January 20, 2012
QualiTech Animal Nutrition enhances poultry feed
QualiTech Animal Nutrition recently completed a test that used 25% less organic trace minerals (SQM zinc) in poultry feed, which proved to give birds greater overall bioavailability and optimised performance and efficiency.
A 42-d performance study was conducted utilising 2,640 straight run broiler chicks in 88 pens containing 30 chicks per pen.
Bird weight was measured at the initiation of the study, midpoint of the study (21 days) and completion (42 days).
Feed efficiency was calculated based on total pen bird weight and total feed intake throughout the 42-day study. Birds were monitored daily for morbidity and mortality.
The trace mineral of interest in the study was zinc, provided by either an inorganic sulfate source or Qualitech SQM polysaccharide complex. The levels of zinc evaluated were 0 ppm, 20 ppm, 40 ppm, 60 ppm, 80 ppm or 100 ppm.
The results from this study indicate that the use of zinc from an organic source will provide the highest level of live animal performance.
The additional cost of using an organic source such as SQM has been shown to be offset by the ability to reduce the level of incorporation.
This indicates an overall greater bioavailability and delivery to the animal along with providing zinc to optimise the bird's performance and efficiency.