Water kefir for weaned piglets: A pilot study on its farm‐scale production, its palatability and its effects on growth performance

Background Water kefir is a beverage with potential benefits for weaned piglets, including increasing feed intake and being a source of probiotics and organic acids. However, experimental confirmation of this potential is lacking. The aim of this pilot experiment was to develop a method for producing and delivering water kefir to weaned piglets at farm scale, assess its palatability and identify potential side effects in piglets varying in weight. Results The method described here is applicable to farm practice, as it could produce >50 L water kefir per day with little investment and time. The lactic acid concentration and pH in the water kefir remained stable between batches, while the acetic acid concentration was more variable. Piglets consumed the total quantity offered, which represented about 1 L per piglet per day. No clinical signs of disease were observed requiring medication administration to the piglets. However, a trend of reduced growth was observed when water kefir was offered, especially in the lighter piglets. Conclusions In addition to its applicability on farms, the water kefir production method facilitates experiments in young livestock under farm-scale conditions. The health-promoting potential of water kefir may be increased by elevating the nutrient supply in the culture medium. No critical issue was identified that would prevent the distribution of water kefir to weaned piglets. However, the reason for the trend toward reduced growth and whether this trend would be reversed in situations with greater disease pressure remain unclear.ISSN:2573-509

Effect of supplementing sows with Solanum glaucophyllum, a natural source of calcitriol, on farrowing performance, piglet survival and litter performance

Survival of piglets until weaning is a major contributor to the rentability of pig production systems. Large litters are often associated with complications and prolongation of the farrowing duration causing piglet mortality. The vitamin D status of the pregnant female is known to play a role in parturition problems. The present experiment investigated the effect of Solanum glaucophyllum in the diet of sows on farrowing duration and progeny survival and growth. Solanum glaucophyllum was distributed in a feed supplement to gestating sows from one week before farrowing until weaning of the piglets. Control sows received the same feed supplement but without S. glaucophyllum. Sows at an earlier gestation stage and piglets did not receive S. glaucophyllum. From 108 farrowing events and litters, on average 14.3 total born and 12.7 liveborn piglets were observed. Solanum glaucophyllum had no positive effect on the farrowing duration (222 vs. 219 min for experimental vs. control sows, respectively), average piglet expulsion interval (17.2 vs. 17.3 min), piglet vitality at birth, piglets death during nursing (2.03 vs. 1.74 piglets/litter) and piglets average daily gains (both 274 g). The proportion of stillborn piglets was even higher in sows receiving S. glaucophyllum than in control ones. Nevertheless, further studies on hyperprolific sows having no access to direct sunlight and with diets clearly deficient in either vitamin D or calcium are needed to show whether S. glaucophyllum is effective in parturient sows or not.ISSN:1230-138

Growth, carcass, and meat quality of 2 dual-purpose chickens and a layer hybrid grown for 67 or 84 D compared with slow-growing broilers

To avoid chick culling, meat production can be carried out with either dual-purpose hybrids, where both genders are used, or layer males. However, comparative in-depth studies are lacking. The growth and slaughter performance and the meat quality of 2 commercial dual-purpose hybrids (Lohmann Dual, LD; Novogen Dual, ND) and a layer hybrid (Lohmann Brown, LB) were compared with slow-growing broilers (Hubbard S757, HU), as used for organic production. The growth periods tested were 67, 84, and 126 D (the LB only). A total of 1,350 birds per hybrid were kept in 5 compartments of 20 m2. In a subsample, the carcass and meat quality were analyzed. The average daily gains and feed intake were quite similar in the ND, LD, and HU and were lower in the LB. Across 67 D, the FCR (kg feed/kg gain) of the HU was 2.62 compared with 2.81 and 2.83 in the ND and LD, respectively. The FCR of the LB was much lower (3.61). The breast angle, an indicator of the keel bone’s prominence, was largest in the HU, similar to that of the ND and the LD, and smallest in the LB. The breast meat proportions were always larger in the HU than in the ND and the LD at 21, 18, and 17%, respectively, and smallest in the LB (15%). The breast meat from the dual-purpose hybrids was similar, or slightly superior, to the HU in water-holding capacity and shear force and slightly inferior in intramuscular fat content. The LB meat did not differ much from that of the other hybrids. Growth for 126 D improved the carcass quality in the LB. In conclusion, both dual-purpose hybrids were competitive with slow-growing broilers, whereas this was not the case for the layer cockerels

