On-farm hatching: Utopia or reality? A summary of 10 years of research and field results Lotte van de Ven, PhD Vencomatic Group
On-farm hatching: utopia or reality?
• 50,000,000 bird places installed with VCM systems • ~ 2 billion chicks hatched on-farm • 12 countries
Antimicrobial use in poultry and pigs – 2030 (106,000 tons)
2. USA
1. China 4. India
5. Mexico
3. Brazil
Van Boeckel et al. 2015, PNAS vol. 112 - 18
Broiler industry – First week of life Antibiotics use per week of a broilers life
hatchery
Broiler farm
First days – hatching window • Spread of hatch: • Temperature differences incubator • Storage of eggs (nest, farm, hatchery) • Age of parent flock • Natural variation • Egg size • Egg shell thickness • Embryo development (30,000 – 60,000 cells)
Tona et al., 2003 using Cobb eggs
First days – in transit
A broiler chick spends up to 5% of its life before placement in the house
First days – a good start?
Water quality Hygiene
Feed quality/ Composition
Air quality
Animal health
Well-being
Effects of delayed feed access
Up to 8% weight loss in 24 hours
Study of Careghi et al., 2005 using Cobb eggs. Poultry Science 84:1314-1320
Effects of delayed feed access
Suboptimal development of digestive system
Study of Bigot et al., 2003. Poultry Science 82:781-788
Effects of delayed feed access
No feed inhibits intestinal maturation
Geyra et al., 2001
Effects of delayed feed access
Delayed feeding
Uni et al., 1998
Early feeding
Effects of delayed feed access
Suboptimal development of immune system
Study of Dibner et al., 1998, using broiler chicks. Journal of Applied Poultry Science 7:425-436
Traditional
On-farm hatching
15
On-farm hatching systems Patio (since 2008)
On farm hatching systems - X-Treck (since 2016)
17
Different hatching conditions
100
40
90 80
30
70
25
60 50
20
40
15
30
10
20
5 0 441
445
449
453
457
461
466
Patio - temperature
Hatcher side - temperature
Hatcher side - RH
Patio RH
470
474
478
482
486
Incubation time (h)
491
495
499
503
10 0
507
511
Relative Humidity (%)
Temperature (°C)
35
Different start
Hatchery
On-farm hatching
1. Feed and water
1-2 days after hatch
Directly after hatch
2. Egg position
Horizontal
Vertical
Off Ventilators / machines No
On Stil Yes
Day old chicks Excl. 2nd grade chicks
18-d incubated eggs Incl. 2nd grade chicks
37-38ºC 50-60% 1 liter per egg High / variable 1.2 mg / m3 Yes
35ºC 35-40% > 34 liter per egg Stand still (<0.2 m/s) 0.5 mg / m3 No
3. Hatching environment:
Light Background noise Litter
4.Chick handling
Transport 2nd grade chicks
5. Air quality: Temperature Relative humidity Air volume Air speed Dust concentration Disinfection
Different start - Research results
A. Effects of hatching time and system on broiler chick development (Patio; PhD research Wageningen University 2008-2012)
B. Long-term effects on welfare and health (X-Treck; Wageningen Livestock Research 2016-2018)
C. Technical results from the field (Patio and X-Treck; field work, 2014-2019)
A) PhD research: Experimental design
Incubator: 32,000 eggs Day
18
16,000 eggs → Hatcher
Day old chicks
Day 21
Candling & transfer
Day 18
16,000 eggs → Patio
Results: 1) Feed and water access
1. Feed and water
Hatchery
On-farm hatching
1-2 days after hatch
Directly after hatch
1) Effects of delayed feed access
Change between hatch - d0 (%)
Yolk 0% -10% -20% -30% -40% -50% -60% -70% Hatchery
-80% 468
483 Incubation time (h)
498
Patio
1) Effects of delayed feed access Chick weight day 7
Hatchery
160
Patio
Chick weight (g)
140
Body weight
10% 5%
100 80 60
Hatchery
40
Patio
20 468
483
498
Incubation time (h) 0%
Chick weight day 41 -5%
Hatchery Patio
2.100 -10% 2.000
-15% 468
483 Incubation time (h)
498
Chick weight (g)
Change between hatch - d0 (%)
15%
120
1.900
1.800
1.700
1.600 468
483 Incubation time (h)
498
1) Effects of delayed feed access Hatchery 120%
Patio
100% 80% 60% 40%
Intestine length
20%
Hatchery Patio
