Intestinal barrier function – A case to be studied in reduced protein diets
Maintaining intestinal health and growth remains a concern as demands increase to limit the use of antibiotics in poultry production. There is also an...
The challenge of feeding modern broiler breeders
Broiler breeders are expected to produce about 150 chicks in 40 weeks of production and even though it is commonly believed that selection for...
A cost-effective solution to partially replace vitamin E
Oxidative imbalance can reduce animal productivity. If severe, it can lead to inflammation, reduced immune function and increased susceptibility to disease. Livestock producers typically...
EU compound feed production market forecast 2025
FEFAC market experts forecast continued stability in the EU compound feed production market for 2025. The total industrial compound feed production in the EU27...
Effects of probiotic Bacillus amyloliquefaciens H57 on performance and intestinal microbiota of chickens
Probiotics (direct fed microbials) are a potential alternative to antibiotic growth promoters for improving animal production and preventing enteric pathogen infections. The Authors are...
Comparison of the effects of dietary available phosphorus and feed restriction on performance, egg...
This study was performed to evaluate the effect of available phosphorus and restricted feeding level on laying hens productivity, egg quality and yolk fatty...
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...
Priming young birds for gut health and resilience
This brief review focuses on the types of fibre that the nutritionist should be considering and how a phase feeding strategy should not only...
Why do we need low protein meat chicken diets?
The current level of protein used in meat chicken diets is linked to various issues observed in the industry including feed cost and feed...
What is the influence of nutrition and management on egg weight?
Managing egg weight is important for farmers and can greatly vary depending on market demand. Obtaining an egg size in line with market demand...
A dose response of a heat stable phytase on broiler performance and nutrient digestibility
Phytases have been heavily researched for decades and been used commercially since the early 1990s. Phytase from microbial origin is therefore added to monogastric...
Probiotics as an alternative to antibiotics for treating lameness in broilers
The pathogenesis leading to a form of lameness known as bacterial chondronecrosis with osteomyelitis (BCO) appears to be initiated by mechanical microfracturing of susceptible...
Energy utilization in broilers fed a sorghum-based diets supplemented with phytase and carbohydrases
This study was conducted to evaluate the endogenous enzyme activities and energy utilization of broilers fed sorghum-based diets supplemented with phytase and carbohydrases
Broilers were...
The relationship between feed particle size, gizzard development and broiler performance
Anatomy of the stomach
The stomach of the chicken consists of two chambers, the proventriculus or glandular stomach and the gizzard or muscular stomach.
The proventriculus...
Effectiveness of a double choice test to assess dietary taste preferences in broilers
Investigations into the taste system of broilers can help to improve poultry feeding strategies. However, a comprehensive study on dietary taste preferences for broilers...
Meta-analysis of genetic parameters of feed conversion and related traits in chickens
The objective of this study was to estimate the impact of some factors on heritability estimates of
body weight (BW), feed conversion ratio (FCR),
feed
intake (FI),...
Additivity of ileal amino acid values of sorghum with different protein sources
Sorghum is used widely in Australian poultry diets, primarily as an energy component. It is usually fed in diets that contain wheat but may...
Bacillus Subtilis improves performance of broilers fed medicated or non-medicated feed
Animal digestive health is key to obtain optimal performance. Antibiotic growth promoters (AGPs) have long been shown to be very effective to develop and...
Low protein diets supplemented with glycine, glutamine or arginine for broilers
A previous study highlighted differences between a low protein (LP) diet and a higher concentration of amino acids (AA) for intestinal permeability and performance...
Phytic acid reduction in canola and camelina meals
Canola and camelina meals have been identified as alternative plant protein sources in place of soybean meal for animal feeding. The use of these...
Short chain fatty acids and poultry gut health
Due to customer demands, producers have been asked to change the way they grow production animals, specifically through the removal of antibiotics. With this...
Using sunflower meal in broilers with the addition of a carbohydrase complex
Sunflower seeds are extensively grown for oil production for human consumption. Therefore, a great amount of sunflower meal becomes available for use in feed...
Spirulina platensis Algae, a novel poultry feed additive
Identifying alternative replacements for soybean meal in a high quality and reasonable price is of importance in poultry production and physiological parameters. Spirulina platensis...
The selection element in whole grain feeding regimes
Seven dietary treatments consisting of a ground grain control and six treatments with pre- and post-pellet whole grain inclusions of 7.5, 15.0 and 30.0%...
