In the poultry industry, maintaining environmental compliance alongside profitability is an increasingly pressing issue. One promising approach is to revisit your current trace mineral supplementation strategies.
Essential trace minerals like zinc, copper, manganese, and selenium play a crucial role in ensuring optimal animal productivity and health. However, the selection of trace mineral sources can distinctly affect animal performance, environmental sustainability, and financial outcomes.
4 Key Questions for Re-evaluating Your Trace Mineral Strategy
When assessing the overall efficiency and worth of a trace mineral source, consider the following critical questions:
1. What is the proven availability of the trace mineral form you are considering?
A trace mineral source attains value only when the mineral is effectively absorbed across the intestinal wall and into the bloodstream. Only following absorption can the animal utilize the mineral to optimize crucial production targets such as growth, reproduction, immune function, feed efficiency, and more.
2. Am I receiving adequate value for my investment?
Certain trace minerals, such as sulfates and oxides, are reactive due to their solubility in the initial digestive stages. This solubility can adversely impact gut integrity and compromise the stability of numerous essential nutrients you’ve invested in, potentially resulting in nutritional deficiencies and economic setbacks.
3. What is the environmental impact of the trace mineral source?
Any trace mineral consumed but not absorbed is excreted, negatively affecting both environmental integrity and profitability. This concern is particularly acute when inorganic trace minerals such as sulfates and oxides are fed in excess to counteract their uncertain availability. This over-supplementation can also lead to diminished nutrient availability and overall production performance.
4. What added value does this source bring?
A growing body of research has indicated that cheaper, inorganic trace minerals often come with hidden costs that ultimately inflate their total cost. A seemingly lower purchase price can turn expensive once all associated negative effects are factored in.
Advancements in Trace Mineral Technologies
Awareness of these hidden factors has led to the emergence of an array of “improved” trace mineral sources. Generally, they can be categorized into two main types: organic trace minerals, already present in the market, and the more innovative hydroxy trace minerals, exemplified by Selko IntelliBond technology.
Hydroxy Trace Minerals Explained
Introduced in the late 1990s, Selko IntelliBond’s hydroxy trace minerals utilize novel technology to create stable metal crystals that remain intact at pH levels above 4.0. This stability prevents adverse reactions in feed and the upper gastrointestinal tract. These metal crystals dissolve under the acidic conditions of the stomach, allowing for efficient absorption in the small intestine. Extensive independent research — over 250 trials — has substantiated Selko IntelliBond’s effectiveness in enhancing animal productivity while mitigating negative side effects.
Enhancing Animal Performance and Welfare
Transitioning from traditional inorganic trace minerals to IntelliBond has proven beneficial for animal performance and profitability. For instance, feeding IntelliBond to pullets resulted in better feed conversion rates and increased weight gains, along with improved flock uniformity. In laying hens, it enhanced laying performance and eggshell quality, confirmed via microscopic imaging (as shown in Figure 1). For broilers, IntelliBond indicated enhanced performance, with notable advancements in weight gain (+2.9%) and feed conversion ratio (-5 points) (detailed in Figure 2).
Advancing Sustainability in Poultry Farming
To ensure poultry producers obtain accurate measurements for the trace minerals in their feeds, the Global Livestock Feed Institute (GFLI) has verified IntelliBond Z, C, and M within its comprehensive branded global feed ingredients database. This listing follows a thorough review of IntelliBond’s technical dossier, including a recently completed Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) defining the carbon footprint for each product.
The GFLI’s listing offers feed formulators and nutritionists the assurance that the total carbon values per tonne of product have been validated against accepted sustainability standards.
Verification of sustainability is crucial for ensuring compliance with environmental standards. With GFLI’s verification process, industry professionals can select ingredients that offer measurable positive environmental benefits. As demand increases for lower carbon footprints in food production, formulators are beginning to acknowledge how small choices in additives and ingredients can foster more sustainable farming.
Maximizing Return on Investment
Selko IntelliBond represents a cost-efficient alternative to reactive inorganic minerals, delivering enhanced animal efficacy at a lower overall cost. By considering the outlined factors when selecting a trace mineral source, you can optimize your investment returns, benefiting both the animals and the environment.
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