In educating consumers about the value and uses for natural mineral additives, Amlan is also focusing on ways to support integrators who are moving to antibiotic-free (ABF) production to meet consumer and regulatory demands.
In the August 30, 2020, episode of “Built in America: INNOVATION NATION” on the Fox Business Network, millions of viewers in the U.S. went behind the scenes at Amlan International to learn about the company’s extensive research into minerals and animal health. Through this research, Amlan’s patented products and mineral technologies aim to solve many problems in the livestock industry and more.
“We were incredibly honored to host the show and share how our products are part of the very diverse food supply chain to the public,” says Flemming L. Mahs, President of Amlan International. “We are proud of our extensive R&D team and are committed to creating a safe, nutritious food system.”
The show interviewed Amlan employees, industry leaders and walked through the many research laboratories at the Richard M. Jaffee Center for Applied Microbiology to understand what goes into their animal health product research. Watch the episode here.
In the episode, Dr. Glauber Sartori Maier, Animal Nutritionist for Coasul Cooperativa Agroindustrial, an agricultural cooperative with 9,000 associates in 28 cities in the southern part of Brazil, shared his company’s experiences incorporating Varium® as they moved to antibiotic-free poultry production.
Dr. Maier emphasizes the urgency of adopting innovative technology to produce enough quality food, at acceptable prices, for a growing world population. He says that Coasul exports nearly 30 million birds per year, which is about 60 percent of their total annual production. The company made adjustments to its production practices to accommodate global market demand for poultry raised without antibiotics.
“I have no doubt that antibiotic-free production will continue to grow in the world. It’s much easier to grow birds without the use of antibiotics to promote growth than producers realize,” Maier says.
When moving to ABF, Maier says it is important to make sure every other aspect of production is on point. Here are three areas that changed for Coasul:
- Gut health is the key starting point. Improving feed conversion and production efficiency allowed birds to grow to the same weight with less feed.
- Drier litter is also a result of improving gut health. Drier litter in chicken houses improves the health and quality of chicken feet, which is a very profitable, high-demand product in China.
- Healthy birds are calmer. In general, healthier animals are less likely to peck or scratch other birds, which helps ensure the highest standards of meat quality and skin.
“Many producers are afraid to stop using antibiotics because they believe the performance of the animals will decline and it will result in spending more money to produce the same quantity of meat. In our case, the results are better using Varium, and our costs are lower,” Maier says.
For more information about transitioning to AFP in poultry, read these other blogs from Amlan International:
Strategies for Producing Antibiotic-Free Poultry
Efficiently Raising Antibiotic-Free Broilers
Natural Growth Promoter for Poultry Demonstrates 10:1 ROI, Better Than Antibiotics Alone