Source: UNIV OF CONNECTICUT submitted to
POULTRY PRODUCTION SYSTEMS AND WELL-BEING: SUSTAINABILITY FOR TOMORROW
Sponsoring Institution
National Institute of Food and Agriculture
Project Status
TERMINATED
Funding Source
HATCH
Reporting Frequency
Annual
Accession No.
1005075
Grant No.
(N/A)
Project No.
CONS00941
Proposal No.
(N/A)
Multistate No.
NE-1442
Program Code
(N/A)
Project Start Date
Nov 6, 2014
Project End Date
Jul 12, 2018
Grant Year
(N/A)
Project Director
Darre, MI.
Recipient Organization
UNIV OF CONNECTICUT
(N/A)
STORRS,CT 06269
Performing Department
Animal Science
Non Technical Summary
Salmonella Enteritidis (SE) is the number one poultry-borne pathogen in the United States, and it can infect humans when they eat contaminated eggs. There currently is no fully effective vaccination for the pathogen. No researchers have used plant products to treat the infection where it starts, in chickens, until now.SE that is present in the intestines of birds can spread to their ovaries and contaminate egg yolks before shell formation. SE that is transmitted to the yolk in this way is the most difficult to control successfully, making it an important research objective. Solving the problem by adding a natural plant compound to chicken feed is the goal of this project. An antimicrobial treatment that can be applied through feed represents the most practical and economically viable method for adoption on farms.Another part of the project is studying the same antimicrobials as egg washes because SE from the infected hens' feces can get on eggshells after the chickens lay them.Another aspect of the project is to determine the effectiveness of plant derived antimicrobials in reducing or controlling the produciton of aflatoxin in mold contaminated poultry feed.Light is a major stimulator of growth and egg production in chickens and other poultry. Since most chickens are reared in environmentally controlled buildings, artificial light is used to stimulate this growth. Until recently, incandescent or compact fluorescent lamps have been used to supply this light. Light Emitting Diodes (LED's) have become a practical source of energy efficient lighting in the past few years, however, many poultry farmers are reluctant to use them until proven effective for chickens. They are especially concerned about behavior and production characteristics of the birds. Goals of this project are to determine how these lighting devices affect behavior and production in the birds and determine their economic impact andelectrical energy savings.
Animal Health Component
10%
Research Effort Categories
Basic
(N/A)
Applied
100%
Developmental
(N/A)
Classification

Knowledge Area (KA)Subject of Investigation (SOI)Field of Science (FOS)Percent
3073210102090%
3073220102010%
Knowledge Area
307 - Animal Management Systems;

Subject Of Investigation
3210 - Egg-type chicken, live animal; 3220 - Meat-type chicken, live animal;

Field Of Science
1020 - Physiology;
Goals / Objectives
Energy/resource efficiency. This will include collaborative efforts on feed and fuel energy sources for poultry and facilities by geographical region, facility design, equipment efficiency, management, and modeling energy use in poultry systems. Evaluating commercial poultry production systems. This will include collaborative efforts on the characterization of the performance of conventional, alternative, and organic poultry production systems relative to air and water quality, nutrient management, acoustic environment, and animal health and welfare. Establishing parameters influenced by the production system and strains utilized within the poultry industry. This collaborative research will encompass the areas of poultry nutrition, physiology, behavior, well-being, food safety and quality, and economic evaluation of poultry production systems.
Project Methods
To study the effectiveness of plant derived antimicrobials (PDA's) on the control of Salmonella enteritidis (SE) research will be conducted in the laboratory, on test flocks and on commercial poultry production facilities. Various PDA's , such as trans-cinnamaldehyde, carvacrol, thymol, eugenol and capryllic acid will be added to feed, or sprayed on eggshells to reduce SE. Samples of fecal swabs or surface of eggshells, or broken out eggs will be analyzed for SE counts. These procedures have been approved by the UConn IACUC committee as "Reducing the Colonization of Salmonella Enteritidis (SE)/ Salmonella Heidelberg (SH) in Chickens with Caprylic Acid (CA), Trans-cinnamaldehyde (CN), Eugenol (EG), Thymol (TH), Carvacrol (CR), and Beta-resorcylate (BR), Chitosan (Ch), Chitosan adipate (ChA) and Lactococcus lactis Grown Medium Supernatant (bacteria-free)" (Protocol No. A12-040).It is expected that the use of PDA's will reduce the incidence of SE in poultry meat and eggs. Initially, it is expected that Organic producers will adopt this technology first and then other producers will follow as the cost of implementation decreases.To study the effects of LED or other solid state lighting devices on poultry, lamps will be installed in university and commercial facilities, their intensity, spectral quality, and energy usage measured. The effects of these devices on produciton and behavior will be monitored. For this part of the project, birds are not directly handled or manipulated. Birds muse be held under normal management conditions. Only the source ofartificial light will be changed and the egg productionor feed efficiency that is normally measured on a commercial poultry facility will be obtained. Normal animal management practices will not be affected or changed. Behavior will be monitored via passive non-invasive methods, such as remote video cameras. Research to-date has indicated no adverse affects on behavior or production and the main thrust of this project is to show viability from an economic and energy savings standpoint.It is expected that as the cost of these devices decreases that more producers will adopt the new lighting technologies.

