Summary

Producing a pelleted diet represents the primary cost of broiler production and thus the formulation of a cost-effective diet that meets broiler nutritional requirements is critical for efficient production. To ensure this objective can be met, the nutrient specifications of feed ingredients must be accurately determined. However, Australian broiler nutritionists have expressed concern as many nutrient specification databases contain dated information or lack Australian specific data. Therefore, the first aim of this project is to compile current Australian and global data in a review of the nutrient specifications of commonly used feed ingredients within the Australian broiler industry from databases provided by source companies, including Evonik, Adisseo, FINA, Brazil (Rostagno), INRA and data published in the scientific literature (specifically Wayne Bryden and Rosalina Angel) to assist Australian broiler integrator nutritionists with diet formulation. The second aim is to highlight areas within the compilation of nutrient specifications for commonly used Australian feed ingredients where Australian data is lacking or inconsistent to identify key areas for development and guide future research.
To ensure this project directly addresses the priority of a review of the latest nutrient content data for nutritionists, Australian broiler integrator nutritionists will be consulted to identify the common feed ingredients used, the nutrients of interest and additional information (grain breeds used, Australian Product Numbers and location).
Finally, this review will also assess the range and variation in nutrient specifications between databases, determine the extent of variation between Australian and global specifications, and identify the key sources of variation.

Program

Chicken Meat

Research Organisation

University of New England

Objective Summary

The objective of this project is to directly address the expressed need from broiler integrator nutritionists for a compilation and review of current nutrient specifications provided by source companies including Evonik, Adisseo, INRA, Novus, Cargill, AB Vista, DSM, Premier Nutrition, Brazilian tables, FINA as well as data from literature including research by Wayne Bryden and Rosalina Angel. Emphasis will be placed on nutrients that are the focus of on-going scrutiny, such as P, digestible Ca, lipids, and non-essential digestible amino acids. Furthermore, this review will compare Australian and global data on feed ingredients to determine the extent of variation between and identify areas which are lacking sufficient data. The proposed survey of integrated broiler nutritionists and continued liaison with Karen Gurney, Kath Balding and Peter Chrystal will ensure this review meets the needs of industry nutritionists.
The prime outcome of this review is to compile and assess the variation within current Australian and global feed ingredient nutrient specifications to improve their accuracy and increase the productivity and efficiency of chicken meat production.
Furthermore, this project will support part (50%) of the salary and salary on-costs of Amy Moss, an independent early career researcher, to undertake postdoctoral study at University of New England in Armidale within 2019 under the guidance of Professor Mingan Choct. Amy is enthusiastic to contribute to the Australian poultry industry and continue her professional development. The University of New England has agreed to match the salary contribution of AgriFutures towards Amy’s postdoc in 2019.