Trace minerals, which originate from the earth, ultimately account for a relatively small portion of an animal’s diet, but they represent a critical component in animal nutrition and metabolism. Dietary trace mineral imbalances and deficiencies are commonly corrected by various levels of supplementation from inorganic or organic sources, depending on the animal’s minimum requirement and the trace mineral source bioavailability.

Trace mineral requirement and bioavailability depend on intrinsic factors (e.g., species, genetics, age, sex, criterion of adequacy, metabolic function, nutritional status, intestinal flora and physiological stress) and extrinsic factors (e.g., trace mineral element solubility, binding to other dietary factors, state of oxidation, competitive antagonisms and positive or negative chelation effects).

Trace minerals and poultry nutrition go way back

Trace mineral nutrition discovery and research has a rich history in poultry nutrition. Many of the early nutrient metabolism studies were conducted in chicks during the period between 1960 and 1980, and requirements were established for each poultry species. Based on this research conducted over 40-50 years ago, minimum dietary requirements were established for zinc, manganese, copper, iron, selenium and iodine, and the last official publication of these requirements for poultry was in “Nutrient Requirements of Poultry” (National Research Council, 1994). 

The genetic potential for growth in commercial poultry has changed dramatically during the last five decades, as has the nature and quality of the diet fed to these animals. This is why supplementation of these trace minerals (usually from inorganic sources) in commercial feeds often exceed the National Research Council (NRC) (1994) recommendations by three- or four-fold to compensate for variable bioavailability, yet resulting in public concern about excessive environmental emissions.

Trace mineral programs today

Recent research on organic trace minerals has challenged this paradigm of high dietary inclusion of inorganic trace minerals. Due to their increased bioavailability, organic trace minerals have demonstrated opportunities for improved physiological/metabolic functions and reduced environmental emissions, justifying the establishment of new minimum nutritional requirement recommendations.

Dietary inclusion of organic trace minerals at levels as low as 12.5 percent of typical commercial levels have been shown to result in equal or superior growth performance and tibia ash. Along with phytase supplementation, which is typically used for most commercial poultry, growth performance can be maintained with organic trace minerals at levels well below the NRC recommendations. Future recommendations for dietary trace minerals will depend upon strategic applications in poultry nutrition that affect environmental sustainability, health and welfare, meat and egg quality, and epigenetic programming.

¹NRC = Nutrient Requirements of Poultry, 9^th Revised Edition, 1994. Subcommittee on Poultry Nutrition, Committee on Animal Nutrition Board on Agriculture, National Research Council, National Academy Press, Washington, DC.

²FSM = Ferket, P.R., and S.L. Leeson, 2015. Feedstuffs Magazine 2014 Reference Issue and Buyers Guide, pp 42-51, Feedstuffs, St. Charles, IL.

¹Positive control treatment diet was supplemented with a trace mineral premix to contain 80 ppm Zn as ZnSO4, 100 ppm as MnSO₄·2H₂O, 60 ppm Fe as FeSO4·7H2O, and 12 ppm Cu as CuSO₄·5H₂O.

²OTM = Organic trace mineral supplied as a proteinated complex (BioplexÒ Zn, Mn, Fe, and Cu, Alltech Inc., Nicholasville, KY)

^a,bParameter Values within a row having different superscripts are different (P<.05).

Figure 1. Broken-line analysis plot of weight gain in broilers as a function of supplemental zinc as BIOPLEX^Ò Zn with or without phytase (from Ao et al., 2007).

Have a question or comment?

When it comes to your animals’ mineral diet, you’ve likely never been thinking about “Star Wars” but just like the characters of the epic movie series, you have a choice to make. Do you go with organic trace minerals, or do you turn to the dark side: inorganics?

It should be an easy choice, but many get led astray by practices that date back over a decade-and-a-half. If you were to look at how many times the human food pyramid has been updated since then, you would see constant improvement. Likewise, how can we keep our animals’ diets in pace with this constant development of nutritional innovation? It starts with choosing a side when it comes to your minerals.