The effect of microbial challenge on the intestinal proteome of broilers
In broiler production intestinal health and function is paramount to achieving efficient feed utilisation and growth.
Uncovering the localised molecular mechanisms that occur during the...
High levels of cottonseed meal supplemented with composite microbial enzymes
Effects of cottonseed meal supplemented with composite microbial enzymes on broiler chickens.
Soybean meal (SBM) is the premier plant protein source used by the poultry...
Impact of dietary soluble non-starch polysaccharide levels on the gastrointestinal environment of young broilers
The dietary fibre content of broilers diets is frequently neglected during feed formulation, despite the prevalence of fibrous material in feed ingredients and notable...
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...
Antioxidants in poultry nutrition and reproduction. An update
For the last three decades poultry production worldwide has made tremendous progress in terms of quantity and quality of meat and egg production, including...
NSP enzymes, gut microbiota and fermentation products
Arabinoxylans account for 50-70% of the NSP feed enzymes present in cereal grains and make up the majority of cell wall NSP in corn,...
Nutritional additive strengthens bones in layer hens
Bone quality in egg-laying hens benefits from a common feed supplement as well as from traits that help their skeletons store calcium, research shows....
Training the animal microbiome to degrade fibre with NSPase
A new perspective on the mode of action of fibre-degrading enzymes NSPase.
Increased understanding of NSPase mode of action is presenting a new perspective on...
Algae products in organic poultry diets
Algae, “the not so new kid on the block” has been used in both human and animal diets dating back centuries. There is a...
Taking phytase superdosing from scientific concept to commercial application: a UK example
Scientific research is based on carefully designed experiments, performed in carefully controlled conditions with the outcome measured as accurately as possible, using a range...
Laying hen nutrition for optimizing egg production and quality
Hen nutrition is important; during the initial period of pullet rearing (<45 days of age), small particle size obtained by grinding of main cereals...
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...
Effect of arginine and lysine on broiler chickens
Arginine is an essential amino acid for poultry and plays crucial roles in different biological pathways. Recent findings highlighted that the recommended levels of...
Scientifically validated results to raise poultry production profitability
The Poultry Science Association 2017 Annual Meeting took place in Orlando, Florida on July 17-20. Being the most prestigious scientific event for poultry in...
The value of digestibility coefficients and protein
At all times and for all human cultures animal protein took an important part of nutrient supply and has been always of a high...
Copper influences broilers’ performance and growth
Copper (Cu) is an essential component involved in a wide variety of biochemical processes. It must be supplemented in the trace mineral premix as...
The role of mechanistic theory in delaying the development of NSPases
This brief paper attempts to review the history of development of the mechanistic theories for NSPases and how this has possibly delayed advances.
NSPase feed...
Measurement of energy utilization in chickens
Although corn prices have dropped from historic highs in the past years, energy continues to be one of the driving costs in poultry feeding....
In Vitro evaluation of xylo-oligosaccharide production from different batches of wheat with and without...
Supplementing poultry diets with xylanase partially depolymerizes the xylans present in the dietary cereals, reducing the number of sugars in the molecular chains. The...
Path to the 100 week age layers in cage free systems
Egg producers are always looking for ways to improve layer hen’s efficiency as, nowadays, the genetic potential of layers is targeting an extended age...
Broilers diets with high and low net energy but similar metabolisable energy
A semi-commercial scale feeding study was conducted to compare formulations of broiler diets based on predicted net energy (NE) and metabolisable energy (ME). It...
Site and extent of digestion on poultry production
In poultry formulation and production of feed has evolved extensively in the last century with the identification of required nutrients, and subsequent and continuing...
Supplementing Bacillus strains in chicken diets
The present study investigated the effects of dietary supplementation of several Bacillus strains on growth performance, intestinal inflammatory and anti-inflammatory cytokines, antioxidants and tight...
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...
Low protein diets down regulate hepatic enzymes
Low protein (LP) diets have clear benefits for the poultry industry with regards to health, welfare and production. Dean et al., (2006) found that...
Measurement of true ileal calcium digestibility of meat and bone meal for broiler chickens
Currently, there is a move towards the use of digestible phosphorus (P) in diet formulations for poultry due to P excretion into the environment...
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,...
Effect of graded levels of supplementary phytase in diets with and without rapeseed meal...
Application of dietary enzymes, including phytase, protease, and carbohydrases, alone or in combination, to facilitate phosphorus, protein, and energy utilization is a common approach...
