INTERVIEW FEED & ADDITIVE MAGAZINE June 2022 51 gens from the outside. It is therefore very important that chicks receive a probiotic containing strains isolated from a healthy hen, such as Poultrystar, as soon as they enter the coop. However, in the past, during the time from the hatchery to the henhouse, chicks were exposed to pathogens. One of the world's leading animal nutrition companies, Biomin (Biomin is part of the DSM group of companies), announced gel droplet application as an alternative method for probiotic delivery in 2019. This practice, which is the hatchery version of PoultryStar®, a synbiotic product used successfully in the poultry industry for many years, has been successfully implemented in one of Turkey's largest enterprises for more than a year. As a result of the method a serious improvement in the intestinal health of the chicks and a healthy growth were achieved. Decreased antibiotic use and mortality… And of course, there is more. Biokey Gıda, Tarım ve Hayvancılık Ltd. Şti. (Biomin's subsidiary in Turkey), Irfan Coban, shared with us the details of this successful method that he implemented with his team and of the results obtained. Mr. Coban, today we would like to talk about the PoultryStar® Hatchery method that Biomin has recently developed. But before we talk about this practice, can you tell us a little bit about the risks that newly hatched chicks face? As all breeders know very well, the health of newly hatched day-old chicks is of great importance for their future. During the most critical stage in poultry farming, from hatching to henhouse, opportunistic pathogenic bacteria can easily pass to vulnerable chicks and adversely affect their health. In fact, in the natural environment and conditions, the flora necessary for the health of the animal passes horizontally from the mother hen to the chick, and the chicks become stronger against pathogens. But in modern breeding, this natural transition of flora from the mother hen to the chicks is not possible due to biosecurity requirements. In other words, the right flora that we want cannot settle in the intestines of the chicks immediately, and the intestine becomes vulnerable to pathogenic microorganisms such as Salmonella, E.coli and Eimeria and coccidiosis factors. In fact, in chicks with a sterile intestine at hatching, which bacteria colonize first is vital and can make a significant difference in their development. What is the traditional way of mitigating or reducing these risks to newly hatched chicks in modern aquaculture? What methods are used for this and what are the advantages or disadvantages of these methods? The best way to eliminate the risks faced by newly hatched chicks is to properly administer a multistrain, species-specific probiotic to hatching chicks. Of course, it is critical to give the right probiotic with the right method and applicator. For example, in traditional systems, probiotics are applied to the chicks by spraying them with water at hatching. One of the disadvantages of this system is that the chicks get cold as a result of getting their feathers wet and they are exposed to stress. Therefore, even if the right probiotic is given at the right time, the desired results cannot be achieved due to the disadvantage of the application method, and the investment cost is also wasted. So what is the PoultryStar® Hatchery method that you offer and in what aspects does it differ from
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