NEWS FEED & ADDITIVE MAGAZINE July 2022 81 consumer demand for its chicken products, which have been available for purchase in Singapore since December 2020. The facility will also be home to approximately 50 researchers, scientists and engineers. In remarks at the ceremony, Eat Just Co-Founder and CEO Josh Tetrick said building the company’s first meat production site in the region is a major step for the industry. The company is also considering future operations for expanded large-scale production, additional research and development activities, and the export of GOOD Meat products across Asia, subject to regulatory approval. “We view Singapore as vital in our plans to build this new approach to making meat. We’ll launch new products here, distribute to other countries in Asia from here and learn from consumers here who have proven themselves to be at the cutting edge of what’s next,” Tetrick said. SFR study finds promising first results for male layer chicks Schothorst Feed Research (SFR) conducted a study into various feeding strategies of rearing male layer chicks. The study investigated which strategy was the most cost-efficient without impairing animal welfare and found promising results. The study involved 4,860 Dekalb White male layer chicks. The chicks were divided into 18 groups of 270 roosters, fattened in 98 days to an average weight of 1,414 grams. The groups were offered three different rations that varied in energy and digestible amino acid content (dAA). The first ration was based on a standard laying hen rearing ration. The second ration was based on an SFR literature review. Because male layer chicks have a lower optimal dAA/energy ratio, we chose a higher energy content compared to the first ration. The third ration contained 10% more dAA compared to the 2nd ration. The hypothesis was that the needs of the male layer chicks were certainly met, which also stimulated growth. All rations were provided as crumble with wheat, corn, oat hull, rapeseed flour, soybean flour and sunflower flour. During the study, experts observed a large difference in feed intake. During the entire period of 98 days, the male layer chicks in group 1 consumed over 600 grams more compared to the male layer chicks in groups 2 and 3. In addition, there was a difference in growth: the weight of the male layer chicks from groups 1 and 3 were similar (1426 grams in group 1 and 1436 grams in group 3), whereas in the second group the final weight was only 1379 grams. The higher feed intake of group 1 resulted in a negative effect on the feed conversion ratio (4.17). In comparison, the feed conversion in group 2 was 3.86 and in group 3 (only) 3.73. Compared to broiler chickens, the feed conversion rate was of course very high. The experts also investigated the financial results in their study by analysing the compensation arrangement minus the feed costs incurred, assuming that the housing costs corresponded to that of regular broiler chickens. The financial result for groups 1 and 2 were comparable. Because the feed of the third group had a higher cost price, the profit margin was lower despite the fact that the male layer chicks in group 3 had a much lower feed intake than in group 1. It is important to mention that the financial result partly depends on the compensation arrangement paid by the laying-hen farmer. This changes as soon as the compensation arrangement is altered. SRF's research indicated that male layer chicks had a positive result (also financially), which means that a standard rearing feed for laying hens (group 1) can be fed to male layer chicks.
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