PD April/May2013

Poultry Digest Volume 28, Number 5

Tamworth layer farmer turns a problem into an asset Great line-up at 18th AECL Industry Forum

Hazeldenes expands breeder capacity

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Contents 10 COVER STORy Tamworth layer farmer turns a problem into an asset Bede Burke has been a farmer at Winton, west of Tamworth for almost 30 years. At the Poultry CRC ‘New Ideas’ conference in 2010 Bede spoke about the increasing problem he faced in humanely dealing with his spent hens. Here, he talks about the solution.

20 FEATURE STORy Bede Burke at Glenwarrie.

Poultry Digest April/May 2013 Volume 28, Number 5 Editorial Enquiries Peter Bedwell or Rosemary Embery +6 1 2 4368 2220 or 0419 235 288 sales: Peter Bedwell Phone: +61 2 4368 2220 Mob: 0419 235 288 Or Mob: 0409 944 472 Website: www.primarymedia.com.au POULTRY DIGEsT consists of a bi-monthly management magazine and an annual industry review.

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Hazeldenes expands breeder capacity Back in June 2010 Poultry Digest visited Hazeldene Poultry to look at the RSPCA approved broiler production sheds the company had established. In April Poultry Digest returned to the site to look at the new breeder sheds and the strategies set out by the company to not only expand production capacity but also ensure the highest possible levels of biosecurity.

28 INTERVIEW How a broiler integration does successful business with retailers for mutual profit: Part Three Aziz Sacranie, Technical Director of Poultry for Alltech Asia Pacific spoke to Philip Wilkinson, Managing Director of 2 Sisters, the UK’s largest integrator about doing business with sipermarkets, welfare and food safety in the broiler industry.

NEWs 4 Great line-up at 18th AECL Industry Forum The 18th Australian Egg Corporation Limited (AECL) Forum held at Novotel Twin Waters Resort, sunshine Coast in Queensland on May 22-23, featured an excellent line up of speakers that informed, explained and entertained layer farmers and industry delegates who made the time and effort to attend.

16 Alltech symposium challenges Agribusiness to make an impact On the final day of the Alltech 29th Annual International symposium, delegates were challenged to take a glimpse into the future, search out opportunities to make an impact in the agribusiness industry and give the farmer of tomorrow a competitive advantage in the marketplace.

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ALL MATERIAL COPYRIGHT (editorial and advertisements) and may not be reproduced without the written consent of the publishers. Whilst every care is taken to ensure the accuracy of the contents of POULTRY DIGEsT, the publishers do not accept any responsibility or liability for the material herein.

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NEWs Great line-up at 18th AECL Industry Forum

By PETER BEDWELL The 18th Australian Egg Corporation Limited (AECL) Forum held at Novotel Twin Waters Resort, Sunshine Coast in Queensland on May 22-23, featured an excellent line up of speakers that informed, explained and entertained layer farmers and industry delegates who made the time and effort to attend.

After a welcome from AECL Chairman Jeff Ironside, Yelli Kruger AECL’s Program Manager – Marketing, reported on the simply phenomenal success of the Pancake Day initiative in her paper, ‘Taking the world (and now Australia) by storm’.

Yelli traced the history of pancake day including her memories of the event as a child growing up in her native Holland and how this simple food celebration has, with the use of new media, delivered such a spectacular consumer response in Australia.

“The first objective was to increase consumption of eggs by owning Pancake Day and driving sales through showcasing recipes, also to create a game-based solution that is fun, engaging and acts as the entry mechanism for the eggs competition,” Yelli explained.

“Measurable goals were to increase the number of fans on Facebook by 6000, increase newsletter subscriptions by 1500 and through 20 positive media clippings achieve an audience reach of 5,000,000.

“How did we go?” Yelli asked delegates.

“We got more than four million audience impressions, 65,000 consumers visited our website while 6,100 entered our competition and 1,514 joined our newsletter subscription list.

“Facebook ‘likes’ were 18,284 before the competition and 24,612 at the end – an increase of 6,328 but possibly more significant was the spike in egg sales achieved during the competition period,” Yelli concluded.

Naomi Kimberlin from Kimberlin Education spoke about the program she developed around eggs for primary schools in her paper, ‘Student Education: Bridging the city/rural egg divide in schools’.

“All About Eggs, the interactive curriculum linked incursion program has the aim of raising awareness of egg nutrition and production amongst primary school students.

“Initially focussed on NSW, the initia-

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POULTRY DIGEST, April/May 2013

tive will in the future deliver a national education program where interactive lessons will focus on the science behind egg production and the nutritional benefits of egg consumption,” Naomi explained.

Angus Crossan, AECL’s Program Manager R&D went on his travels recently and a distillation of his reflections resulted in his address ‘Fixing Humpty Dumpty - A ‘United Nations’ approach to improving Australia’s poultry training sector’ was an interesting view on an overall approach to improving standards based on lessons learned and exploited in major economies like the US and EU. Working through the ISS Institute Inc, it is an independent not for profit organization providing opportunities for Australians to gain enhanced skills, knowledge and experience in trades, professions and leading-edge technologies.

Of particular interest in identifying and rectifying were, “skill deficiencies in supply chain issues over vaccination, beak trimming, welfare husbandry and biosecurity with a focus on induction and risk management,” Angus stated.

He also identified challenges in delivering skills development opportunities to the egg industry which “is a small and geographically dispersed industry,” he said.

In an industry that relates to its consumers ‘by the dozen’ interpolating data should be a natural but Abe Moses (AECL Farm Extension Services Manager) caste a new light on the numbers in his paper ‘Integrated EggBiz – converting flock data into $$$.”

“EggBiz is a web based flock management program designed specifically for small to medium sized egg businesses that tracks key flock performance indicators to help growers make better business decisions which logically improves the look of the bottom line,” Abe explained.

Abe offers a 60 day ‘suck it and see’ opportunity to try the program available from July 1, 2013.