Choose the side with less mineral waste

To examine an animal’s diet, you often have to look at what is coming out the other end. If the animal’s waste has undigested feed in it, that signals two possibilities: One, the diet is over-fortified with an ingredient; or two, the animal is having trouble digesting the ingredient. Recent studies have shown that grow-finish pigs fed a diet with the total replacement of inorganics with organic minerals had reduced fecal manganese, copper and selenium excretion (Alltech-Zhejiang University Animal Nutrition and Feed Science Research Alliance). Another study looking at supplementing organic trace minerals at 0, 50 or 100 percent of the National Research Council (NRC) recommendations showed that nursery pigs and finishing pigs’ trace mineral requirements did not appear to need dietary trace mineral supplementation at the levels recommended by NRC. This research highlights the fact that organic minerals are better absorbed, stored and utilized by the animal. The more that is absorbed by the animal means less waste reaches the environment and less is wasted from the producer’s pocket book.

Choose the side you can trust

Not all minerals are made the same. Inorganics have an added level of contamination risk for both feed and food. This comes in the form of dioxins, PCBs and heavy metals. In the 2015 Asia-Pacific Heavy Metal Survey, where 498 mineral samples were tested, the trend for heavy metal contamination over the past five years showed an average of 19.4 percent. This contamination figure should be scary for producers, as that leads to an increased risk of immune suppression, liver/kidney damage, decreased growth and even contamination of the tissue. It is important to know where your minerals are coming from and that they are being tested to ensure safety for your animals and the food chain. Alltech’s Q+ (Quality Plus) process is a positive release program that guarantees all incoming batches of raw material sources and final product batches are tested for dioxins, PCBs and heavy metals prior to sale, providing a safe and traceable product that producers can trust.

Choose the side that’s better for your pigs’ health and performance

Minerals are an important part of the pig’s diet, but they are not meant to be just another ingredient. Effective mineral nutrition can have a very significant on health and performance. Organic trace minerals have shown to support the number of pigs born (The Ohio State University). That means a lot for producers looking to reduce overall production costs per pig. In addition to reducing costs, another major concern is the health of the pig. Additional studies have shown that trace minerals supplementation supports healthy antioxidant status. This allows the pigs that the producer has invested in to be healthier and more likely to make it to market (Alltech-Zhejiang University Animal Nutrition and Feed Science Research Alliance).

Don’t be lured to the dark side. Learn more about the Alltech^® Mineral Management program at alltech.com/pig.

I want to learn more about nutrition for my pig herd.

Stop. Wait a minute. It’s 2016 on the farm, isn’t it?

Yes, we are in fact storming through winter farming with the latest batches of rain and snow causing a hectic start to 2016 for many feedlot owners in the Northern Hemisphere. Yet before we leap into spring, let’s circle back to some of our New Year’s resolutions and take a look at six things we can replace to help promote a profitable feed yard this year:

Resolution #1 — Replace bad news sources

Knowing the latest trends and industry changes is key to getting ahead of an evolving market. Yet, in a world where the average person encounters as many 5,000 messages per day, how do you cut through the Times Square effect to what’s really relevant and credible?

For 2016, stay informed and dig into some new news sources. There are many farmers and agvocates addressing tough questions and writing about agriculture every day. Don’t have time to read? Podcasts are a readily available source of information as well. Do some searching and find your favorites, but in the meantime, here are just a few favorite blogs and podcasts to get you started:

• Agriculture Proud is an excellent blog started by Ryan Goodman. He has even created a helpful list of great ag blogs.
• Another favorite for those working in the feedlot industry is Feed Yard Foodie done by Anne Burkholder.
• Ask the Farmers is also a great one. It was created by farmers, ranchers, farm wives and others to offer an honest dialogue with today’s more urban consumers about any and all questions they have regarding food production.
• For those of you interested in podcasts, Agriculture Today done by the Red River Farm Network gives a daily report of local and global ag news.
• And, then, of course, we hope it’s already a given that you have this blog bookmarked.

