ISSUE FOCUS FEED & ADDITIVE MAGAZINE December 2023 35 About Sandra Chamusco Sandra Chamusco is Global Technical Lead Sustainability Additives at Cargill Animal Nutrition. She has worked in the swine nutrition field for over 25 years, where she has held various positions as a feed formulator, customer advisor and Global Technical Manager. Sandra Chamusco graduated in Zootechnical Engineering at University of Évora, Portugal and Sandra joined Cargill in 2022. Chamusco is leading and collaborating in several projects related to feed additives and sustainability. About Elisabeth Rohrer As former member of the technical communications team at Delacon, Elisabeth Rohrer has many years of experience in writing articles and texts dealing with phytogenic feed additives in animal nutrition. Rohrer has a PhD in agriculture from the University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, Vienna, she joined Cargill in 2022 and has been working as MarCom Content Manager ever since. consumption of feedstuffs. An increased demand for feed would of course be linked to increased land use and water consumption. This probably would only be partially feasible, especially in regions that have always struggled with water supply and/or where soil resources are already scarce. In the absence of organic acidifiers, pre, pro, post-biotics, and phytogenic substances, known for their benefits as gut stabilizers, antimicrobial bio-actives, and antioxidants, the animals’ welfare, health, and performance would for sure be affected. Environmental pollution from underutilized nutrients would potentially be higher as more phosphorus and nitrogen would be excreted by the animals in the absence of digestibility enhancers, for example, phytogenic substances and enzymes. Also, high aerial ammonia concentrations would be a menace to not only the housed animals’ health and performance but also to workers’ safety and can in the end contribute to higher atmospheric pollution, land and water acidification, and eutrophication. SMALL INPUT – GREAT OUTPUT Sustainable food production without providing optimal all-around care for our livestock would hardly be possible. To achieve high performance and reduce environmental impacts, feed additives are generally included in the everyday feeding of livestock. In-depth know-how about the raw materials used, the animals, and their respective nutritional requirements, and not the least, the sophisticated production processes build the basis for high-quality feed and feed additives. USING TOMORROWS FEED ADDITIVES TODAY In a rapidly growing world with a call for healthy foods and, at the same time, a global interest in sustainable production, the highest priority must be placed on efficiency and reduction of environmental impact, water use and recycling, and savings in natural resources. The feed industry has been working continuously to develop and supply innovative solutions for optimizing animal nutrition, one of them being sophisticated feed additives that affect the characteristics of feed, animal productivity, welfare and health, and livestock supply chains environmental impact. Targeted use of excellent feed additives will be crucial for providing us and future generations with safe and high-quality food of animal origin, contributing to sustainable food production systems. References: 1FAO.2020. Environmental performance of feed additives in livestock supply chains – Guidelines for assessment – Version 1. Livestock Environmental Assessment and Performance Partnership (FAO LEAP). Rome. https://doi.org/10.4060/ca9744en. 2,3https://www.efsa.europa.eu/en/topics/topic/ feed-additives
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