Richard Brimblecombe, Managing Director of Quantum Power Ltd, spoke about the opportunities for turning waste into usable energy in his paper ‘Pure manure power - Powering a whole farm using manure and farm waste’.

Poultry Digest knows this can be done because our other publication Pork Journal ran a story on a Quantum Power installation at a pig farm near Young NSW – go

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3 1. Yelli Kruger, AECL’s Program Manager - Marketing. 2. Naomi Kimberlin, Kimberlin Education.

3. Angus Crossan, AECL’s Progam Manager R&D.

to porkjournal.realviewtechnologies.com and then in the archives section select the January/February 2012 issue and read on!

AECL, in its forums and conferences, has always embraced new technologies – its enthusiasm for exploiting social media has been well demonstrated and its use of ‘live via the internet’ presentations adds that frisson of excitement that went with broadcasts for space from pioneering astronaughts a generation ago.

Greg Mills has to be congratulated for his ability to perform the ‘digital knitting’ w

NEWs v that makes this stuff not only possible but viable in a conference setting.

Michael Guthrie, Chairman of the Egg Producers’ Federation of NZ, in a live presentation explained ‘the hasty transition from conventional to colony cages in NZ’, brought about by political pressure.

It would seem that Australian and NZ layer farmers have much in common including seemingly endless pressure from animal rights activists and the politicians who consider that there are votes in giving intensive livestock industries a hard time.

Also live via the internet, Philip Hudson, Head of Food and Farming, National Farmers Union UK, spoke about the UK’S new Groceries Adjudicator – how we got there and will it work – an experience that mirrors some of the difficulties farmers in Australia experience in dealing with powerful retailers.

Finally on a busy day the motivational keynote speaker and totally inspiring Olympic athlete Steven Bradbury, who memorably powered home to Gold in the 2002 Salt lake City Winter Olympics after his much more favoured opposition from the US, Canada, South Korea and China basically eliminated each other in falls fighting for first place, leaving Bradbury to cross the line as ‘the last man standing’ – the title of his address to delegates.

After four Olympics, 12 years of exhausting training regimes and two accidents that nearly cost him his life and even by his own estimation, being past his peak, he triumphed winning gold.

His message was that it was all his effort and struggles from childhood when he discovered ice skating that lead to his pinnacle achievement.

As he so succingctly put “it took 12 years to become an overnight success!”

Steven has entered the Australian vernacular with the expression ‘doing a Bradbury’ i.e. letting your oppostion destroy itself!

Not only did Steven inspire his audience he gave four brave ‘volunteers’ a taste of a top class speed skaters exercise routines.

Drinks were sponsored by Kuhn Corp Press and Packaging and thoroughly appreciated by delegates before the Forum Dinner co-sponsored by Jefo Australia and Big Dutchman.

The following day first speaker John Matcham, Executive Sales Director of UKbased Agrilamp in his address ‘The pros and cons of red light districts (and other coloured lights) in layer houses challenged many pre-conceived ideas about poultry

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shed lighting.

John revealed the depth of research that his company had undertaken in understanding what the birds see in any given light situation as opposed to humans and further the effects on bird behaviour in certain light conditions.

We hope at Poultry Digest to bring you a detailed summation of this research in a forthcoming issue – it’s very interesting!

Dr Geoffrey Annison (Egg Labeling Integrity Panel Member and Deputy CEO, Aust Food & Grocery Council, spoke about rising consumer expectations and need to be informed and the rise of the ‘ethical’ consumer in developed markets and the characteristics of codes, their aims and pitfalls.

Andy Chrysiliou, also a member of the Egg Labelling Integrity Panel, is the Principal of Chysiliou IP, lawyers who specialise in brands and intellectual property (IP) issues.

His topic wasb ‘Misleading and dangerous practices: the dos and don’ts of egg labelling’.

“Egg labelling may potentially breach consumer protection law if the label conveys a misleading or deceptive impression or representation, whether this be through words, pictures or other means,” he warned.

“The ACCC position is that a consumer should not be required to CONTINUED ON PAGE 50 w

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1. Abe Moses, AECL Farm Extension Manager. 2. Dr Geoffrey Annison, Deputy CEO, Aust Food & Grocery Council. 3. Prof. Paul Hemsworth, University of Melbourne. 4. Simon McKenzie, Area Sales Manager, Vencomatic on the trade stand.

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Investment in plenty of serious machinery is vital to compost production

Tamworth layer farmer turns a problem into an asset

By PETER BEDWELL

B

ede Burke has been a farmer at Winton, west of Tamworth, for almost thirty years. He is married to Narelle, has six children, and together they operate a mixed farming and 106,000 bird egg production enterprise, Glenwarrie.

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POULTRY DIGEST, April/May 2013

Bede is well known in the layer industry, particularly in NSW where he is Chairman of the egg producers committee of the NSW Farmer’s Federation.

At the Poultry CRC ‘New Ideas’ conference held in 2010, Bede spoke about the increasing problem he faced in humanely dealing with his spent hens.

‘The processors were becoming less interested in picking up the hens as their low value had made the cost of transport and handling prohibitive,” he said.

“Also the time taken to load the birds onto trucks, particularly in the summer heat meant that the birds could suffer in what often proved to be a long and labour intensive process.

“The solution was to design a simple gas chamber using C02 so the birds could be euthanased on site causing the birds minimum stress but that left us with the question of what to do with the carcasses “The answer was to set up an effective composting regime which not only dealt

with the problem of disposal but resulted in a valuable end product to use on our paddocks as crop fertiliser,” Bede explained.

While the concept of turning organic waste into an odourless and biologically safe fertiliser is simple, there is a degree of management skill necessary to ensure an environmentally sound and biologically safe process.

Bede and his staff have put some thought and effort into ensuring problems don’t exist with run off, so a lot of ‘landscaping’ has been undertaken to ensure a safe and efficient process.