Swiss consumers’ willingness to pay and attitudes regarding dual-purpose poultry and eggs

Chick culling is an efficient and cost-effective method in modern poultry farming, but it raises ethical concerns. Dual-purpose poultry (DP), in which males are fattened and females are used for egg production, is currently the most realistic alternative to culling, as in ovo sexing is not yet viable for practical application. Consumers’ acceptance of DP products and their willingness to pay (WTP) for them have not been studied yet, and we expect that both aspects are closely related to the acceptance of and WTP for products from systems claiming beyond-conventional animal welfare, such as organic products. Results from a survey conducted among 402 consumers at 8 Swiss supermarkets revealed that the practice of chick culling was largely unknown (75% of respondents). Generally, respondents’ knowledge about poultry production was low. The DP alternative was preferred to chick culling, but no preference emerged between DP and in ovo sexing. Furthermore, the WTP for DP products was proportionally lower for chicken than for eggs, probably because of the different price elasticity between these products. A regression analysis was used to determine the factors influencing consumers’ WTP for DP products. Consumers’ WTP was positively related to knowledge about poultry production, habits tied to purchasing organic or free-range poultry products, and familiarity with DP products. Therefore, a combination of the DP alternative with an organic label is recommended.ISSN:0032-579

Physical activity, forced by steep pastures, affects muscle characteristics and meat quality of suckling beef calves

On steep slopes, grazing is associated with elevated physical activity. This is assumed to influence muscle metabolism, carcass and meat quality in beef cattle. However, there is a lack of experiments which allow distinguishing between physical activity and other factors of influence. In the present experiment, a setup was applied which excluded other factors as best as possible. Two groups of 12 Angus-sired suckling calves were each kept on high altitude pastures with either steep (whole area with about 40% inclination; S-calves) or with flat areas (0% inclination; F-calves). The two areas offered forage of similar nutritional quality. The calves, initially 18 ± 2·5 weeks old, were kept with their dams on the pastures for 11 weeks in a rotational grazing system. The calves were equipped with pedometers and rumination sensors to record physical activity and feeding behaviour, respectively. Slaughter took place on two dates immediately after the grazing period and carcass quality was assessed. Muscle fibre types were classified according to their contractile metabolism and post mortem (p.m.) protein degradation was quantified. The meat, aged for 21 days, was subjected to various physicochemical analyses and sensory evaluation. S-calves walked more steps and spent more time lying down than F-calves, whereas feeding behaviour was not affected by pasture inclination. The daily gains of S-calves were 10% lower compared with those of F-calves. Carcass characteristics were not influenced by pasture inclination. S-calves had a larger proportion of fast-twitch type IIX/B muscle fibres than F-calves. The opposite was observed for intermediate type IIA muscle fibres, whereas the proportion of slow-twitch type I muscle fibres was unaffected. Occasional differences were observed between S- and F-calves regarding indicators of p.m. proteolysis. In S-calves, compared with F-calves, meat from the longissimus thoracis muscle was juicier and showed a tendency to be of lighter colour, whereas meat from the biceps femoris muscle had a smaller shear force (24·5 v. 27·5 N in F-calves). In conclusion, 11 weeks’ exposure to environments forcing calves to exhibit different physical activities in a hypoxic environment was sufficient to cause adaptations in muscle metabolism and several, though small, differences in meat quality

Black soldier fly larvae meal and fat as a replacement for soybeans in organic broiler diets: Effects on performance, body N retention, carcass, and meat quality

