Poultry

Nutrition

Nutrition

    1.   Feeding excess calcium during chick and grower stage farmers are giving 1.2 to 1.7% calcium with 0.3 to       0.4% available phosphorus during laying period the calcium content of the diet is 4.2 to 5.5% and       phosphorus is 0.25 to 0.35%.
    2.   Regarding lighting schedule farmers doubt have a fixed schedule
    3.   Egg weights: In our country eggs are most sold by weights. However farmers pay Rs. 2-5/-       compensation towards pullet / medium eggs to the traders.It is not only the financial loss but farmers       have serious problem in selling these eggs during lean periods like summer / Shravan months.
    4.   Egg markets in India: One of the main reasons for poor per capita consumption and poor demand for       eggs is improper distribution of eggs in rural areas and their ignorance about the nutritive value of eggs.

  • There is a definite need to conduct research and to give recommendations to improve egg consumption. After GATT agreement Indian market is open to the world markets for supply of eggs and chicken.
  • To face competition from world markets our product has to be of premium and also economical. Today majority of the farmers know very little about producing eggs with food external and internal quality.
  • When we export eggs / egg powder they look for good shell quality, uniform sized eggs more egg solids, bright yolk color, higher HU units.
  • Farmers need to be trained to produce higher egg weights with good egg quality so that our eggs can c with other countries in quality and price.
  • Awareness about feed quality - Feed and quality control is not seen in most of the farms.
  • Raw material / finished feed is not weighed in more than 95% of the farms.
  • Correct feed formulations as per the age, consumptions and production is not followed.
  • Feeding excess protein (18-21 gms /day) to layers is very common.
  • Record keeping on feed, production etc. is not maintained.

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Nutrition compostion of raw materials

Amino acid analaysis % of Amino Acids

Amino acids
Rice broaken
Ragi
Maize
Param
Dorb
Nut cake
fish
Soy
bean
Sun
flower
Taurine
0.00
0.00
0.00
0.00
0.00
0.00
0.00
0.00
0.00
Hydroxy proline
0.00
0.00
0.00
0.00
0.00
0.00
0.00
0.00
0.00
Aspartic acid
0.83
0.47
0.60
0.52
1.3
4.09
4.10
5.05
2.55
Theromine
0.35
0.31
0.32
0.22
0.6
1.12
1.74
1.77
1.14
Serine
0.43
0.34
0.41
0.26
0.66
1.8
1.49
2.25
1.26
Glautemic acid
1.57
1.49
1.71
0.96
1.99
7.2
6.39
8.10
5.61
Protein
0.35
0.46
0.79
0.27
0.66
1.45
2.00
2.37
1.15
Glycine
0.46
0.28
0.67
0.33
0.96
1.53
2.91
1.91
1.28
Cystine
0.30
0.23
0.25
0.14
0.35
0.68
0.43
0.66
0.73
Valine
0.59
0.49
0.44
0.33
0.92
1.70
2.25
2.20
1.53
Methionine
0.34
0.29
0.16
0.12
0.37
0.60
1.33
0.68
0.79
Isoleucine
0.40
0.33
0.3
0.22
0.58
1.36
1.86
2.02
1.25
Leucine
0.75
0.71
1.11
0.43
1.12
2.51
3.06
3.46
1.88
Tyrosine
0.25
0.20
0.18
0.20
0.45
1.4
1.24
1.64
0.71
Phenyl- alanine
0.49
0.39
0.44
0.28
0.72
1.96
1.65
2.30
1.38
Histidine
0.25
0.18
0.26
0.14
0.42
0.98
0.87
1.19
0.76
Lysine
0.42
0.23
0.26
0.25
0.73
1.52
3.07
2.64
1.23
Ammonia
0.19
0.20
0.21
0.12
0.26
0.75
0.81
0.87
0.65
Arginine
0.67
0.28
0.37
0.44
1.17
4.23
2.22
3.38
2.51
Tryptophan
0.11
0.09
0.07
0.16
0.39
0.39
0.67
0.33
Glucos-amine
0.00
0.00
0.00
0.00
0.00
0.00
0.00
0.00
0.00
Percen-tage totals
9.30
7.40
8.87
5.60
14.25
37.65
42.80
45.27
28.4

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Commercial Feeds and Price list

S.No
Name of the product
Price
(1995-96)
Price
(1996-97)
Price
(1997-98)
Price
(1998-99)
1.
Broiler Concentrate 550 762 816 849
2.
Chick Concentrate
550 0 0 0
3.
Layer Grower
Concentrate
434 587 690 680
4.
Broiler Starter 495 600 629 680
5.
Broiler Finisher 491 608 628 630
6.
Chick Mash 454 544 577 567
7.
Grower Mash 390 409 464 472
8.
Layer Mash 390 453 495 480

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Mycotoxins The Silent Killers

  • More than 40years have passed since researchers discovered the link between mycotoxins that contaminate grain, other feed ingredients, as well as complete feeds with the health disorders of animals.
  • All have begun with the spectacular discovery of aflatoxins & their deleterious effects on man & animals following ingestion of food or feed contaminated by them.
  • However, to date scientists have identified several hundred mycotoxins & in many cases they have described their mode of actions too.
  • Although several mycotoxins are known, those mycotoxins of most concern other than aflatoxins are, ocharatoxin, vomitoxin, zearalenone, fumonisin, T2 toxin, citrinin, oosporin, cyclopiazonic acid, etc. Depending upon the chemical structure, these mycotoxins entering the poultry gut exert systemic effects and cause damage to specific organs or organ systems.
  • Whatever may be the target organ and the mode of action, the ultimate result is decreased productivity leading to substantial economic losses. Mycotoxins lower the profitability of poultry production by decreasing growth rate, feed conversion efficiency, livability and reproductive potential.
  • Under field conditions, mycotoxicoses involve low level of chronic intake of fungal metabolites, resulting in a measurable decline in performance together with non specific changes such as immunosuppression.
  • No regions of the world escape these silent killers and their negative impact on poultry productivity.

