Experts from ADDCON were invited to speak at the Taiwan Poultry Health Seminar in Taichung, Taiwan

Experts from ADDCON and their partners in Taiwan, Evaglow International Co. Ltd., have been invited to speak at Taiwan Poultry Health Seminar which took place in Taichung from October 13^th till 14^th 2009. Dr. Christian Lückstädt has been asked to share its experience on "The use of organic acids as alternatives for in-feed antibiotics in poultry". More than 120 participants from the industry as well as from research institutions were present during the intense talk and discussion.

Please find below an article, based on the presentation given by Dr. Lückstädt: 

The use of organic acids in poultry diets and poultry production, with special focus on sodium diformate (FORMI^® NDF)

Christian Lückstädt

Technical Director ADDCON Asia

Both the feed industry and the food production sector still suffer from losses due to the contamination of feed with pathogenic bacteria and their related impacts in the animal, such as lower weight gains or increased mortality. The ban on the use of in-feed antibiotics (AGPs) in livestock in the EU, as well as in South Korea, puts more pressure on animal producers, and also poses a challenge to innovative animal nutrition. Addressing these problems in a suitable manner can regain the trust of people concerned about the safety of food. Alternative feed ingredients are being adopted in order to fill the gap from the AGPs. From this point of view, acidifiers can be part of the feeding concept to replace AGPs and it is expected that the market segment for this feed additive will continue to rise.

The potential of single organic acids in feed preservation lies in their ability to protect feed from microbial and fungal destruction, and its effect on stomach pH and gut flora, and has been known for decades and proven in many laboratory and field trials (Eidelsburger et al., 1992; Eidelsburger and Kirchgessner, 1994; Freitag, 2007). Acidifiers act as performance promoters by lowering the pH of gut (mainly upper intestinal tract), reducing potential proliferation of unfavourable microorganisms. Acidification of gut stimulates enzyme activity and optimises digestion and the absorption of nutrients and minerals. Un-dissociated forms of organic acids penetrate the lipid membrane of bacterial cells and dissociate into anions and protons. After entering the neutral pH of the cell's cytoplasm, organic acids inhibit bacterial growth by interrupting oxidative phosphorylation and inhibiting adenosine triphosphate-inorganic phosphate interactions.

Improved broiler performance by supplementation with single acids was noticed for instance for formic acid (Vogt et al., 1981) and fumaric acid (Patten and Waldroup, 1988; Kirchgessner et al., 1991), and Izat et al. (1990a) found significantly reduced levels of Salmonella spp in carcass and caecal samples after including calcium formate to broiler diets. In another trial from Izat et al. (1990b) buffered propionic acid was used to counteract pathogenic microflora in the intestine and carcass of broiler chickens, and resulted in a significant reduction in E. coli and Salmonella spp.

The use of pure formic acid in breeder feed reduced the contamination of tray liners and hatchery waste with S. enteritidis drastically (Humphrey and Lanning, 1988). Kirchgessner et al. (1992) found significantly better feed utilization in laying hens after adding fumaric acid, but only when the feed was low in protein and methionine and cysteine. Performance enhancement was influenced by both quantity and quality of the protein, although these trials were performed either with single organic acids or with the corresponding salt of a single acid. Hinton and Linton (1988) examined controlling salmonella infections in broiler chickens by using a mixture of formic and propionic acid (table 1). They demonstrated that under experimental conditions 6 kg / t of that organic acid blend was effective in preventing intestinal colonization with Salmonella spp. from naturally or artificially contaminated feed.

Improved broiler performance or hygienic conditions with the aid of organic acids has been reported from many sources, as afore mentioned. An important limitation, however, is that organic acids are rapidly metabolised from the fore-gut (crop to gizzard) of birds, which will reduce their impact on growth performance. ADDCON's patented poultry product FORMI NDF based on their unique double-salt technology has been proven to be effective in the whole gastro-intestinal tract, for instance against Salmonella and Campylobacter. On the other hand, its effects on performance enhance of broilers were recently proven too.

A commercial trial with FORMI NDF (0.5%) was conducted in France. 34,500 day old birds were randomly selected and divided into 2 trial groups. Performance data were measured at the end of the trial on day 42.

As it can be seen from table 1, overall performance in the groups with FORMI NDF was increased. The addition of 0.5% FORMI NDF resulted in an increase of 2.8% in weight gain, while the feed conversion rate was improved by 2.1%. Furthermore, the mortality was reduced by more than 23%.

Table 1:           Broiler results from commercial trial in France

An economic analysis based on the European Broiler Index (EBI) showed that the use of the product gives a clear benefit to the farmer. The EBI is a widely used measure to describe the efficiency of a broiler production, as it is calcluated as:

                        EBI = Daily weight gain (g) x Survival (%) / 10 x FCR

The FORMI NDF inclusion improved the EBI by almost 5.5% (from 350.4 to 264.1), thus securing an optimized broiler production.

As stated above, FORMI NDF also counteracts serious pathogenic bacteria in poultry production. In order to further prove this effect the following trial was carried out.

The objective of this trial was to evaluate the effect of FORMI NDF (0.3% and 0.6%) in broiler diets (starter and grower only) on the control of the bacterial contamination in the digestive tract in comparison to a negative control under hot conditions (Spain). 1750 one-day old broilers distributed in 14 batches of 125 animals each (5 batches per treatment; excluding control with 4 batches only) were used. The broilers were fed a starter diet for 21 days; a grower diet for 18 days and a finisher diet for 3 days. After 39 days of treatment, previous the supply of finisher feed, 10 birds from each of the 3 treatments were taken for further microbial analysis.

FORMI NDF was only given to the starter and grower diet. The finisher feed (last 3 days) did not contain FORMI NDF and was the same in all 14 lots.

In the following 3 tables the achieved results are shown:

Table 2: Results of various FORMI NDF dosages on Campylobacter inhibition (% positive samples)

Table 3: Results of various FORMI NDF dosages on Salmonella inhibition (% positive samples)

Table 4: Results of microbiological investigation of the intestine (CFU/g)

Results clearly showed the beneficial effect of FORMI NDF against pathogenic bacteria in broiler. No positive samples of Salmonella and Campylobacter were found in slaughtered broiler in the FORMI NDF fed groups. Furthermore, there were no positive samples for Salmonella and Campylobacter in the crop in FORMI NDF fed groups and no positive samples for Salmonella and significantly reduced Campylobacter counts in the intestine in FORMI NDF fed groups. Clearly lower Enterobacter numbers on one hand and clearly higher Lactobacilli- as well as Bifidobacteria numbers on the other hand show the beneficial impact of FORMI NDF on the intestine microbiota.

The mode of action of acidifier in poultry is mainly due to its anti microbial action, unlike in pigs where a key activity is the reduction of the stomach-pH. In the trials discussed, final body weight of the broiler chickens fed acidified diets was increased. Average daily weight gain was higher in the acidifier group, and FCR was reduced, resulting in an improved European Broiler Index. Additionally, the health status of the chickens was better, with a significantly improved gut microflora - seen in lower Enterobacter numbers and high Lactobacilli and Bifidobacteria counts.

It can be therefore concluded that the addition of a balanced acidifier, such as FORMI NDF, increases the performance of broiler chicken and is an option for maintaining or improving broiler growth and efficiency results without resorting to supplementation with an AGP.

The German based ADDCON group produces its FORMI product range, including the relevant poultry feed additive in its site in Porsgrunn, Norway. A comprehensive quality management system has been implemented to ensure highest quality requirements by its customers.