70% 0% 468
483 Incubation time (h)
498
Change between hatch - d0 (%)
Change between hatch - d0 (%)
Liver
60% 50% 40% 30% 20% 10% 0% 468
483 Incubation time (h)
498
1) Effects of delayed feed access Liver glycogen
Hatchery Patio
140
120 100 80 60
Corticosterone
40 20 0 -20
-40
Hatchery Patio
60%
465
480 Incubation time (hours)
495
Change between hatch - d0 (%)
Change in liverglycogen (microgram)
160
40% 20% 0% -20%
-40% -60% 468
483 Incubation time (hours)
498
Results: 2) Egg position Hatchery
On-farm hatching
1. Feed and water
1-2 days after hatch
Directly after hatch
2. Egg position
Horizontal
Vertical
Results: 3) Hatching environment
Hatchery
On-farm hatching
1. Feed and water
1-2 days after hatch
Directly after hatch
2. Egg position
Horizontal
Vertical
Off Ventilators / machines No
On Still Yes
3. Hatching environment:
Light Background noise Litter
4) Chick handling notquality investigated Different start: 5)> Air Hatchery
On-farm hatching
1. Feed and water
1-2 days after hatch
Directly after hatch
2. Egg position
Horizontal
Vertical
Off Ventilators / machines No
On Stil Yes
Day old chicks Excl. 2nd grade chicks
18-d incubated eggs Incl. 2nd grade chicks
37-38ºC 50-60% 1 liter per egg High / variable 1.2 mg / m3 Yes
35ºC 35-40% > 34 liter per egg Stand still (<0.2 m/s) 0.5 mg / m3 No
3. Hatching environment:
Light Background noise Litter
4.Chick handling
Transport 2nd grade chicks
5. Air quality:
Temperature Relative humidity Air volume Air speed Dust concentration Disinfection
5) Air quality - bacteria
Furuta and Maruyama, 1981. British Poultry Science 22:247254
Hatcher
7,0
Hatcher met formaldehyde
Mean LOG CFUs
6,0 5,0 4,0 3,0 2,0 1,0 0,0 420
440 460 480 500 Sampling moment in incubation time (h)
520
5) Air quality â&#x20AC;&#x201C; Formaline
Zulkifli et al., 1999. Veterinary Research Communications 23:91-99
5) Air quality - dust
Hatcher - dust
Dust (PM10; mg/m3)
4,0 3,5 3,0 2,5 2,0
X-Treck- dust
1,5 1,0
Concentration in broiler houses
0,5 0,0 18,0
18,5
19,0
19,5 20,0 Incubation days
20,5
21,0
21,5
B) Effects of on-farm hatching on welfare of broiler chickens Ingrid de Jong, Henk Gunnink, Theo van Hattum, Lisa Zoet, MariĂŤl Raaijmakers â&#x20AC;&#x201C; WLR Freek Leijten, Pieter de Gouw, Marieke van Doornik, Elsemieke Wolfs, Lotte van de Ven - Vencomatic
Experimental design
• 16 X-treck and 16 parallel control flocks (distributed over 2 cycles and 7 farms) • X-treck and control house on the same farm location (same management, similar house design) • Origin of X-treck and control flock were identical (same batch of eggs of the same parental flock) • Observations between hatching and slaughter
Contact dermatitis & litter quality
Parameter
Control d21
X-treck d21
Control slaughter
X-treck slaughter
Treatment effect
Age effect
Foot padlaesions (0-4)
0.51
0.23
1.70
1.13
0.03
<0.001
Hock burn (0-4)
0.10
0.12
1.61
1.30
ns
<0.001
Dirt on feathers (0-3)
0.86
0.90
1.41
1.53
0.08
<0.001
Litter quality (0-4)
1.92
1.64
2.92
2.62
0.07
<0.01
Foot pad leasions Foot pad leasions day 21
Foot pad leasions slaughter age
Mortality and rejection rate
Control
X-treck
Mortality d 7 [%]
1,08
0,78
Cumulative mortality [%]
3,44
3,37
Rejection rate slaughter house [%]
1,74
1,24
Combined with a 50% reduction in Antibiotics use
C) Results from the field - Patio
C) Results from the field â&#x20AC;&#x201C; X-Treck
X-treck
Reference
Difference
Hatchability [%] *
96.5%
96.1%
+0.37%
Mortality cumulative [%]
2.82%
3.32%
-0.50%
Average slaughter age [days]
39.0
39.2
Average slaughter weight [gram]
2,569
2,488
+80
Dead on Arrival [%]
0.1%
0.1%
0.0%
Rejection [%]
0.6%
1.0%
-0.4%
FCR 1.500
1.219
1.272
-0.05
376
358
+18
Production Efficiency Factor
On-farm hatching: reality or utopia?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bABiySqd8eg
Lotte van de Ven CEO| Vencomatic Group +31 497 517380| Lotte.vandeVen@VencomaticGroup.com