Without doubt the key to the process is an investment in some serious machinery; a big Case tractor to tow the impressive Marshall spreader and the heavy lifting accomplished by the Cat articulated frontend loader. Turning the compost is a major task made easier by a 3.5 metre compost turner and a 1200 litre water truck. All this is appreciated by Senior Farm Supervisor Des Saunders. w

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Apart from shifting a lot of material around, maintaining the condition of the compost mounds is of vital importance Bede points out. Keeping optimal moisture levels is the secret.

The point is that Bede has created a vital agricultural resource at a time when dwindling global supplies of natural phosphorous are pushing up the cost of fertiliser overall.

There are plenty of applications for the compost on the 1400 acre property including growing both summer and winter crops as well as improving pasture for prime lambs and beef cattle.

Apart from using the compost Bede practices no-till farming methods to achieve soil improvement.

Composting apart, Bede has committed a major investment in transforming his two original sheds into a state of the art fully climate controlled cage layer operation using the Big Dutchman AMACS controllers.

This system offers not only the ability to control all the key functions in the shed, it is capable of producing all relevant data needed to monitor both conditions and production and can be operated remotely via the internet or through smartphones and tablets.

Bede, a life member of the RSPCA, believes that the EU 2008 compliant cages systems like his 6 tier Big Dutchman Univent cages, do address hen welfare as well as making good business sense.

“With these cages we can protect our birds from harsh climate variation in our region and reduce disease risk, as well as maximising feed efficiency,” he said.

“We run four flocks of around 26,000 birds each and get good results from Hyline Brown layer in excess of 80 weeks.

At this stage the great majority of our production goes to wholesale but in the future we plan to fully grade our production and when this happens we will probably need to add free range housing to our farm.

“The land is already being prepared for our next phase of expansion,” he added.

As many areas of regional Australia return to drought conditions, Bede makes the most of the rain gathering capacity of his shed roofing area to harvest what rainfall comes their way.

Also he has solved drainage and run off issues by fitting storms drains that run under the sheds with the water ending up in storage dams.

Apart from his multiple farming activities, Bede is Chairman of Tamworth Rural, an agricultural merchandising operation with two stores that was established as a Farmers’ Cooperative back in 1941. In w

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POULTRY DIGEST, April/May 2013

Top: Well designed climate controlled sheds, main fans and back up generator.

Centre: Large evaporative cool pads aid climate control. Rain water tanks supplement water supply. Above left: On site feed mill and the farm’s crops deliver self reliance for the layer operation. Above right: Des Saunders, Senior Farm Supervisor.

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v 2008 it was turned into Tamworth Rural and today is an expanding and successful business.

He has been a member of the NSW Farmers Association Egg Committee since 2000, and the Exotic Diseases Committee.

When Poultry Digest visited Bede he was deeply engaged in his other passion which is politics, and the need he sees to improve both the political and economic climate for farming as a whole both in his region and nationally.

He has been Chairman of The Nationals’ Tamworth Electorate Council since 2010, overseeing the first political primary election ever held in Australia.

Bede is optimistic that his party can help bring a better balance to Australia’s overall economy by restoring agriculture to a primary pillar of growth for regional Australia and by ensuring food security for the population as a whole.

As a result of his drive and enthusiasm for farming he is now able to communicate with some of our highest profile politicians on the problems and potential for farmers and the layer sector in particular.

On the topic of controversies surrounding the layer sector in general, Bede thinks that there is not only room, but also a clear need for a range of production systems to give consumers choice.

“However in addition to cage systems and free range there is potential for an expansion in barn laid shedding, though at present consumers seem to be a bit confused as to what ‘barn laid’ actually means,” Bede concluded.

Top: Bede can closely monitor production with Big Dutchman AMACS system. Centre: Bede is a life member of the RSPCA and deeply involved with the political process to achieve a better deal for farmers. Above left: Six tier Big Dutchman Univent cages. Above right: Storm water run-off managed between sheds.

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POULTRY DIGEST, April/May 2013

NEWs Alltech symposium challenges Agribusiness to make an impact On the final day of the Alltech 29th Annual International Symposium, delegates were challenged to take a glimpse into the future, search out opportunities to make an impact in the agribusiness industry and give the farmer of tomorrow a competitive advantage in the marketplace.

Speaking to more than 2,300 delegates from 72 countries, Rebecca Timmons¸ Global Director of Applications Research and Quality for Alltech, kicked off the closing session highlighting the latest applications for algae in livestock and human nutrition.

While most of the attention on algae has focused primarily on it being a source for biofuel, microalgae contain large quantities of high quality eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) that can bring additional nutritional improvements to feeds and food. Currently, the most common sources for DHA or ‘good fat’ are fish meal and fish oil. However, Timmons said these products can often be inconsistent, unsustainable, unavailable, poor quality and unsafe.

At Alltech’s Algae production facility in Winchester, Kentucky, Alltech SP-1 was recently developed to provide a consistent source of algae with a wide range of benefits for a variety of species as well as improvements for both ends of the value chain.

Besides seeing an increase in immunity, a decrease in mortality and increased litter size in their herds, producers who utilise feeds with this type of algae will also be able to further brand their products as value-added DHA Omega-3 enriched for consumers.

“It’s going to be two-fold; you’re going to have those benefits to the animals as well as through the enriched product to consumers.

This means you will be improving your return while creating a healthier population of both humans and animals all at the same time,” Timmons said.

“We can really change the way we feed the world, so we are not just looking at feeding the world but feeding them in a better way.”

Dr Patrick Wall, University College Dublin, Ireland, expanded upon Timmons’ presentation, stressing the importance of food safety in feeding today’s growing population.

The former veterinarian, medical doctor, businessman and European Food Safety Authority chairman said the curtain hasn’t fallen on food scares and that every day a chronology of food scares and recalls show up in the media.

“Your jobs are so important. If something goes wrong in the food chain, the repercussions are huge. Everything an animal eats – so do we,” Wall said. “It takes millions of dollars and years to build a brand, but can take a few seconds to destroy it.”

