Poultry producers could be missing out on health and performance benefits due to misconceptions about probiotics in rations.
Using probiotics to balance gut bacteria can benefit bird health and food safety – as well as performance, claims monogastric marketing manager Sarah Turner from pharmaceutical company Elanco.
“Whether you’re a pullet producer, broiler producer, or a gamebird rearer, improvements to your birds’ intestinal microbiome are going to have a big impact,” explains Ms Turner, who says probiotics can help achieve this.
“Prevention is always better than cure when it comes to bird health, and ensuring a robust intestinal microbiome will better equip birds to cope with, and bounce back from, challenges that come their way.”
Developing a robust microbiome in the first few days of life equips birds to better handle challenges and maximise productivity benefits over time, adds Ms Turner. Probiotics can have a powerful impact, she says.
“Look for a probiotic which contains strains selected specifically for poultry with specific modes of action to support a reduction in undesirable bacteria, alongside beneficial enzyme production to improve the utilisation of feed.”