ISSUE FOCUS 64 FEED & ADDITIVE MAGAZINE February 2026 Our understanding of how nutrition influences growth and resilience in poultry has greatly expanded in recent years. It is now clear that animal performance stems to a large extent from a balance between metabolism, immune function, and the gut microbiome. These systems interact continuously, and even small nutritional or environmental changes can shift the animals’ physiological response. This growing knowledge has encouraged the development of nutritional strategies and feed components that work through adaptive, non-antibiotic mechanisms. One recent proposed explanation for these responses has rapidly gained ground: hormetic modeling. Hormetic modeling describes how small or moderate doses of nutritional components can activate beneficial adaptive responses (improved resilience or metabolic efficiency), while excessive doses become harmful. This idea parallels, largely speaking, Paracelsus’s famous principle: “The dose makes the poison.” In poultry nutrition, such hormetic patterns are well recognized in nutrients like trace elements (selenium, zinc) and specific amino acids (for example, arginine). At optimal levels, these nutrients support antioxidant defense, growth, and immune balance, whereas excessive intake may cause oxidative or metabolic stress Understanding how antibiotic growth promoters (AGPs) enhanced poultry performance offers valuable insights for advancing modern nutrition strategies. Recent research suggests that AGPs acted not only through antimicrobial effects, but also via metabolic, immunological, and mitochondrial adaptation pathways. By applying these mechanistic lessons —particularly hormesis, immunometabolic regulation, and microbiome modulation— nutrition science can develop effective, non-antibiotic solutions to support resilience, efficiency, and sustainable poultry production. LEARNING FROM AGP MECHANISMS TO ADVANCE POULTRY NUTRITION Ilinca Anghelescu Global Director, Marketing & Communications EW Nutrition Dr. Andreas Michels Global Director, Research and Development EW Nutrition Predrag Persak Regional Technical Manager North Europe EW Nutrition
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