Progress 11/06/14 to 07/12/18

Outputs
Target Audience:The target audience for this project included commercial and non-commercial poultry producers, extension poultry specialists, extension educators, avian veterinarians and poultry service providers. Changes/Problems:The project end date was changed to 7/12/2018, to terminate the project early due to Project Director's retirement. What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided? Nothing Reported How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?For my part of the project I have met with individual producers in my role as Extension Poultry Specialist and provided them with information on the use of LED lamps for their poultry and also discussed the use of pro-biotics and PDA's as nutritional supplements for their birds. I have also made presentations at The National eqq Quality School where 55 participants learned about the role of PDA's in controlling Salmonella in their laying hens. I also presented information on energy efficient lighting and the use of LED lamps at the Aviagen International Poultry Management School. I have also met with veterinarians in the area to discuss the impact of the VFD on poultry producers and what alternatives they have. Also, through 9 other extension education meetings with small poultry flock owners I provided them with information on proper housing, nutrition, lighting, biosecurity and other areas covered under goals 1, 2 and 3 for the project What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals? Nothing Reported

Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals? Plant Derived Antimicrobials (PDAs) were found to control the growth of Salmonella enteritidis (SE) in meat chickens, on meat from chickens and on eggshells. The PDAs were also found to control SE in laying hens and to control aflatoxin growth and toxicity in poultry feed. LED lights placed in individual cages of laying hens in a commercial colony cage facility improved egg production in the bottom row of cages compared to bottom rows without the lamps.

Publications

  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2017 Citation: Hsin-Bai Yin Chi-Hung Chen Michael J. Darre Ann M. Donoghue Dan J. Donoghue Kumar Venkitanarayanan. 2017 Phytochemicals reduce aflatoxin-induced toxicity in chicken embryos. Poultry Science, Volume 96, Issue 10, 1 October 2017, Pages 37253732, https://doi.org/10.3382/ps/pex190


Progress 10/01/16 to 09/30/17

Outputs
Target Audience:The target audience for this project includes commercial and non-commercial poultry producers, extension poultry specialists, extension educators, avian veterinarians and poultry service providers. Changes/Problems: Nothing Reported What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided? Nothing Reported How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?For my part of the project I have met with individual producers in my role as Extension Poultry Specialist and provided them with information on the use of LED lamps for their poultry and also discussed the use of pro-biotics and PDA's as nutritional supplements for their birds. I have also made presentations at The National eqq Quality School where 55 participants learned about the role of PDA's in controlling Salmonella in their laying hens. I also presented information on energy efficient lighting and the use of LED lamps at the Aviagen International Poultry Management School. I have also met with veterinarians in the area to discuss the impact of the VFD on poultry producers and what alternatives they have. Also, through 11 other extension education meetings with small poultry flock owners I provided them with information on proper housing, nutrition, lighting, biosecurity and other areas covered under goals 1, 2 and 3 for the project. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?I plan to continue working on adopting LED technology to the poultry industry and collaborating with other researchers, veterinarians, and extension educators on the use of PDA's in controlling SE and aflatoxins in poultry and poultry feed and help poultry farmers reduce the use of other antibiotics in poultry as a result of the Veterinary Feed Directive.

Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals? Poultry producers are switching from incandescent or fluorescent lamps to more energy efficient LED lamps. This is resulting in energy savings, less demand on the electrical grid, and monetary savings for the producers. Payback for installing LED lamps can be as short at six months for some producers. When the Veterinary Feed Directive (VFD) became law poultry producers looked for alternatives to antibiotics to keep their flocks healthy and growing efficiently. Many are now turning to pro-biotics and different essential oils (or Plant Derived Antimicrobials, PDA's) that can be added to the poultry feed. As a result of our project and related research poultry producers have alternatives to antibiotics.

