Scientists of the Altai State Agrarian University have found a replacement for imported carotene for feed additives in the diet of farm animals

A coniferous vitamin supplement developed by a team of scientists from the Altai State Agrarian University will make it possible to replace imported carotene in the diets of cattle and poultry

An interdisciplinary team of scientists from the Department of Private Animal Science and the Department of Forestry of the Altai State Agrarian University proposed a technology that allows you to effectively replace deficient carotenoids and vitamins in the diet of farm animals and poultry.

“Today, the possibilities for enriching the feed rations of animals with the help of coniferous tree greens are not fully used, and it is very rich in chlorophyll, carotene, vitamins, macro- and microelements, phytohormones, phytoncides, bacteriostatic and anthelmintic substances, - says Dr.S.- chemistry, professor, HEAD of the department of private zootechnics of the ASAU Vladimir Khaustov. – Yes, the use of fresh needles in the diets of cattle, birds, pigs, fur-bearing animals was used in animal husbandry practice before. However, the presence of tannins, resinous substances, bitterness in coniferous woody greens, which give it a specific taste and properties, limits its use in feed rations. A promising direction is the use of extruded technical greenery of coniferous trees in the form of a coniferous vitamin supplement. Feeding needles in the form of a coniferous vitamin supplement gives the best results, because. it retains up to 95% of the original nutrients. The whole problem lies in the selection of optimal dosages and forms (initial extrudate, granules, etc.).” ASAU scientists propose to use a coniferous-vitamin supplement obtained on the basis of extrusion of logging waste (technical greenery). This product effectively replaces certain imported feed additives with vitamin A and carotenoids in the diet.

In the Altai Territory, Evdokia LLC (Volchikhinsky District) has already launched the production of coniferous-vitamin feed additives. This project is being successfully implemented by the company together with scientists from the Altai Agrarian University.

The process of extrusion at elevated pressure and temperature has a combined effect on the feedstock (technical greenery of coniferous trees), as a result of which the structure of feed fiber changes, inactivation of inhibitors of the digestive tract, neutralization of toxic substances, sterilization of feed, improvement of palatability, starch dextrinization.

Experiments to assess the beneficial effect of the use of a coniferous-vitamin feed additive were carried out in the production conditions of industrial partner companies of the Altai State Agrarian University: JSC Uchkhoz Prigorodnoye, JSC Breeding Enterprise Barnaulskoye, etc. in 2020 with the financial support of the Office Altai Territory on food, processing, pharmaceutical industry and biotechnology. For research on the basis of JSC "Uchkhoz Prigorodnoye" 20 heads of heifers of black-and-white breed of the Ob type were selected, divided into 2 groups - experimental and control. The diet of the first group additionally included 300 g of coniferous-vitamin feed additive per head per day for 40 days (20 days before calving and 20 days after calving). The results showed that the first-calf heifers of the experimental group increased the average daily MILK yield by 7.7%. This made it possible to obtain an additional 335 kg of milk from the group during the experiment period. At the same time, a clear trend of improving blood parameters was recorded, which indicates a positive effect on the animals' organism.

An experiment to study the effect of a coniferous-vitamin feed additive on the productive qualities of geese of the parent flock of the Lindovskaya breed (2 groups of 1000 heads each) was carried out in the conditions of the peasant farm "KFH Shuvaeva Marina Anatolyevna" (Volchikhinsky district of the Altai Territory). The use of a coniferous vitamin supplement contributed to an increase in the safety of birds by 12% and led to an increase in the gross collection of hatching eggs by 10.14%. The economic effect only from the experimental group of geese amounted to 77,400 rubles.

ASAU scientists on the basis of a number of farms in the region also conducted experimental studies on the use of coniferous-vitamin feed additives in the diet of sires and chickens of the parent herd. And in these cases, the use of additives from needles showed a positive effect.

At present, the production line based on Evdokia LLC can produce up to 1.5 tons of coniferous-vitamin feed additive per day, and scientists from the Altai State Agrarian University are ready to provide scientific and methodological support for the use of coniferous-vitamin supplements in the diets of farm animals and poultry for all interested farms.