Addition of enzymes to monogastric diets is a widely used practice in the feed industry to improve digestion of difficult to digest components present in those diets, thereby enhancing production performance, and reducing feed cost per unit of animal product. Xylanase is one of the enzymes used to break down a part of the non-starch polysaccharide fraction. In many countries where monogastric diets are mostly corn-soybean meal based...

Performance and profitability are often the primary reasons for utilizing feed enzymes, as the direct result of enhanced feed digestion is the increased availability of nutrients like phosphorous, carbohydrates and amino acids and, therefore, an increase in available energy as well. However, feed enzymes also allow for the use of a broader range of feedstuffs that can offer flexibility in the formulation of the diet by using...

Feed enzymes offer a range of useful options for enhancing the digestibility of the diet. The individual capacity of phytase, carbohydrase and protease to increase the digestibility of amino acids has been extensively demonstrated. However, it is increasingly the case that diets are formulated with more than one enzyme and so the additivity of enzyme effects has become a focal area of ongoing research.

Originating in Europe, Orffa has a very strong presence in all major feed producing markets of Europe, which has been the start of a quick internationalization. Europe is still our main market, in which we generate about half of our revenues. However, since we started our international expansion, our presence outside Europe has been growing very fast.

Improving sustainability of the livestock sector is essential. Life cycle assessment (LCA) studies have shown that feed production accounts for 70% of the carbon footprint of animal products which makes it an important element to account for when considering mitigation options. Improved knowledge of the environmental impact of feed ingredients is fundamental to instigate a positive change.

As part of the feed industry, organic trace elements have a lot of challenges to face. In the end, they play an important role in sustainability as they can help in reducing the environmental footprint and producing better quality products. These attributes support public health regulations for the end consumer, and they also preserve the welfare of workers...

Although mycotoxins affect most organs and systems in poultry, some organs/systems are more vulnerable for a specific group of mycotoxins. Aflatoxins are known as potent hepatotoxins while ochratoxins are known to affect kidneys severely. Similarly, GIT is more susceptible to trichothecene mycotoxins while fumonisins affect sphingholipid metabolism in various organs. The one system that is affected by all these mycotoxins is the immune system and it can be affected even...

Nowadays, many dietary supplements are available to be fed to young farm animals such as broilers, turkeys, piglets and calves in order to improve their intestinal health and growth performance. Despite the fact that non-pharmacological feed additives in general do not reach the efficacy of antibiotics as growth promoters, the proper choice and use of a dietary supplement may improve livestock productivity.

Nutreco invested in Proteon Pharmaceuticals to reduce the reliance on antibiotics within aquaculture and livestock farming.

Dear readers, The effects of global warming and climate change have been felt so intensely that they cannot be ignored in almost every part of...