Wall said the problem with the food chain is that that we have convinced the consumer that it’s a straight line from farm to fork; however, there is a major disconnect between the final consumer and modern agricultural practices with issues such as a rising population, diverting food to fuel, global food trade, downward pressure on price and inconsistent country regulations.

Wall said every agricultural corporation needs to develop a fully integrated risk-based system by choosing trusted suppliers, managing a well-trained staff, implementing a stringent quality control and regulatory system, using the latest in composite testing, being proactive with consumers and the media, and developing a safe feed culture at the leadership level.

“We have the fundamental goal to provide safe, nutritious food.

We are in the human health business. Doctors and nurses are in the sickness business,” Wall said.

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Rebecca Timmons, Global Director for Applications Research and Quality for Alltech.

“What is our most valuable asset? It’s not your farm, your stock or shares. It’s your health and the health of your friends and family.

You are in the human health business.”

Dr Mark Lyons, vice president of corporate affairs at Alltech also stressed the importance of food safety as he shared the company’s vision for helping expand agricultural production in China.

According to Lyons, food security is seen as ‘the potential Achilles’ heel of China’ and is too big of an issue to ignore publicly.

China’s five-year plan focuses on making farms larger, more efficient and more traceable. For example, half of the world’s pigs live in China and from those 50 million sows, 20 pigs per sow are born alive per year. This equals an annual production of one billion pigs per year. However, due to preweaning mortality, only 600 million actually go to market. The 400 million lost is three times the size of U.S. pig production. In China, one more pig per sow per year would mean one million tons of feed saved.

“What is Alltech’s five-year plan? We want to be a foreign brand with a Chinese heart,” Lyons said. “We want to firmly establish market leadership, partner with the government and leading feed, production and food companies, and give our customers a competitive advantage.”

Founder and president of Alltech, Dr Pearse Lyons wrapped up the Symposium, challenging the delegates to help the farmer of tomorrow and to use the resources provided to them at this year’s event.

“Are you going to fly or are you going to soar? Will you flourish?” Dr. Lyons asked. “You need to leave here today and say, ‘I may not rule the world, but I can have an impact on feeding the world’s growing population.’”

The Symposium’s 175 contributors, 20 sessions and 22 discussion dinners focused on how agribusiness can meet the challenge to produce enough food to feed three billion new urban dwellers, or nine billion people in total by 2050.

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New Santrev-built breeder sheds showing access for fan maintenance without entering area occupied by birds. GE silos are made locally. Below: Karl Lawson, Farming Manager.

Hazeldenes expands breeder capacity

By PETER BEDWELL

B

ack in June 2010 Poultry Digest visited Hazeldene Poultry primarily to look at the RSPCA approved broiler production sheds the company had established earlier

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POULTRY DIGEST,April/May 2013

that year.

This initiative was only part of a major period of expansion for the Hazeldene family-owned business that involved not only building or renovating sheds but also modernising all aspects of processing and production.

Karl Lawson, Farming Manager at Hazeldenes, also at that time revealed further expansion plans that included the construction of 32 sheds over a two year period.

That plan is now well advanced and in April Poultry Digest returned to the Lockwood, Victoria site to look at the new breeder sheds and the strategies set out by Karl and the company to not only expand production capacity but also ensure the highest possible levels of biosecurity.

Hazeldenes is in the fortunate position

of having plenty of land on which to build its new sheds so it can achieve good geographical separation between the three main breeder farms.

Karl’s aim is to reduce traffic to and from the sheds to the absolute minimum – there is a dedicated office and vaccine room at the site so once the birds go in there is strict restriction to on-site access.

Design features of the Santrev-built sheds include light traps and the smooth easy to clean interior of the design that makes for optimal airflow and easy cleaning.

On the first completed 4 shed site, the 15 x 145 metre sheds hold 16000 hens with one shed occupied by 7,500 male birds.

Skov Controllers are fitted on the breeder reaing sites but Big Dutchman

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controllers are fitted to the latest broiler sheds under construction.

Cool pad flaps are Skov driven on all sheds.

On the sheds being built that Poultry Digest visited Big Dutchman chain fed feed pans are being fitted.

“This design works well and gives easy access for smaller as well as more mature birds,” Karl explained.

Other design feature include access to fans without having to enter any areas occupied by the birds.

“The aim is to create uniformity across our management, shed design and equipment, feed ratios and genetics.

“That uniformity is then hopefully reflected in our breeder operations which in turn leads to a uniformity of product which is essential to our customers.

“Certainly establishing a set design criteria for the sheds as had a beneficial effect on the construction process and recently we completed two sheds in just five weeks on a Greenfield site.

“Also working with suppliers like Steve Clohesy from Stockyard Industry for Big Dutchman products and Luke Trevanion at Santrev has helped us to keep the building schedule on track,” he explained.

“Stockyard Industries has a warehouse in Bendigo so if we need parts and service for our shed equipment they readily available.

“This is critical with any poultry rearing operation but even more so with breeder stock,” Karl emphasised.

“Working with a family company like Hazeldenes has been an absolute pleasure,” said Luke Trevanion.

“Vicki and John Hazeldene are well represented by Karl Laeson and the facility they have designed has set a new national benchmark.

“Trusted relationships are an important part of Santrev’s aim and we are extremely proud of the close bond we have with industry icon Hazeldenes, Luke said.

“Given the fact that we have seen high levels of drought in recent years we have had to cater for periods of water shortage with plenty of back up supply,” Karl said.

“In the final stage of expanding our breeder operations we will, we believe, be building the biggest Vencomatic equipped shed in the world housing a close to 37000 birds – the shed will contain two levels with two tiers per level.”

In an industry dominated for some years by two major players, Hazeldenes has taken the opportunity to build its operations to supply increasing consumer demand through the major supermarket chains.

