The future of feed formulation for poultry:Toward more sustainable production of meat and eggs

Current methods for feed formulation are based on minimizing costs,not maximizing profits.Complex models of bird growth and reproduction as functions of genetic,feed and other environmental variables are being developed,but their adaptation has been slow.The development of profit maximizing models will evolve to center on the production functions of broilers and layers.The production functions are the relationship between the value of products(mainly meat and eggs)and the cost of feed.The production function is the tool used to maximize profits subject to all the various inputs,not just feed or nutrition.The production function is subject to the law of diminishing returns.The most profitable output levels are those where the marginal value(price)of the meat or eggs is just equal to the marginal cost of the inputs including feed,housing,processing and all other costs.Anything that affects the production function,bird genetics,feed quality,housing and environment,will be considered to maximize profits for the poultry firm.The profit maximizing models of poultry firms will improve as various technical improvements are made:metabolizable energy to describe ingredients will evolve to net energy systems that consider that the heat production(and therefore energetic efficiency)of broilers is different depending on the ingredients used to formulate the feed and the environmental temperatures under which they are reared.Amino acid needs will include a method to find the birds’needs for the nonessential amino acids.“Digestible”amino acid assays will differentiate between digestion and absorption to best balance various sources.The carbohydrate fractions of feed ingredients will be determined to optimize the use of exogenous enzymes.The value of meat and egg co-products will reduce overall costs(e.g.,organic fertilizer for crop enhancement).Future profit maximizing production models will be ever evolving processes where field conditions and results are continually being utilized to re-calibrate the technical models so that the management team can use them with cost and return projections to decide on the best choices of inputs and outputs.

Study on Development of Formulated Feed for Improving Growth and Pigmentation of Koi Carp （Cyprinus carpio L,, 1758） Juveniles

The aim of the present study was to develop a formulated feed for improving skin pigmentation and growth performance of koi carp juveniles. Two experiments were conducted for determination of an optimal dietary astaxanthin and FM （fish meal） ration for koi carp juveniles. In the first experiment, three isonitrogenous and isoenergetic dietary treatments were designed with three different levels of astaxanthin consisted of 60, 80 and 100 mg/kg and a commercial feed served as a control. For the second experiment, four isonitrogenous and isoenergetic dietary treatments were formulated with graded inclusions of dietary FM replaced from 0% to 60% at 20% increments by SM （soybean meal）, PBM （poultry by-product meal）, and a CD （control diet）. Obtained results demonstrated that skin pigmentation of koi carp juveniles fed the diet containing 80 mg/kg astaxanthin, 36.02% protein, 7.78% lipid, 4.20 Kcal/g GE （gross energy） were more better than those at the diet with lower estaxanthin content and commercial diet. Moreover, the highest growth and feed utilization of fish were observed at this diet with WG （weight gain）, SGR （specific growth rate） and FCR （feed conversion ratio） were 121.80%, 0.95 （%/day） and 1.6, respectively.

Assessment of different grass species extracts as source of micronutrients in prawn Macrobrachium rosenbergii feeds

The present research is an attempt to screen five perennial indigenous grass species for their biochemical constituents seasonally for one year in order to determine the exact season for the harvest of the target species which will be used as feed ingredient.Among them,Cynodon dactylon has shown better result compared to other grass species and was hence incorporated as micronutrient in the formulated feed.Macrobrachium rosenbergii culture was carried out by feeding conventional and formulated feed(prepared from grass species)in tanks and ponds filled with spring water for 180 days in 2020 in the Eastern Ghats region of Koraput district,Odisha,India.Two treatments namely T_(1)and T_(2)having four replications each were supplied with commercial feed and formulated feed.Feeds were applied as per the body weight of prawns at 20%for the 1st month,15%for the 2nd month,10%for the 3rd and the 4th month,5%for the 5th month and 2%till the end of the experiment.The water temperature,pH,dissolved oxygen,transparency,nitrate,phosphate,silicate,Chl a in the culture tanks and ponds were monitored fortnightly.ANOVA results between all the water parameters for both culture tanks and ponds showed significant variation(P<0.05).The survival rate(77.0%±0.89%),daily growth rate(0.233±0.05)g/day,specific growth rate(4.657%±1.04%)per day and condition index(2.638±0.05)were found to be highest in prawns fed formulated feed.The feed conversion ratio varied from(2.03±0.05)to(2.68±0.04).Benefit cost ratio of field culture were 1.46 with yield of 702 kg/ha in conventional feed and 1.75 with yield of 950 kg/ha in formulated feed respectively.The study proved grass extracts to be efficient micronutrients for prawn feed which can be easily adopted in prawn production.

Factors that Affect Pellet Quality： A Review

Pelleting is the most popular thermal processing technique in poultry industry. Birds fed pelleted diets have greater feed intake and weight gain, and better feed conversion ratio. However, this better performance can only be achieved, if the pellets remain intact until they are ingested by the birds. Many factors may affect pellet physical quality, such as feed nutritional composition, ingredient particle size, conditioning temperature and time, feed moisture, etc.. Despite their importance, sometimes these factors are not managed properly, therefore, pelleted feed may not contain a high amount of intact pellets. In addition, the possible interactions among these variables may yield different responses in comparison with those expected when individual factors are considered. Very few experiments have been conducted to evaluate the impact of combined factors on pellet quality. This may be explained by the presence of many qualitative and quantitative factors in the manufacturing process. Research indicates that heat processing and feed formulation, especially fat inclusion level, are the factors which have the biggest influence on pellet quality. Strategies, such as the expansion process and fat inclusion restriction or post pellet liquid fat application could be implemented to produce high physical quality pellets. More research is needed to identify which factors have a positive or negative effect on pelleting process and to find new strategies to improve pellet physical quality.

Economic and Market Analysis of Swine Rearing and Pork Production in Ghana

Swine rearing and pork production has recently attracted the growing interest of Ghanaian farmers who seek diversification of enterprises and existing farmers looking for alternatives following a period of low profitability. Piggery was established to combine science and technology to generate innovations for anyone seeking to establish a new pig production enterprise. Results show that since 2008 to 2013, pork prices in Ghana rose rapidly between 115-120%. Also the rate of returns was higher at 43.62% compared to bank interested rate. Feed, as a percentage of total costs, were minimised from 70% to 55% with integrated lactobacillus brewer spent malt as supplement to formulated feed. The piggery project was highly successful and invested capital was recouped within two years of project take-off. Collaborating with other farms, organisations and entrepreneurs, a lot of research innovations in the area of improving feed cost, animal nutrition, waste management practices, and breeding have been generated and shared with both small and large-holder pig farmers. In all aspect of the farm management, results achieved so far especially with pork carcass quality and profit margins are encouraging which have led to the expansion of the piggery project.

Screening of High Temperature Resistant Fodder Yeast Strains

[ Objective] This study aimed to screen yeast strains suitable for high temperature processing of formulated biological feed. [ Method ] High temperature resistance and culture conditions of six yeast strains were investigated. [Result] Two yeast strains resistant to high temperature （45 ℃ ） with high viable cell number （10^8 cells/ml） were screened, including DQFC2117-1 and DQFC2122-2. [ Conclusion] Strains DQFC2117-1 and DQFC2122-2 could be used as high temperature resistant yeast strains for processing of formulated biological feed.