Dietary Natural Extracts in Intensive Pig Farming: A Rational Alternative to Irrational Use of Antibiotics

The incorporation of natural feed additives in intensive pig farming has acquired considerable relevance during the last years, as increasing restrictions to the use of antibiotics have been imposed around the world. Nevertheless, the use of antibiotic growth promoters and the prophylactic administration of oral broad spectrum antibiotics to large numbers of animals, at therapeutic doses, are still common practices in many countries. This irrational management has led to the development of antimicrobial resistance posing catastrophic animal health issues and contributing to the undergoing global antimicrobial resistance emergency. In search for rational alternatives to antibiotics, dietary natural extracts have aroused as tools to overcome challenging periods of the pigs’ productive cycle. This is particularly important during the post weaning stage, when piglets are subjected to major stressful events that negatively affect the gastrointestinal tract at different levels. Essential oils (carvacrol, thymol, etc.) and other herbal extracts (Cynara, olive, yucca, etc.) have shown to increase nutrient digestibility, improve immune status, exert antioxidant and antiinflammatory effects, reduce urease activity and modulate intestinal ecosystem in vivo and in vitro. Moreover, improved performance parameters have been associated with the utilization of dietary plant-derived products. In some cases, the outcomes were similar to those obtained by antibiotics. Even if results are not always conclusive and there is a great deal of controversy, mostly due to the diversity of plant species and formulations evaluated, overall findings are very promising indeed. The increasing scientific research focused on natural products offers the pig sector an opportunity to incorporate a healthier and more responsible production system [1] [2].

Publikationsverlauf

Artikel online veröffentlicht:
13. Dezember 2021

• References

• 1 Omonijo F.A., Ni L., Gong J., Wang Q., Lahaye L., Yang C. Essential oils a alternatives to antibiotics in swine production. Anim Nutr 2018; 4 (02) 126-136
• 2 Martínez G., Diéguez S.N., Paggi M.B.F., Riccio M.B., Gaudio D.S.P., Rodríguez E., Soraci A.L. Effect of fosfomycin, Cynara scolymus extract, deoxynivalenol and their combinations on intestinal health of weaned piglets. Anim. Nutr 2019; 5 (04) 386-395