“Hazeldenes production incorporates three types of chicken,” Karl explained,

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1 2

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“conventional, free range, and more recently a higher welfare bird accredited by the RSPCA. “While each of the brands is growing in demand it is the RSPCA bird which is enjoying the stronger growth. This RSPCA chicken is being heavily promoted by Coles Supermarkets.”

On the question of antibiotic free production Karl reveals that his company has worked toward perfecting reliable production without the use of antibiotics.

“It may be that either consumers demand it, which means retailers will require it and further, it’s possible regulators will put pressure on us to exclude antibiotic use – it’s something we have to prepare for,” he said.

“We have been in discussions with nutritionist Dr Santiago Ramirez of Fractal and suppliers of products that could help us achieve a lesser dependence on antibiotics.

“One thing is certain however, and that is we will have to achieve the highest levels of biosecurity, particularly with our breeder flocks if we hope to have any success with clearing the antibiotic free hurdle,” Karl said.

Summarising the visit with Managing Director John Hazeldene, Poultry Digest asked the question, “what do you reckon your market share is now, and where do you want to be when your expansion phase is complete?”

“At a guess right now between 5 to 6% of the total market and we will be in a strong position to increase that market share over the next fieve to ten years with our business development and planning.

In contrast to many suppliers to major retail chains, Hazeldenes believe a good relationship with its major clients is essential and to maintain this relationship now and into the future it has invested significantly in its business.

On April 19, 2013 the Australian Financial Review on its front page ran an article by writer Sue Mitchell who interviewed Richard Goyder, head of Wesfarmers, the parent company of Coles.

In that article Mr Goyder stated that, “suppliers who are inefficient and have outdated facilities and have ripped cash out of their business may not have a future in supplying us.

“Any business in this country has to be looking at how efficient it is, and our business is not to prop up inefficient suppliers but supply great products to our customers in the best way we can,” he was reported as warning.

Hazeldenes has obviously understood what is needed to ensure a good long term relationship with its major client.

24

POULTRY DIGEST, April/May 2013

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INTERVIEW

How a broiler integration does successful business with retailers for mutual profitability: Part Three INTERVIEW by AZIZ SACRANIE, Technical Director of Poultry for Alltech Asia Pacific. He spoke to Philip Wilkinson, Managing Director of 2 Sisters, the UK’s largest integrator.

P

oultry and poultry products have repeatedly been implicated as a source of food borne infection for humans. The significant increase in the number of reported food borne disease outbreaks worldwide, as well as numerous recalls of poultry and poultry products has focused opinions on food safety.

In Part 3 of this interview, Aziz Sacranie, Technical Director of Poultry for Alltech Asia Pacific, discusses food safety, as it affects broiler integration, with Mr. Philip Wilkinson, CEO of the UK’s largest broiler integrator.

Q: Food safety applies to a wide ranging area concerning food. What would you say are the main food safety concerns when it comes to chicken meat production?

A: The simple answer is that the food that we produce is safe and not going to poison or kill people.

In our own business within the UK we actually feed 1in 20 people of a 60 million population every week with our products, so it is of paramount importance that the food that we provide is safe, nutritious, tasty, succulent and value for money. What is upper most in our minds is that it is not going to harm anyone.

Q: As a producer of happy and healthy chickens, what would be the main areas that could reduce the safety of these chickens?

A: Two areas in particular, the first being Salmonella which is a major health risk and is prevalent in chicken.

The UK has made tremendous strides forward in this area through working close-

28

POULTRY DIGEST, April/May 2013

Aziz Sacranie

ly with breeders, together with good stockmanship and the heat treatment of feed stuffs.

The EU target for Salmonella positive poultry meat is 1%, however the most recent published figures show the UK to be delivering 0.043% positive, which is amongst the best in Europe.

The second area of concern is one that is really high profile at the moment and is currently under scrutiny by the Food Standards Agency and that is Campylobacter which costs the nation’s health service £600 million pounds per year. It is a more difficult area to find a swift solution to combat this bacteria.

The industry is under enormous Government pressure to reduce Campylobacter and we are working with the British Retail Consortium and the Food Standards Agency right now on initiatives to help reduce counts.

Q: Is it necessary to have Government bodies to control and implement food safety standards or should it be done by individual producers?

A: In my view on any issue that is a matter of national health for a country, I believe that the Government has a responsibility for the overall health of the nation and as a food producer and a reputable food producer at that, I would take every precaution to ensure that the food that we provide is safe.

It is self evident that the Government has policies for food safety and issues recommendations and production guidelines for the trade to adhere to.

Q: What areas of food production in broiler integration should the Government be monitoring and implementing to ensure high food standards?

A: The Government through the Department for the Environment Food and Rural Affairs together with the Food Standards Agency have the responsibility for implementing food borne diseases regulations.

Therefore Salmonella and Campylobacter feature very highly on their agenda. However, regarding EU legislation the food standards agency is responsible for policing all aspects as well as micro biological criteria.

Q: There are many areas in the production system of broilers where it is possible for Salmonella or other food poisoning agents to enter. What can an integrator do to ensure that this does not happen?

A: An integrator must have as a priority a bio-security program in order to minimise compromising food safety. Vehicle washers and foot baths are everyday common practise on our farms as well as clothes w

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INTERVIEW v changes and boot changes.

However, as bio-security becomes increasingly more important; the number of visitors to farms has to be kept to a minimum and this is why we as an industry are trying to encompass as many statutory visits to farms under one umbrella in order to avoid unnecessary visitors and duplication.

Q: Poultry feed is common to all generations of poultry in an integrator. Would you like to comment on the importance of bio-security for this feed?

A: All feed suppliers to our business have to adhere to the rules of Universal Feed Assurance Scheme (UFAS).

The main constituent being Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point (HACCP) approved sites. However, the traceability of raw materials, for example sources and shipments must be demonstrated.

At the feed mill, risk analysis must be undertaken and documented. Procedures to ensure that no cross contamination can

“I believe the Government has a responsibility fo the overall health of the nation and as a food producer I would take every precaution to ensure the food we provide is safe” occur from ruminant to non ruminant feeds. A full analysis of incoming raw materials must have be also undertaken and documented.

