SUSTAINABILITY 64 FEED & ADDITIVE MAGAZINE October 2025 the 42-day feeding trial, the zinc content in the tibia was analyzed, as well as the amount of copper in the liver (Figure 3). The results show that there are no significant differences in zinc deposition in the tibia. Even though the hydroxy zinc was added at a lower zinc dosage (80 ppm), the effects on deposition are comparable to results for the zinc sulphate at higher dosage (120 ppm). For the copper deposition in the liver, it was shown that the hydroxy copper at lower dosage (10 ppm) resulted in higher liver copper levels compared to the copper sulphate at a higher dosage (15 ppm).The results of this trial very nicely show how the hydroxy zinc and copper have higher bioavailability compared to the zinc and copper sulphate and therefore allow for a reduction in zinc and copper levels in feed, while achieving similar/better zinc and copper levels in the target animal. Similar results on bioavailability can be found for other species (e.g. swine, ruminants). SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY: CONSIDERING DUST IN THE WORKPLACE Besides environmental and economic sustainability, it is also important to consider social sustainability, which focuses on maintaining and improving the welfare of people and future generations. Good working conditions play a big role, especially the health of employees. Feed additives, especially minerals, can be quite dusty products. Workers in feed and premix factories are exposed to this dust, which can pose a serious hazard to their health. Long-term exposure to mineral dust can lead to several occupational exposure diseases such as asthma, lung irritation and even cancer. Therefore, it is important to minimize the dusting potential of these additive and safeguard the health of the people working with these products. In Europe, EFSA has implemented Occupational Exposure Limits (OEL’s), which indicate the maximum allowed dusting potential, which is still considered to be safe. The dust potential can be measured by using the Stauber-Heubach dust meter, which quantifies dust particles in powder materials. When choosing a mineral solution, it is important to take the dusting potential into account. Orffa offers several dust free mineral solutions. The L-SeMet product (Excential Selenium 4000) is dust free and in line with the OEL of <0.2 mg Se/m3 air. But also, the Elovital Miku range offers dust free solutions for iodine, cobalt and selenium. By choosing a dust free mineral product, a contribution is made towards better social sustainability. HOW TO CHOOSE SUSTAINABLE MINERAL SOLUTIONS? When summarizing how to choose a sustainable mineral solution, it is important to consider different aspects of sustainability; environmental (minimize resources + waste), economic (reduce costs) and social (workers’ safety). For both environmental and economic sustainability, it is important to choose the most bioavailable mineral solution, which allows you to reduce the dosage while maintaining optimal mineral levels in the animal. For selenium, L-selenomethionine is considered as the selenium source with the most optimal bioavailability, for copper, zinc and manganese the third-generation hydroxy trace minerals are considered an excellent source. When focusing on social sustainability, it is important to consider dust levels of different mineral sources and choose a dust free or low dust product. By choosing such sustainable mineral solutions, you can contribute to a more sustainable livestock industry and a healthy planet for future generations! Sulphates Hydroxy 18 16 14 12 10 8 6 4 2 0 180 160 140 120 100 80 60 40 20 0 ppm DM a b P=0.024 Tibia Zn (ppm DM) Liver Cu (ppm DM) ppm DM Figure 3. Results for zinc deposition in tibia and copper deposition in liver when feeding sulphates (higher dosage) vs hydroxy trace minerals
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy MTUxNjkxNQ==