1. Due to the increasing global demand for more sustainably produced animal protein, there is an intensive search for feeds to replace soybeans. Black soldier fly larvae (BSFL) appear to have great potential for replacing soybeans in poultry diets. The main objective of this study was to determine if the nutritional value of BSFL is superior to soybeans when feeding organic broilers, since smaller amounts of BSFL could replace the soybean content in the feed, thus saving even more resources. 2. Eighty Hubbard S757, a slow growing organic broiler type, were fattened for 63 days, spending the last 49 days on one of five diets. Two soybean cake- and soybean oil-based diets (SS, SS-) were compared with three diets based on partially defatted BSFL meal and BSFL fat from two origins (AA-, AB-, BB-). Different from diet SS, diets SS-, AA-, AB-, and BB- were designed with approximately 20% less lysine and methionine. Growth (n = 16), metabolisability, body nitrogen retention, carcass, and meat quality (n = 8) were evaluated. 3. Broilers of the insect-based feeding groups, AA- and AB-, grew similarly well compared to those of group SS. They also retained more nitrogen in the body than those fed BB- and SS-. Breast meat yield was higher with AA- and AB- than with BB- and SS-, but still lower than with SS. Dietary variations in physicochemical meat quality were of low practical relevance. Diet BB- resulted in a more yellow skin and meat. The fatty acid profile of the breast meat lipids reflected the high lauric acid proportion of the BSFL lipids, resulting in up to 80 times higher proportions than when feeding the soybean-based diets. 4. The results indicate that high-quality BSFL, depending on their origin, may indeed be superior to soybean protein, but that the meat lipids from BSFL-fed broilers can contain significant amounts of lauric acid, which, from a human nutrition perspective, could have a negative impact on meat quality.ISSN:0007-1668ISSN:1466-1799ISSN:1746-620

Black Soldier Fly larvae meal and fat can completely replace soybean cake and oil in diets for laying hens

Currently, there is a great interest in finding alternative protein and energy sources to replace soybean-based feeds in poultry diets. The main objective of the present study was to completely replace soybean in layer diets with defatted meal and fat from black soldier fly larvae without adverse effects. For this purpose, 5 × 10 Lohmann Brown Classic hens were fed either a soybean-based diet or diets based on defatted black soldier fly larvae meal and fat from 2 producers (1 commercial, 1 small-scale) operating with different rearing substrates, temperatures, and larvae processing methods (10 hens/diet). The data obtained included nutrient composition of larvae meals and diets, amino acid digestibility (6 hens/diet), and metabolizability, performance and egg quality (all 10 hens/diet). In addition, the acceptance of the 4 larvae-based diets was tested against the soybean-based diet in a 6-d choice feeding situation (10 hens/treatment). The nutritional value of the larvae-based diets was equivalent to the soybean-based diet in hens with a laying performance of 98%. Although average feed intake was not significantly different over the 7 experimental wk, the diets based on larvae feeds from the small-scale production appeared to be slightly less accepted in a choice situation than the soy-based diet and those with larvae from commercial origin. This was more likely the effect of the larvae fat rather than that of the larvae protein meal. In addition, the commercial larvae material was superior to that from the small-scale production concerning supply with digestible sulfur-containing amino acids (548 vs. 511 mg/d) and lysine (792 vs. 693 mg/d), egg weight (67 vs. 63.2 g), daily egg mass (66 vs. 61 g/d) and, in tendency, feed efficiency. The results indicate that soybean-based feeds can be replaced completely by black soldier fly meal and fat in diets of high-performing layers. However, because of nutritional differences between the larvae materials of different origin the quality of the larvae has to be closely monitored before being used.ISSN:0032-579

Transfer of aflatoxins and heavy metals to egg and meat of laying hens fed fly larvae reared on contaminated substrate

Abstracts of the Conference Insects to Feed the World in Quebec, Canada. June 12-16, 2022. The 4th edition of ‘Insect to Feed the World’ in Quebec City has continued its mission to facilitate the dialogue and the exchange of research results on the use of insects in the context of food and feed security, toward building evidence-based legislation, advancing communal knowledge, and promoting innovation for the sector. The conference gathered academics and experts from around the world to exchange on the latest advancements in the field of edible insects and entotechnologies