella Reading in commercial turkeys. Why now and how?
Salmonella sp. is one of the most common bacteria associated with foodborne illness in humans. Each year in the United States, foodborne salmonellosis causes...
Researchers evaluate euthanasia methods for large poultry
USPOULTRY and the USPOULTRY Foundation reported the completion of a funded research project at Auburn University in Auburn, Alabama, in which researchers evaluated four...
General overview and installation of light traps in broiler breeder rearing
Designing a ventilation system for a dark out tunnel ventilated rearing house can be challenging. There are many different models and designs of light...
Monitoring the turkey incubation process to ensure the best results
Incubating turkey eggs is often considered to be more challenging than incubating broiler eggs, yet, in essence, the basic principle of success is the...
Formulating layer diets beyond the least-cost model
Due to the high cost of feed for poultry, there is continuous pressure to formulate ‘least-cost’ diets that meet nutritional requirements. However, the main...
Managing heat and minimum ventilation systems in the broiler house
When outside temperatures drop and gas prices rise, maintaining the desired inside broiler house air temperature and ventilating to meet air quality needs can...
Identification of broiler poultry house dust components using chemical and physical analysis
Dust found in poultry housing is a complex substance most likely comprised of a mixture of excreta, feather, feed and bedding material.
M. Ahaduzzaman, L....
FAO published a report on animal nutrition strategies
FAO’s publication helps producers use nutrition strategies to reduce the use of antibiotics in their farms. Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is an increasing threat to...
Management of precise broiler production in farm level and technology usage
Farming broilers today has some very real challenges, namely birds are reaching their kill weights quicker, the profits from farming chicken are under pressure,...
Methionine supplementation reduces plasma amino acid circulation and enhanced apparent digestibility in broiler chickens
The objective of this study was to evaluate the impact of methionine supplementation on amino acid concentration in systemic plasma, apparent amino acid digestibilities...
Balancing beetles with the bottom line
Darkling beetles, commonly referred to as litter beetles, are a widely encountered pest for those in the broiler production industry. Litter beetles are holometabolous...
Flip-overs: causes and solutions in brooding
The poult start is an extension of the hatching process. The whole process, including poult placement, is only as strong as its weakest link.
William...
How to minimize litter caking issues at the beginning of a flock
A specified minimum ventilation rate based on age of flock in weeks suggests that the amount of moisture needing to be removed from a...