Q: As an integrator having produced safe food, how do you ensure that when it gets to the consumers that it remains so?

A: The integrity of the chilled chicken

chain in the UK is maintained strictly in that once in the supply chain the product from leaving the production line to leaving the retail store must not fall outside minus 2.0 to plus 4.5 degrees Celsius.

If that product exceeds either of those two extremes then the chicken product cannot be sold by that retailer.

However when the chicken is outside of the control of the supply chain namely with the ultimate consumer; it must be emphasised that responsibility for maintaining product integrity does lie with the swiftness that the purchaser gets the product from the store in to refrigeration at home and how clean the work surfaces are in the kitchen and then how quickly the product is cooked, stored and consumed.

The chicken industry has the responsibility to educate the consumer of the consequences of not following good hygiene housekeeping practice once the product has left the retailer.

We as an industry over the forthcoming weeks and months place will place a lot of emphasis in that area.

NEWs Alltech crowns Young scientist winners at symposium Two students have received the distinction of Alltech Young Scientist for research demonstrating an exceptional awareness of science and its role in shaping the future of agriculture.

Undergraduate student Amanda Pesqueira of the University of Kentucky and graduate student Nimesha Fernando of the University of Melbourne, Australia, were honored on May 22 as the top crop from a field of more than 8,000 global registrants. The students were recognised in front of a crowd of more than 2,300 during the Closing Session of Alltech’s 29th International Symposium.

After a regional evaluation process in early 2013, eight finalists were invited to travel to Lexington, Kentucky, to deliver their research findings before a panel of judges. The undergraduate and graduate winners received $5,000 and $10,000 respectively.

Nimesha Fernando, a graduate student at the University of Melbourne, looked at

30

POULTRY DIGEST, April/May 2013

how high levels of CO2 in the environment affect the growth of grain through her research presentation titled ‘Free Air CO2 Enrichment Altered Wheat Grain Protein Quality and Rheological Characteristics: A Comparative Proteomic Analysis.’

Using proteomic analysis, she showed that exposure to high levels of CO2 results in grains with lower levels of protein, and then applied her research findings to the use of wheat in food production.

“The theme of this year’s Symposium was GLIMPSE – looking into the future and imagining the possibilities of what we can achieve together.

“But we need to cultivate curiosity in our young people to make progress toward these achievements,” said Dr Pearse Lyons, President and Founder of Alltech.

For more information about registering for the next Alltech Young Scientist Competition, you can go to: www.alltech.com/education/alltech-youngscientist/about.

(From left) Amanda Pesqueria, undergraduate winner of the Alltech Young Scientist Competition, and Nimesha Fernando, graduate winner of the Alltech Young Scientist Competition, and Dr Mark Lyons, Alltech Vice President.

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MANAGEMENT FEATURE

Egg washing – trials and tribulations

By D.MAy 1, M. SEXTON2, G.HOLDS1 and A. KIERMEIER1.

U

p to 5% of the 333.9 million dozen eggs produced in Australia annually are discarded because they are classified as ‘black’ eggs, deemed so visually contaminated that they cannot be recovered using current washing methods. Therefore, improved washing methods may result in substantial cost recovery.

This study investigated ways to increase recovery of black eggs through improved washing conditions, resulting in recovery of more than 80% of black eggs when washed multiple times.

It was found that the biggest limitations on recovery were: egg washer design; being able to make appropriate adjustments; inadequate spray temperature at egg surfaces; inappropriate chemical application resulting in incorrect levels of chemical being used at incorrect temperatures; operation issues including blocked spray nozzles; brushes interfering with sprays and/or not touching the eggs; and inadequate cleaning of washing and grading machinery.

Improvements in these areas along with better wash chemicals will lead to greater egg recovery and reduction in potential for foodborne illness outbreaks related to eggs.

Introduction The annual production of eggs in Australia totalled 333.9 million dozen in 2008/09, of which 67.8% were cage eggs, 5.5% were barn laid and 26.8% were free range (Australian Egg Corporation Limited, 2009). The vast majority of eggs are washed in Australia prior to packing to remove dirt and faecal material and to reduce the microbial contamination of the egg shell (Anonymous, 2009).

Visually dirty eggs after washing are diverted for pasteurisation or discarded, along with cracked eggs, resulting in lower returns to processors.

The washing process consists of several stages: pre-washing, washing with the aid of a surfactant/cleaner, sanitising and blowdrying, and can take less than 30 seconds.

Hence, the effectiveness of the surfactant’s

32

POULTRY DIGEST, April/May 2013

ability to penetrate and effectively remove dirt and faecal matter is critical for the recovery of table eggs. An effective cleaner can also assist in the removal of bacteria while a suitable sanitiser, together with a clean post-wash processing environment, will assist in maintaining the hygienic status of the eggs.

It is estimated by the authors that dirty eggs constitute between 5 and 20% of total production, depending on the production system and management practices and up to 50% of these may not be recovered.

In addition, up to 5% of all eggs are ‘black’ eggs. These are deemed so visually contaminated that they cannot be recovered using current washing protocols and hence are discarded.

“This study investigated ways to increase recovery of ‘black eggs’ through improved washing conditions, resulting in recovery of more than 80% of ‘black eggs’ when washed mulitple times.”

The primary objective of this project was to improve the effectiveness of current washing practices to reduce the proportion of eggs downgraded or disposed.

The secondary objective was to reduce potential food safety risks through the reduction of enteric microorganisms on the egg shell surface.

Methods Three egg processing plants were visited to assess the recovery of black eggs using two chemical/temperature combinations.

These combinations had previously been

assessed in laboratory-based trials and were determined to yield the best black egg recovery.

At each processing plant, black eggs (60 eggs per chemical/temperature combination) were washed, repeatedly if needed, until they were visually clean to a maximum of four washes (30 sec. per wash cycle).