Resolution #2 — Replace assuming for knowing

From Fitbits to Facebook likes, we have ways to track almost everything – the farm shouldn’t be any different. So for this year, make a resolution to replace assuming what’s happening on your farm for knowing. Take inventory, and do a personal farm audit to see what hazards may be present and how you can improve the overall profitability of your operation.

Alltech has developed many tools that help farmers know exactly what is going on at their farm. Specifically, one of these tools is the ALLTECH 37+® mycotoxin analysis test. Utilizing the most advanced mycotoxin detection technology available, 37+, provides producers with a more accurate picture of mycotoxin contamination in their feed by testing samples for more than 37 different mycotoxins. The analysis includes a tailored risk assessment (called the REQ) of the expected impact on cattle performance based on the mycotoxins found. This gives producers the ability to accurately review the threat of mycotoxins and evaluate what feeding alternatives might best suit their unique situation.

Resolution #3 — Replace pessimism with optimism

A rally could be on the horizon with 12 member countries signing the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) on February 4^th. The trade agreement could be a major opportunity to turn around a sliding cattle market. Understandably, this agreement still needs to be signed by a divided U.S. Congress (so some woeful optimism is sensible), but regardless, let’s make a general resolution to replace pessimism with optimism in 2016. The Japanese market alone accounted for $1.6 billion in beef export sales during 2014. This is a market opportunity for U.S. beef producers to see premiums.

Furthermore, the real reason for optimism is the continued increasing demand for protein products. Rabobank reports that by 2020 and into 2030 we will need 18-20% continued growth to meet global market demand. This is reason enough for beef producers to stay optimistic.

Resolution #4 — Replace inputs that don’t benefit your operation long term

Thinking and planning for the long-term success of your operation is critical to its viability. This includes considering potential environmental hazards, changes in genetics, production patterns and a whole list of possible nutritional inputs. This year, re-evaluate what you are investing in and the types of additives in your ration—and replace the inputs items that don’t benefit your operation long term. Carefully weigh the cost of the input versus the expected return.

In 2015, Alltech produced large pen research data at OT Feed Yard that challenged the conventional model that extensive inorganic mineral supplementation is most beneficial to cattle health and profitability. Through testing over 800 lightweight, high-risk feedlot cattle fed Alltech’s BIOPLEX® organic trace minerals against a control diet fed inorganic trace minerals at NRC levels, BIOPLEX showed statistically significant improvements in health and specifically, an increase in overall carcass weight by an average of 19.1 lbs. Given the value of extra carcass weight alone, it is worth considering how changes in mineral form can benefit the health of feed yard cattle.

Additionally, the overall Alltech® Mineral Management program including BIOPLEX guarantees organic minerals that are better absorbed, stored and utilized by cattle, and thus able to meet the higher nutrient needs of modern livestock for rapid growth, performance and optimal health.

Resolution #5 — Replace yourself

Dear farmers and ranchers, this is not a call to stop working or retire (please no!), but it is time to start thinking about the future of our industry.

The median age for the current U.S. farmer or rancher is 55.9 years old. This is the oldest median working age for any occupation except for truck drivers (Source: USA Today). It’s not just that farmers are among America’s oldest workers—their average age has been climbing for about 30 years and is showing no sign of dipping back the other direction. So, this year, make a resolution to invest in the next generation of farmers, ranchers and feedlot managers.

Resolution #6 — Steer clear of stagnation; replace ordinary for extraordinary

Lastly, for 2016, replace the ordinary for extraordinary. Today’s world is one of constant change. We are highly connected, but are we using our connections to innovate? To challenge the status quo? To improve our careers, our businesses and ourselves?

This year, Alltech is challenging itself and the entire agribusiness industry to find ONE idea or ONE action to transform their operations, and perhaps even the world, at ONE: The Alltech Ideas Conference. ONE will feature speakers including Steve Wozniak, co-founder of Apple Inc. and Alan Mulally, the former CEO of Ford Motor Company.

For more information and to register for the ONE, visit one.alltech.com.  

Here’s to making 2016 the best year on the books yet for your feed yard!