Silvateam launches Silvafeed® ATX, new tailor-made antioxidant for nutritional applications in animal feed

Silvateam is the world’s leading functional vegetable extracts company with an annual turnover of around 140 million euro in 2014.

Silvateam’s technicians and veterinarians have designed a tailor-made natural antioxidant product, commercialised under the registered brand name of Silvafeed® ATX.

Silvafeed® ATX is a blend of polyphenols obtained by a natural extraction process (Fig. 1).

The main benefits of Silvafeed® ATX are linked to the chemical properties of a selected specific blend of polyphenols, such as Vescalgin, Castalgin, Roburin, Procyanidins, Proanthocyanidins, Resveratrol, Catechins, Theaflavins, Epigallocatechins, Flavonol Glycosides and Quercitins. The presence of this blend of polyphenols ensures a high antioxidant response, due to each polyphenol’s particular mechanism of action: antiradical, vitamin E regeneration, metal ion inactivation, inhibition of the redox sensitive transcription factors and inhibition of pro-oxidant enzymes.

Antioxidant supplementation is particularly recommended during periods of animal oxidative stress. The main benefits can be summarised in enhancement of Vitamin E efficiency, reduction of heat stress, improvement of antioxidant status of the animal, enhancement of the organoleptic and technological quality of finished products.

Silvafeed® ATX’s antioxidant capacity has been assessed using the ORAC method (Oxygen Radical Absorbance Capacity). The ORAC method is used to measure a compound’s antioxidant potential and is a method officially recognised by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA).

Silvafeed® ATX was tested in comparison with Vitamin C. The antioxidant potential (AOP) showed to be up to 7 times more powerful than Vitamin C (Fig. 2). The ORAC value of Silvafeed® ATX is over 8,000 µmol TROLOX/g. This value is higher than many natural antioxidants, such as cloves, cinnamon, ginger, oregano, rosemary, açai, cocoa and green tea.

The bioavailability of natural polyphenols has been proven in several scientific studies. Diets enriched with antioxidants to counteract an excess of free radicals produced due to oxidative stress are used to reduce the incidence of health disorders in transition dairy cows (Vazquez-Anon et al., 2008). During the transition period of dairy cows, the increase in oxygen requirements with increased metabolic demands result in amplified production of oxygen derived free radicals (Spears, 2008; Yuan et al., 2012). The oxidative stress may contribute to an impaired immune function and enhanced susceptibility to periparturient diseases for dairy cows (LeBlanc et al., 2004; Sordillo and Aitken, 2009). Supplementation of Silvafeed® ATX improves the antioxidative status of transition dairy cows. Results from several studies attest that Silvafeed® ATX supplementation alleviates oxidative stress and inflammation of the mammary gland in lactating cows. Synthetic antioxidants are widely used n monogastrics to increase the storage stability of processed meats in the feed industry. Nevertheless, because of their undesirable side effects and high cost, their use is restricted which provoked increased interest in finding natural antioxidant alternatives. Several studies have shown that lipid peroxidation in plasma and tissues decreases when in the presence of supplemented Silvafeed® ATX.

Silvafeed® ATX acts as a 100% natural antioxidant solution able to replace synthetic antioxidants and part of Vitamin E. Silvafeed® ATX is recommended to preserve the reproductive, growth and immunity functions and to improve the stability of animal by-products.