Fifteen black eggs were left unwashed as a control. a) Cleaner/sanitiser combinations Two cleaner/sanitiser combinations were used for in-plant trials, one on each of the two days on which trials were conducted after normal production finished: Chemical 1: A liquid alkaline (pH 12) chlorine based product to be used at 1% solution (v/v) and 40°C (or as near as practical).

This was used with a quaternary ammonium (QAC) based sanitiser (0.25% (v/v), final QAC concentration 400 ppm) at 42°C (or as near as practical); and Chemical 2: A liquid sodium hydroxide based product to be used at 0.45% solution (v/v) at 40°C (or as near as practical) with a sodium hypochlorite based sanitiser (0.16% (v/v), final hypochlorite concentration of 200 ppm) at 32°C (or as near as practical).

Final pH was determined using pH Test Strips (Sigma). Final QAC concentration was determined using Hydrion Papers QT-40 (Microessential Laboratories Inc).

Final hypochlorite concentration was determined either using Precision Chlorine Test Paper (Precision Laboratories) or by titration. b) Microbiological assessment of washed and unwashed eggs Total Viable Counts (TVC, hygiene indicator) and Enterobacteriaceae counts (these are used as a faecal indicator and include Escherichia coli and Salmonella) were determined for 15 unwashed (control) and 15 washed eggs by placing eggs aseptically into individual sterile stomacher bags. Sterile peptone saline solution (PSS) (10 mL) was added and the bag gently shaken by hand for two minutes.

Serial decimal dilutions (1 mL) were plated onto 3MTM PetrifilmTM Aerobic w Plate Count Petrifilm and incubated at

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MANAGEMENT FEATURE v 35°C for 48 hours to determine the TVC per mL of rinse. To determine the total Enterobacteriaceae count per mL of rinse, serial decimal dilutions of the rinse were plated onto 3MTM PetrifilmTM Enterobacteriaceae Count Plates and incubated at 35°C for 24 hours. c) Statistical Analysis TVC and Enterobacteriaceae counts were log10 transformed for analysis and results the lower/upper limit of detection (LoD) were set equal to the respective LoD. Results were analysed separately for each plant using a two-way analysis of variance.

Results a) Recovery of black eggs Under the conditions used in this trial and irrespective of the chemical used, an average of 29, 57 and 85% of black eggs were visually clean after two, three and four washes, respectively.

There was no clear relationship between plants or chemicals, although variability was large.

This indicates that in-plant optimisation and validation of the wash system and chemicals is required to achieve best results. b) Microbiological analysis of eggs For Plant 1, there was a significant interaction between chemical/day and process step (P < 0.001 – excluding dirty eggs from the analysis).

This interaction was due to graded eggs being higher on Day 1 than on Day 2, which coincided with the plant being cleaned overnight.

For Plants 2 and 3, excluding dirty eggs prior to washing, there were no significant differences between process steps (P = 0.09 and 0.15), chemical/day (P = 0.75 and 0.85), nor their interaction (P = 0.43 and 0.35). The average TVC was 4.18 and 4.11 log10 cfu/egg, respectively.

Because of the limited post-washing Enterobacteriaceae detections, no formal statistical analysis was undertaken, but the following key observations can be made: • Unwashed eggs can be substantially contaminated with Enterobacteriaceae.

• Washing removes most Enterobacteriaceae to below detectable levels (< 1 cfu/egg).

• At Plant 1, only one graded egg had detectable levels of Enterobacteriaceae (too numerous to count).

The other two plants resulted in multiple detections of Enterobacteriaceae, which may be related to the hygiene of the post-wash equipment.

Discussion

34

POULTRY DIGEST, April/May 2013

Washing black eggs up to four times resulted in an 85% recovery, which equates to a potential recovery of 14.2 million dozen eggs per annum. With the increases in free range production and production figures increasing annually, this figure can be expected to rise.

However, whether washing eggs for up to two minutes is economically beneficial will depend on individual processors and their ability to slow down the process or return dirty eggs for rewashing. Therefore, it is difficult to accurately measure the overall potential cost saving to industry, although improved washing systems and chemicals will make this process easier.

The reduction in TVCs (up to 6 log10) and Enterobacteriaceae (up to 4 log10)

“Such improvements industry wide can lead to better egg recovery and improved safety of eggs and egg products. This in turn will make eggs safer for the consumer and reduce the potential for food-borne outbreaks.” achieved are similar to those of Musgrove et al. (2005) who achieved a 4 log10 reduction in TVC and 1 log10 reduction in Enterobacteriaceae post washing.

These results highlight how washing can reduce potentially harmful bacteria on the egg surface.

Correct maintenance of egg washing machinery, application of detergents/ sanitisers during washing, and cleaning and sanitation of grading equipment is essential for maintaining egg quality and safety.

However, the results from the in-plant trials suggest that these may be an issue for many egg washing and grading facilities.

Shortcomings result in poor quality washing of eggs and wastage of chemicals and water. They are the result of a large variation between (measured) input water temperatures and actual temperature at the egg surface; inability to accurately measure and adjust active chemical concentrations; and inadequate agitation of chemical

solution on the egg due to blocked spray nozzles and brushes that are ineffective or interfere with sprays.

It was clear from these site visits that cleaning of washing and grading equipment is often difficult and hence is not as thorough as it could be.

This could potentially result in microbial cross-contamination of eggs following washing. Furthermore, Enterobacteriaceae were found in swabs taken from grading machinery from multiple premises.

However, following instruction on how to better manage the cleaning regime, subsequent swabbing of Plant 3 did not recover any Enterobacteriaceae (data not shown).

This indicates that, with appropriate guidance surrounding plant hygiene, the risks associated with faecal contamination of eggs can be greatly reduced.

A better understanding by plant managers on correct chemical use, machine setup, temperature control and plant hygiene is likely to lead to improved egg recovery and safety.