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...
Potential to produce poultry feed from food wastes
The annual food waste in Australia is estimated at 7.5 million tonnes
with the majority disposed of in landfills. This not only
causes significant economic loss...
Field experience on the use of probiotics in chickens and turkeys
Probiotics have been used for several years in an attempt to improve intestinal health. Recently, microbial products have been extensively studied as supportive treatments...
Pellet quality and its effects on poultry performance
Pellet quality provided to meat birds throughout the industry is highly variable. Feeding birds pellets of poor quality can in part be attributed to...
Effect of two different fibre sources on growth and immune function in grower layer-pullets
This study was conducted to evaluate the effect of two different fibre sources on pullet growth, gut immune tissue, and lymphocyte proliferation of strain...
Feeding broilers of the future
The only way to maintain production is to improve the understanding of precision nutrition so that producers can feed broilers with low or no...
Improving feeding efficiency with innovating products
At Trouw Nutrition they have focused their innovation in the poultry business on finding new ways of achieving improved feeding efficiency and enhanced performance...
A new perspective on feeding broiler breeders
Due to sophisticated genetic selection programs carried out by poultry breeding companies such as Aviagen, today’s broilers can grow with very efficient feed conversion...
Vitamin D in laying hens: how high is high enough?
In 2010, the Institute of Medicine in the United States reviewed current literature and changed the estimated average requirement of 400 IU/day to a...
Evaluating phosphorous equivalency of phytases
The use of exogenous enzymes in non-ruminant nutrition is a valuable tool to increase digestibility and therefore spare the inclusion of expensive nutrients whilst...
Phosphorus: how low can we go in broiler diets?
Phosphorus (P) is essential for all forms of life. Dietary P content either in excess of, or below requirements may adversely affect broiler performance....
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...
Can xylanase inhibitors affect the efficacy of xylanases in poultry diets?
Xylanase inhibitors are reported to be widely present in cereals, and can influence the assay of supplemental xylanases in feeds.
In the present study, a...
Thoughts on diet energy. Definitions, requirements and alternatives
Energy is by far our most expensive nutrient, yet surprisingly we never receive guarantees when we trade ingredients or manufacture diets. Energy level dictates...
Impact of grain type on performance in broilers under Necrotic Enteritis challenge
The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of grain type on performance and gut microbiota composition in broiler chickens under a...
Expanding feed milling capacity and quality at New Rosendale’s
At a time when the North American feed industry is undergoing a dramatic transformation driven by new rules, heightened market expectations and ground-breaking technology...
Sustainable chicken meat production is enhanced by tangibly reduced crude protein diets
The environmental impact of soyabean meal is estimated to be approximately three times that of grain and successful implementation of reduced crude protein diets...
Low protein diets downregulate hepatic enzymes
Low protein diets have clear benefits for the poultry industry with regards to health, welfare and production.
Dean et al., (2006) found that supplementing low...
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)....
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...
Lowering dietary calcium and available phosphorus in broilers
The aim of this trial was to investigate the effect of lowering dietary calcium (Ca) and available phosphorus (av.P) during Starter (0 to 10d),...
Metabolisable energy of ingredients in peak layers
Layer nutritionists typically rely on apparent metabolisable energy data generated in broilers as layer AME data are less available.
The bioassays are typically conducted...
Transgenerational impact of broiler breeder nutrition
Continuous genetic selection in meat-type chicken for rapid growth resulted in increased meat production and decreased the time required for achieving the market weight....
Bacterial bile salt hydrolase for a good microbiota
However, limiting antibiotics use could compromise animal production efficiency and health. Thus, there is an urgent need to develop effective alternatives to antibiotic growth...
Changing role of poultry nutritionist in a changing industry
Reflecting back on 30 years of working in the poultry industry as nutritionists we realize that the biggest changes that have occurred have mostly...
Effect of some biological factors on the performance of broiler breeder hens
This study was carried out at the Poultry Research and Development Unit, El Wadi Company Farms and Poultry Nutrition Laboratory, Environmental Studies and Research...
The importance of feeding time observation
Achieving proper bodyweight, flock uniformity, and sexual maturity at light stimulation are some of the biggest management challenges for broiler breeder farms.
Today’s breeder pullets...
Best practice in feed management
How innovative thinking and a proactive approach can ensure best practice with feed on broiler farms
In partnership with Cobb, this article examines best practice...