Cost-effective SBM-free broiler production possible with right additive mix

Cost-effective SBM-free broiler production possible with right additive mix

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Complex supply chains, as well as concerns about greenhouse gas emissions and land use changes, are driving interest in alternative raw materials in broiler diets. Yet, although partial replacement of soybean meal (SBM) has been achieved with ingredients such as rapeseed and sunflower seed meal, total replacement has generally meant a drop in performance and a significant rise in costs. Until now.

That’s why we are taking a strategic approach to each issue. In practice, this means:

• investigating how to optimise the use of xylanase and betaglucanase (XB) to improve non-starch polysaccharide (NSP) and fiber digestion,

• applying protease to increase AA digestion, and • enhancing gut health with betaine or probiotics in addition to these enzymes.

[Feedinfo] Can you give a quick overview of the proof of concept study? How many animals were involved? How many different alternative diets did you study? How did those diets differ from the control diet? Which additives were included in both the experimental diets and control? How did you analyse the raw materials before formulation?

At the annual meeting of the Poultry Science Association in Texas this summer, Danisco Animal Nutrition & Health presented the results of an intriguing proof of concept study. This research investigated how enzymes and gut health solutions could be used to mitigate the negative impacts of alternative raw materials in diets free-from SBM and oil and, crucially, achieve a cost and performance comparable or very close to traditional diets. Today, Principal Scientist Dr. Yueming Dersjant-Li shares more about these findings and what’s next for the concept.

[Feedinfo] Nutritionally, the disadvantages of alternative feed ingredients can be broken down into a few different categories. Can you explain them? How can each be addressed with feed additive use?

[Dr. Yueming Dersjant-Li] Using alternative protein ingredients, such as rapeseed meal or sunflower meal, does have potential limitations. It can, for example, increase dietary crude fiber content which in turn reduces nutrient digestion. Or it can result in a rise in undigested crude protein or amino acids (AA) content, causing the over-growth of microbiota, especially non-beneficial bacteria. It may also contain antinutritional factors that could damage animal health. [Dr. Yueming Dersjant-Li] In this study we used a total of 2,574 Ross 308 male broilers, with 22 birds × 13 floor pens per dietary treatment. We tested nine treatments in total; one commercially relevant SBM-based diet (control supplemented with Axtra® PHY GOLD phytase and Danisco® Xylanase) and eight alternative diets formulated without SBM and soy oil. The eight SBM-free diets were designed in a 2x4 factorial arrangement, with two levels of crude protein and four diets with different combinations of enzymes and other additives. The 4 diets included: 1) Danisco® Xylanase alone at the same dose as in SBM control; 2) xylanase and beta-glucanase (Axtra® XB); 3) Axtra® XB + Betafin® natural betaine; and 4) Axtra® XB + Enviva® PRO probiotic. All alternative diets contained Axtra® PRO protease. All were fed as ad lib pelleted diets in four phases; starter (1-10 days), grower (10-21 days), finisher 1 (21-35 days), and finisher 2 (35-42 days). All diets including SBM control were

“These preliminary results supplemented with 2,000, 1500 and are the first to suggest that 1000 FTU/kg Axtra® PHY GOLD phytase in starter, grower and finishers phases

SBM could be completely respectively. replaced without significantly Our data analysis focused on answering two key questions. Firstly, what is the compromising performance.” effect of the different CP levels and enzyme/feed additive combinations on DR. YUEMING DERSJANT-LI bird BWG and FCR at each growth phase — and which is the most effective strategy?

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And secondly, is it possible to maintain performance and achieve economic equivalence in 100% soy-free diets?

[Feedinfo] The most interesting alternative diet had no soya ingredients and a lower crude protein level overall. Can you talk about its significance?

[Dr. Yueming Dersjant-Li] We observed that reducing protein levels by 2% to 1.5% (from starter to finisher) significantly improved performance compared to normal protein diets across the alternative diets analysed, excluding the SBM control treatment. When formulating the low crude protein diet, we maintained levels of the most critical essential AA and also considered the balance between essential and non-essential AA. This meant more synthetic AA was included to meet the digestible AA requirement. We believe this approach will help to further reduce undigested crude protein and nitrogen emissions, thereby improving both gut health and feed efficacy.

[Feedinfo] How well did these alternative diets perform compared to the control diets with soy, and how well did they perform on overall performance objectives?

[Dr. Yueming Dersjant-Li] Their performance relates to the specific enzyme/feed additive combination used. For example, application of probiotics in addition to NSPase enzymes (on top of protease) outperformed the NSPase-alone treatments (xylanase or the combination of xylanase and beta-glucanase).

However, the best performing alternative treatment was low CP, supplemented with XB enzymes and probiotics on top of protease. It reached 98.3% for 42-day BW (3,082 g vs 3,136 g) and 99% for 1-42 days FCR (1.61 vs 1.60), compared to the breeder performance objectives (Figure 1). This compares well with the SBM treatment, which achieved 3,256 g BW and 1.57 FCR at 42 days.

[Feedinfo] So, adding probiotics on top of NSPase enzymes further improved performance. Can you explain why?

[Dr. Yueming Dersjant-Li] It has a positive synergistic effect, optimising nutrient digestibility and reducing undigested substrates, while also modulating gut microflora to promote beneficial gut bacteria. Better gut health means reduced challenge and improved nutrient absorption — all of which helps to improve animal performance.

[Feedinfo] How did the alternative diets compare in terms of cost? How did you calculate this?

[Dr. Yueming Dersjant-Li] We observed that the alternative SBM-free diets (low CP with xylanase and beta-glucanase, protease and probiotics) maintained the feed cost/kg BWG versus SBM-based control diets (P>0.05). These calculations were based on the accumulated feed cost of each phase and final BWG for each treatment, enabling us to test the statistical differences. (Figure 2). Feed cost, $/kg BWG 0.59 P>0.05 0.61

[Feedinfo] You have characterized this as a proof-ofconcept study. What follow-up research does Danisco Animal Nutrition & Health have planned? And will you be seeking to publish the initial research?

[Dr. Yueming Dersjant-Li] These preliminary results are the first to suggest that SBM could be completely replaced without significantly compromising performance. We are in the process of publishing this study in a scientifically peer-reviewed journal to make the full details available for all who want to partly or fully replace soybean meal. We plan to use these insights to perform further studies to determine the optimal enzymes/feed additives combination to mitigate the negative effects of using alternative ingredients in broiler diets.

[Feedinfo] Why is this kind of enquiry important to Danisco Animal Nutrition & Health? Given that the nutritional profile and costs of alternative ingredients is so variable, according to location and other circumstances, how does research like this add customer value?

[Dr. Yueming Dersjant-Li] Our customers are very clear that the adoption of new concepts and practices needs to be supported by reliable data generated under practical conditions. We also know that our customers will test and validate the new concept in their own conditions. As a leading specialty ingredient supplier to the feed industry, we understand its importance and continue to invest in driving science through well-run animal studies designed to demonstrate benefits. That’s why we are the partner of choice for customers interested in new concepts formulated to address current challenges, such as improving sustainability through greater use of locally sourced raw materials.

Published in association with Danisco Animal Nutrition & Health