Feed & Additive Magazine Issue 3 April 2021

ISSUE FOCUS 40 FEED & ADDITIVE MAGAZINE April 2021 META-ANALYSIS OF COPPER TRIALS IN SWINE Trials conducted at Kansas State University sought to evaluate the influence of adding a high level of hydroxy Copper to the diets of grow-finish pigs compared to swine receiving nutritional levels of the mineral. Pigs were tracked for growth performance and carcass characteristics. Eight trials from 2013-2018 involved 6,790 swine. Diets included hydroxy Copper at high levels – 75, 150 or 200ppm copper, and the control groups were fed nutritional levels (13-20ppm) of copper from a basal premix. Findings include: * Looking at the hot carcass weight of pigs from individual studies based on their diet found that use of high levels of Copper increased weight in almost every trial. Increases ranged from +0.04 to +3.2kg. * Overall, hot carcass weight for pigs on the high-Copper diets saw a significant improvement as weight grew by 1.31kg compared to results from swine receiving nutritional levels of the trace mineral. * ADG increased during both the grower and fin- isher phases and average daily feed intake also im- proved during the grower phase. * Pigs receiving higher levels of copper saw bodyweight improvement during the grower and finisher phases. * Swine on the high-Copper diets saw significant improvement to ADG and average daily feed intake. Swine performance showed benefits in both the grower and finisher phases. * Improvements in hot carcass weight and growth performance occurred regardless of season. * Adding high levels of Copper to swine diets in- creases feeding costs, but the additional weight can provide more benefit depending on the price per kilogram. In an economic analysis, the gain in im- provement over feed cost was $0.56 (USD) per pig, showing a strong benefit to farm profitability of sup- plementing high levels of hydroxy copper source. CONSIDERATIONS IN SELECTING COPPER SOURCE Adding high levels of Copper to swine diets can bring weight and carcass improvement through the grow-finish phase and may provide additional eco- nomic returns to producers by managing the micro- bial population on the GIT, as well as impacting nu- trient digestibility. Using a hydroxy Copper, with low solubility in feed means the trace mineral source will not inter- fere with vitamin stability, or reduce the effectiveness of added enzymes, like phytase. Instead, the mineral will be available to be absorbed in the small intestine, supporting the many important functions within the animal which rely on trace minerals. About Alice Hibbert Trouw Nutrition, the animal health division of Nutreco, is a global industry leader in premix and feed additives for animal nutrition, serving some of the world’s largest agri-businesses with nutritional products and services. Selko is Trouw nutrition's Feed Additive brand. Prior to working with Trouw Nutrition, Alice worked in the feed compound industry after completing her BSc. (Hons.) in Animal Sci- ence at the University of Reading in the UK, with a special focus on poultry nutrition, specifically layer production, and understanding how Folic Acid can affect the deposition of various n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids in the egg. In 2015, she moved to Trouw Nutrition, and held many roles in its GB operating company, working as a monogastric nutritionist, supporting the premix business and taking on commercial product management responsibilities. She worked with customers to provide prac- tical nutritional support and helped them apply feed additive programmes at a farm-level, whilst completing her MSc. in applied Poultry Science. She then moved to Selko's global team, and is currently working as Global Programme Manager Trace Minerals, based in Bangkok. She uses her nutritional knowledge and expertise in trace mineral nutrition to support Asia and Oceania teams, linking technical concepts with market issues to develop programmes for customers.