Economic impact of mycotoxicoses

  • Losses due to mycotoxin induced death and growth suppression, can be quantified. In contrast, subtle effects of mycotoxins, such as immunosuppression and reproductive dysfunction, are difficult to recognise and evaluate.
  • The financial impact of mycotoxins on intensive poultry production can be inferred from field studies conducted in the poultry industry.
  • Market competition and relatively lage volumes of production in broiler, turkey and commercial egg segments dictate high standards of efficiency to maintain profitability.
  • Deviation from determined production standards, at either the breeding or commercial level, will impact revenue and hence the return on investment. Safe level of mycotoxins Controlling the mold growth and mycotoxin production can be accomplished by keeping moisture low, feed fresh and equipments clean.
  • However, even with the best quality systems, mycotoxin contamination of grain or feed by one or more than one mycotoxin in unavoidable.
  • Controlling mould growth and mycotoxin production
  • Mycotoxin contamination can take place at any stage from the point of harvesting to the ingestion of compounded feed by the bird.
  • Hence several strategies have been devised to reduce the risk of mycotoxin contamination which involves selection of mold resistant varieties of crops, careful harvesting to avoid damaging the kernel, adequate drying & moisture control, proper feed storage & feeding practices.
  • Despite all these measures, under field conditions, mycotoxins invariably creep into the feed. Today, the presence of multiple toxins in the feed necessitates a multifaceted approach in controlling their adverse effects, which begins from the pre-harvesting stage of grain till it is fed to the birds. Many of the times, controlling measures at the point of harvesting & transport of feed ingredients goes out of control & selective usage of feed additives such as mold inhibitors & toxin binders become a necessity.

Mold Inhibitors

  • The use of chemical mold inhibitors is a well-established factor in feed industry. However mold inhibitors are one of the several tools useful in complex process of controlling the growth of molds

The main types of mold inhibitors are

    1.   Individual or combination of organic acids eg. Propionic acid, acetic acid etc.
    2.   Copper salts The practice of recommending Copper Sulphate for fungal inhibition goes back to many      decades. However several disadvantages associated with the same paved the way for oxine-     copper,which is of-late recognized as a very potent antifungal agent.

Toxin Binders

  • The recent approach to mycotoxin contamination problems has progressed beyond a simple focus on preventing fungal growth; as there are too many possible routes of contamination to protect realistically.
  • A current emphasis is on reducing the deleterious effects of the mycotoxins in feeds while enhancing production and improving immune response. Although numerous chemical agents have been tested for their ability to bind mycotoxins only few have proven to be successful and used commercially.
  • Hydrated Sodium Calcium Aluminosilicate Of all these clay products Hydrated Sodium Calcium Aluminosilicate (HSCAS) has proved to bind aflatoxin to a greater extent and recognised as safe to be used in poultry diet.
  • The molecular surface gets saturated with water within the system, attract the polar functional atomic structure of mycotoxin and trap it against its surface. This isolates the mycotoxin from the digestive process and thereby prevents it from entering into the circulation.
  • Yeast Culture Viable yeast culture based on saccharomyces cerevisiae strain 1026 added to broiler diet having aflatoxin resulted in significant improvement in weight gain and enhanced immune response.
  • Invitro studies have established the binding of aflatoxin by yeast cells in a dose dependent response upto 90%.

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Enhancement of Immunity in Poultry By use of Probiotics

  • Antibiotics are used in poultry as growth promoters as well as in disease control.
  • Use of antibiotics, both indiscriminately as well as not sub-therapeutic levels has led to development of resistant pathogens, Hence, use of antibiotics in the poultry feed is increasingly rejected by environmental and consumer groups of poultry.
  • In view of all these, Probiotics generated a considerable interest among researchers as a substitute to antibiotic in poultry industry.
  • The word "Probiotic" is derived from the Greek meaning 'for life' and is defined as 'A live microbial feed supplement that beneficially affects the host animal by improving its intestinal microbial balance.
  • Probiotics for chicken are designed either to replace beneficial organisms that are not present in the alimentary tract or to provide the chicken the beneficial effects. In addition to lactic acid bacteria, other bacillus, yeast, biomas and other agents are also classified as Probiotics.
  • They may be used alone or in combination. Yeast, especially strain S.cerevisiae1026 and L.acidophilus are employed extensively in poultry industry.
  • Recently Mannan oligosaccharide derived from yeast cell wall has generated considerable interest among researchers and also has been viewed with considerable enthusiasm by commercial livestock producers.
  • It can be concluded that Probiotics, especially S.cerevisiae1026, L.acidophilus and Mannan oligosaccharides, significantly stimulate the immune response in broiler chicks.
  • It seems, day is not far off when poultry industry can look more healthier as birds can perform better and disease incidence will be at its lowest.
  • This will bring more monetary benefits to poultry farmers as well encourage for healthy growth of poultry industry.

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