Development and implementation of an innovative technology for the on-farm rearing of slaughter turkeys, without antibiotics and with increased welfare

Dobrostan i bioasekuracja:

• Improper bedding causes turkeys to become ill, including: for contact dermatitis of the feet, leading to lack of physical activity of birds and the development of skin diseases.
• The litter contains nitrates and its management is problematic.
•  Faulty ventilation contributes to respiratory diseases.
• Excessive density hinders movement and circulation.

Such conditions cause disease in turkeys and, consequently, requires antibiotic treatment.

The most common diseases: digestive system (approx. 50%), respiratory system (approx. 20-30%), locomotor system (approx. 15-20%).

Limiting antibiotics: Turkeys are characterized by increased susceptibility to adverse factors. In EU countries, a ban on the use of antibiotics as growth stimulants was introduced in 2006. The possibility of using coccidiostats in feed, including ionophores, which are antibiotics, remains open. The challenge is to limit the amount of antibiotics used. The European Parliament obliged member states to reduce the use of antibiotics in animal production by 50% by 2030. This is supported by:

• increasing resistance of pathogenic bacteria to antibiotics used;
• the need to ensure food health safety of food.

According to data from the European Medicines Agency (2021), in 25 EU countries, the sale of antibiotics between 2018 and 2020 decreased from 105.5 mg/CPU to 91.6 mg/CPU, i.e. by approx. 13%, the unit consumption of active substances in Poland increased from 168.3 mg/PCU in 2018 to 187.9 mg/PCU in 2020, i.e. by approx. 11.6%.
The above premises indicate the necessity to limit the amount of antibiotics in farm poultry farming. One of the possibilities is to develop and implement technology for rearing turkeys without the use of antibiotics. Additionally, the implementation of such technology will significantly increase the market offer of premium branded poultry products, which is very poor in Poland.

Development and implementation of innovative technology for rearing turkeys for fattening with a high level of welfare, biosecurity, taking into account precision nutrition, limiting antibiotics and coccidiostats, including

1. Improving the welfare of turkeys on farms;
2. Biosecurity - reducing the risk of diseases.
3. Precision nutrition.

The most important tasks are:

• development of assumptions for technology;
• experimental verification of the technology on a semi-technical scale;
• real-scale verification and evaluation of results;
• development of technology corrections.

Results: development of available methods with their verification on a semi-technical scale and in real conditions, obtaining a significantly improved rearing technology.

Project activities

1. Prepared assumptions for the technology of on-farm rearing of slaughter turkeys - high level of welfare, biosecurity, precision nutrition without antibiotics and coccidiostats.
2. Experimental verification of the technology and its variants for the entire period of turkey rearing - 8 groups on a semi-technical scale; selection of the best variant(s). Rated:
   1. results (growth, feed consumption, mortality)
   2. well-being (occurrences of FPD)
   3. physiological condition
   4. environmental emissions, slaughter efficiency, meat quality
   5. economics.
3. Prepared corrections for the technology after its implementation on a semi-technical scale and scaling to farm production.
4. Experimental verification of the technology on a real scale and evaluation of the results - rearing turkey hens in Lider's facilities. Results analysis.
5. Developing corrections for the technology after its implementation on a farm scale / Obtaining a doc. rearing technology.

Practice summary

The expected result is the development of an innovative technology for farm rearing of slaughter turkeys, without antibiotics and with increased welfare, which will also be verified in farm conditions, taking into account economic aspects.

• Rational use of feed by developing a sustainable way of feeding turkeys, which will ensure efficient, high-quality production, limiting antibiotics and optimal use of resources by developing a precision feeding programme (optimal use of nutrients).
• Reduction of emissions into the natural environment: precision nutrition and a properly selected diet for tutkeys will reduce emissions of gases and chemical compounds hamful to the enviroment, in particularly nitrogen and phosphorus. An innovative method of precise nutrition based on probiotics, natural ingredients and domestic protein sources will contribute to the development of low-emission turkey rearing and will enable the harmonious use of basic natural raw materials on which agriculture depends.
• Guaranteeing productivity or rearing: rearing methods used, including welfare, biosecurity and nutrition, will contribute to the overall improvement of animal welfare and protection of their health, which will result in a reduced number of mortalities and diseases i.e. reducing production losses. Precision nutrition will reduce turkey feeding costs and feed waste.
   

Additional comments

Administrative and social pressure to reduce the amount of antibiotics used in livestock production, including poultry, may facilitate the implementation of the obtained result. This direction of action is supported by EU legislation - the EP`s requirement (Regulation (EC) No. 2019/6) to radically reduce the use of antibiotics in animal production by 2030. The ban applies to the use of feed antibiotics (growth promoters) in poultry nutrition, but it is still legal to ad coccidiostats for feed, which are also antibiotics, to feed.

• It may be difficult to develop and implement precision nutrition into rearing practice, which involves precisely adapting the feeding programme (the nutrient content in feed mixtures) to the nutritional needs of birds, which change linearly with age. More frequent changes in the nutritional value of mixtures are necessary (7-10).
• An obstacle to the implementation of the obtained result may be the fact that today's high efficiency of turkeys is the result of genetic progress and rational bird nutrition.
• Moreover, we have insufficiently recognized factors that determine the health and rapid growth of birds and the quality of the meat obtained. Currently used, fast-growing turkeys gain twice as much body weight at the same age as they did 40 years ago. Unfortunately, they are characterized by increased susceptibility to unfavourable environmental factors and infections, often need for antibiotics treatment.
• A certain difficulty may also be the need to modernize older breeding facilities in order to obtain satisfactory ventilation parameters and established turkey breeding technologies, including spacing, feeding, watering, ventilation, drug therapies and pharmacological prophylaxis can also pose some difficulties.