ISSUE FOCUS 28 FEED & ADDITIVE MAGAZINE November 2022 broilers and swine at all stages of the production cycle (Amad et al., 2013). There are several categories of PFAs, and all of them have a different effect on the animal, including essential oils, spices, bitter substances, and saponins. Essential oils can positively affect the secretion of digestive juices and nutrient absorption (Amad et al., 2013). Spices and bitter substances have been shown to have an additional effect on an increased bile flow in the gut which is vital for fat digestion (Platel and Srinivasan, 2000; Srinivasan, 2005). Lastly, saponins may improve the gut wall's permeability, which will likely positively impact the absorption of nutrients and minerals (Reyer et al. 2017). Due to this, therefore, phytogenic will not likely improve the digestible fraction of the feed but may have the potential to target a better utilization of the non-digestible fraction. Thus, with these benefits, a PFA can be formulated into the diet with nutritional matrix values, playing an essential role in the least cost formulation and sustainability of feed. The key is to make a trustable estimation of the nutritional matrix values of a PFA. THE CLASSIC WAY, WITH DIGESTIBILITY TRIALS For many years, feed additives, such as enzymes, have assigned nutritional matrix values. This nutritional value is then part of the entire diet's nutritional value, allowing for the reduction of the incorporation of some ingredients, such as those needed for energy (oil/ fat) and protein (soybean), and minerals (Bedford and Cowieson,2020). In theory, as a result, this leads to a feed cost reduction while the animal maintains the same performance. This improves the poultry or swine producer's economy and returns on investment. Before a nutritional matrix value can be reached for the additive, several methods are employed to confirm the matrix values (Bedford and Cowieson, 2020). One method is by using an in vivo digestibility study or several studies. Digestibility is currently the most widely used method for evaluating feedstuffs and diet formulation for different stages of poultry and the pigs' life (Zhang and Adeola 2017). Efforts have been made to improve these methods and make them more applicable in practice and more accurate in assessments (Zhang and Adeola, 2017). The sampling time, site, and possible intake effects may all affect the outcomes/results of this type of trial (Bedford and Cowieson, 2020). Typically, these kinds of studies are conducted in research institutes. If an ileal collection is required, as in the instance of amino acid digestibility in poultry, this requires animal sacrifice or surgical Ileal cannulation, as for swine. This can lead to a considerable cost and low data replication to ensure the digestibility of the animal/ feed is correct. The analysis of 16 ileal nutrient digestibility studies in both broilers and layers fed corn/soy diets supplemented with Biostrong 510 demonstrated increased ileal digestibility of crude protein (CP), amino acids, fat, calcium, and phosphorus. The increase in CP digestibility from these trials is shown in Figure 1 (as the difference between CP digestibility of Delacon's PFA – CP digestibility Control). Delacon's Performizer solution is based on the results of these ileal nutrient digestibility studies, where the nutrient digestibility of the diet is measured and compared, allowing for a quantification of the feed efficiency generated when the phytogenic solution is added to a diet. Those nutrient digestibility enhancements from PFA are transposed to nutrient matrix values and then applied to the least-cost feed formulation.
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