Publications

  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2017 Citation: Hsin-Bai Yin Chi-Hung Chen Michael J. Darre Ann M. Donoghue Dan J. Donoghue Kumar Venkitanarayanan. 2017. Phytochemicals reduce aflatoxin-induced toxicity in chicken embryos. Poultry Science, Volume 96, Issue 10, 1 October 2017, Pages 37253732, https://doi.org/10.3382/ps/pex190


Progress 10/01/15 to 09/30/16

Outputs
Target Audience:The target audience for this project includes commercial and non-commercial poultry producers, extension poultry specialists, extension educators, avian veterinarians and poultry service providers. Changes/Problems: Nothing Reported What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?Project members had the opportunity to visit Switzerland and learn about their poultry production system, how it is modeled and regulated. We were able to visit a typical aviary system with winter porches and outside access to see how it affected bird health and welfare. Growing pullets under the same conditions as they will be exposed to as laying hens is a critical aspect of their production system. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?Information on both the use of PDA's for SE and aflatoxing control was disseminated at twelve small flock owner meetings that averaged 40 people in attendance. It was also provided to several hundred small poultry flock owners via email communication. This information was also presented at the Aviagen International Poultry Management School and at the National Egg Quality School and also at the Poultry Respiratory Disease Coordinated Agricultural Project conference. Information was also provided to members of the Connecticut Poultry Association through their regular meetings and via email communications. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?I plan to continue working on adopting LED technology to the poultry industry and collaborating with other researchers and extension educators on the use of PDA's in controlling SE and aflatoxins in poultry and poultry feed and help poultry farmers reduce the use of other antibiotics in poultry as the Veterinary Feed Directive becomes effective.

Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals? Plant Derived Antimicrobials (PDA's) were found to control the growth of Salmonella enteritidis (SE) in meat chickens, on meat from chickens and on eggshells. The PDA's were also found to control SE in laying hens and to control aflatoxin growth and toxicity in poultry feed. LED lights placed in individual cages of laying hens in a commercial colony cage facility improved egg production in the bottom row of cages compared to bottom rows without the lamps.

Publications

  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2016 Citation: Indu Upadhyaya, H.-B. Yin, M. Surendran Nair, C.-H. Chen, R. Lang, M. J. Darre, and K. Venkitanarayanan (2016) Inactivation of Salmonella enteritidis on shell eggs by coating with phytochemicals. Poultry Science (September 2016) 95 (9): 2106-2111
  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2015 Citation: Hsin-Bai Yin, Chi-Hung Chen, Anup Kollanoor-Johny, Michael J. Darre and Kumar Venkitanarayanan (2015) Controlling Aspergillus flavus and Aspergillus parasiticus growth and aflatoxin production in poultry feed using carvacrol and trans-cinnamaldehyde Poultry Science 4 (9): 2183-2190


Progress 11/06/14 to 09/30/15

Outputs
Target Audience:The target audience for this project includes poultry producers, Extension poultry specialists, avian veterinarians, and poultry service providers. Changes/Problems: Nothing Reported What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided? Nothing Reported How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?Information about the use of plant-derived antimicrobials (PDAs) in controlling Salmonella was provided to many small flock producers and several small flock owner seminars held in Connecticut. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?Keep up the research on the PDAs on Salmonella control and also look at the effect of PDAs on control of aflatoxins in poultry. Finish data collection on the use of LED's within cages of laying hens to determine their effect on production and welfare. Workshops and seminars on use of plant derived antimicrobial agents for control of Salmonella enteritidis will be held for poultry producers, extension poultry specialists, avian veterinarians, USDA officials and others interested in the control of Salmonella enteritidis in poultry. Fact sheets will be developed and distributed both in person and as downloads available from websites on the use of plant derived antimicrobials for the control of Salmonella enteritidis in poultry. Fact sheets will be developed and distributed both in person and as downloads available from websites on the use of LED and other energy efficient lighting systems for poultry. Workshops and seminars on the use of LED and other energy efficient lighting systems for poultry will be held for poultry producers, extension poultry specialists, and poultry servicemen.

Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals? Plant Derived Compounds were found to control the growth of Salmonella on egg shells of fertile eggs in incubators and on non-fertile eggs. LED lights have been installed within each cage in a lower cage row in a commercial layer facility to determine how the supplemental lighting in the darkest part of the layer facility would affect egg production and hen welfare.

Publications

  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2015 Citation: Upadhyaya,Indu; Hsin-Bai Yin, Meera S. Nair, Chi-Hung Chen, Abhinav Upadhyay, Michael J. Darre,and Kumar Venkitanarayanan. 2015 Efficacy of fumigation with Trans-cinnamaldehyde and eugenol in reducing Salmonella enterica serovar Enteritidis on embryonated egg shells.Poultry Science 94:16851690. http://dx.doi.org/10.3382/ps/pev126
  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Under Review Year Published: 2016 Citation: Upadhyaya, Indu; Yin, Hsin-Bai; Surendran Nair, Meera; Chen, Chi-Hung; Lang, Rebecca; Darre, Michael; 201X Inactivation of Salmonella Enteritidis on shell eggs by coating with phytochemicals. Poultry Science