NEWS FEED & ADDITIVE MAGAZINE January 2024 17 Evonik’s Biotech Hub is partnering with the Technical University of Munich (TUM) and RWTH Aachen to develop a novel bacterial consortium to strengthen the immune system of chickens and prevent colonization by pathogens of their intestinal tract. The aim is to enhance health and help reduce the use of antibiotics. Evonik is both a partner in the three-year joint Chicken Synthetic Microbiota (ChiSYN) project and the project coordinator. The total project volume is over €2 million and is funded by the project partners on a pro-rata basis and by the Federal Ministry of Food and Agriculture (BMEL). “For our health, we need healthy food, and for that, we need healthy animals,” says Christoph Kobler, who heads the Biotech Hub. “Our innovative microbial consortium contributes to both animal health and sustainable human nutrition.” The aim of the project partners is to develop a prototype feed additive that makes sure that “beneficial microorganisms” colonise the gut of chicks. To achieve this, bacteria that strengthen the immune system and make colonisation by pathogens more difficult are selected from a broad population of chickens. The project partners then combine these microorganisms to create a novel consortium. “In the development of this bacterial consortium, we benefit from our experience of gut simulation and the successful development of probiotics for livestock farming,” says Stefan Pelzer, who heads the In Silico & Target Systems research unit at the Biotech Hub. Pelzer and his team have been working with the dynamic chicken gut simulation model “DAISy” since 2018. They use the findings to develop new gut health products and disruptive, high-precision nutritional concepts that take account of gut bacteria for the first time. In this project, Evonik’s experience in industrial biotechnology is perfectly complemented by the skillsets of its strategic partners at the universities in Aachen and Munich. Read more>> Evonik develops microbial consortium to reduce antibiotics “Enorm Biofactory is a milestone for insect farming in Europe, and we are delighted that our equipment has made such an important contribution to the success of this lighthouse project,” said Dr. Frank Hiller, CEO of Big Dutchman. “We value this cooperation very highly because the larvae of the black soldier fly have enormous potential. We believe that this alternative protein source can permanently replace a large part of the soy that is currently being imported to Europe.” Accordingly, Big Dutchman has bundled the group’s insect farming know-how into the subsidiary Better Insect Solutions, which was founded in 2020. Enorm Biofactory breeds black soldier flies that mate and lay eggs, from which the larvae hatch. The larvae’s main food source is residue from the regional food industry. After around 12 days, they are processed into insect oil and insect meal, products that have already shown promising results in connection with the management and health of pigs and poultry. The goal to produce 100 metric tonnes of larvae per day. Read more>>
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