Importantly, after discussions with the project team, one plant was able to reduce the presence of Enterobacteriaceae on postwash eggs and equipment on Day 2 after thorough cleaning of all equipment.

Such improvements industry wide can lead to better egg recovery and improved safety of eggs and egg products. This, in turn, will help make eggs safer for the consumer and reduce the potential for foodborne outbreaks.

Acknowledgements This research was partly conducted within the Poultry CRC, established and supported under the Australian Government’s Cooperative Research Centres Program. The authors thank the management of the plants involved for their time and use of the facilities.

References: Anonymous (2009). FSANZ ISBN: 978-0642-34568-4 Australian Egg Corporation Limited (2009) 2009 Annual Report. North Sydney NSW Musgrove M, Jones D, Northcutt J, Harrison M, Cox N (2005). Journal of Food Protection 68, 2367-2375.

1 SARDI Food Safety and Innovation. damian.may@sa.gov.au 2 PIRSA, Biosecurity SA. margaret.sexton@sa.gov.au

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NEWs Miracles performed daily with poultry at sydney’s largest Chinese restaurant The Eight The Eight, Sydney’s largest Chinese restaurant, specialises in modern fusion and traditional Chinese cuisine. The team of highly trained and experienced chefs has created an enticing menu with a staggering range of choice.

They have combined both innovative and traditional styles of cooking for a fabulous combination of ‘East meets West’ cuisine.

Here at Poultry Digest we spend a lot of time reporting on the growing of livestock that contributes to some of the best dishes at The Eight, so we felt it was time to sample the end product at a Yum Cha lunch featuring over 120 individual dishes.

The Eight, part of the multi-award winning Zilver Restaurant group is owned

by Henry Tang and symbolises ‘Prosperity and Good luck’.

This may stem from Henty’s positive outlook on life and his growing business.

“Always strive for excellence and treat people the way you wish to be treated,” is his organisation’s motto.

Poultry Digest, a group of food industry writers, chefs and their friends experienced the generosity and skills of Henry and his talented staff on May 14 where they not only had the chance to sample the Yum Cha lunch selection but also try their hand at preparing dim sims with one of The Eight’s top chefs.

Poultry Digest tried to concentrate on the poultry based dishes but the restaurant is famous for its seafood based options as well as wok seared Wagyu beef and roast suckling pig.

However, a star attraction for most of the party and particularly Poultry Digest was the Peking Duck.

The Chinese domesticated the Mallard duck over 3000 years ago and what is now known globally as Peking Duck when prepared by seasoned experts at The Eight demonstrates why this dish has been famous globally for so long.

Vegetarian fried egg noodles were a favourite as were the steamed chicken and bean curd rolls.

Steam chicken and mushroom on rice is a combination that brings out the best in both key ingredients and the Chinese ability to create great dishes from just about all of the livestock was demonstrated with The

36

POULTRY DIGEST, April/May 2013

Eight’s duck tongue dish.

Apart from the fabulous taste treats, The Eight offers remarkable value with Yum Cha dishes priced from just $2.90 a dish.

This is remarkable for a top level central Sydney restaurant where parking meters in the CBD cost more than twice that sum for less than an hour long period!

The a la carte dinner service (80 menu options) is available seven nights a week and the 750 seat venue also has options for business and promotional events, large parties as well as for small intimate dinners.

The Eight has won awards for its wine list as well as its food and presents an extensive array of beers, and Asian cocktails.

Situated at Level 3, Market City, 9-13 Hay Sreet in Sydney’s bustling China town, The Eight is close to Darling Harbour and the CBD as well as being accessible by light rail from the Inner West. For more, go to www.theeightrestaurant.com.au

Top: A selection of the dishes.

Centre: Talented chefs show how to make dumplings for Yum Cha lunch at The Eight. Above: 120 dishes are offered for lunch.

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37

NUTRITION FEATURE

Split feeding for laying hens

By HARUN RASHID, AusPac Ingredients

T

he conventional feeding methods for laying hens based on one diet with constant nutrient levels may not result in optimal utilisation of all nutrients (Chah, 1972, Leeson and Summers, 1997).

When birds are offered diets with the option of self-selection of nutrients, an increase in protein and energy intake in the morning has been observed, around the peak of egg production.

Hourly feed intake decreased prior to oviposition, but increased immediately during the time of oviposition. The peak consumption during the evening hours (17:00-19:00) was consistent regardless of the time of oviposition (J.H.Choi 2004).

Calcium intake is higher later in the day.

A study by Chah (1972), demonstrated that diet with option of self-selection of nutrients, decreased the total daily protein, energy and calcium intake respectively 11%, 8% and 26% lower, compared to hens fed a normal diet.

Commercial laying hens produce the majority of their eggs in the morning (Etches, 1986, Leeson and Summers, 1978, Larbier and Leclercq, 1992). The egg is formed step by step, starting from ovulation and ends by laying egg.

Hens will have higher protein and energy requirements during the morning when albumin is started to form and a higher calcium requirement during the evening and Figure 1

38

POULTRY DIGEST, April/May 2013

night when eggshell formation takes place.

Phosphorus is also required mostly during the morning as it is mainly needed to reabsorb calcium to medullary bone.

Nutreco R&D has been working since 2005 to develop a novel feeding program for laying hens according to nutrient requirements for egg formation.

Eight trials have been performed between 2005 and 2012. The main objective of these trials was to determine the differential energy, protein, calcium and phosphorus requirements in the morning and afternoon when separate diets are fed.

All trials contained a single feed control to corroborate the benefit of the Split feeding system against the current feeding system applied in the egg industry.

Split feeding programs were designed using two diets on the basis of the nutrients required for egg formation phase: Morning feed: 40% of daily amounts with higher energy, protein and phosphorus (lower Ca) Afternoon feed: 60% of daily amount with higher calcium (lower AME, CP and dP) Optimisation of energy intake In this trial, afternoon diet was provided with lower (3% and 5%) energy than the control diet. Single diet (control diet) had same energy level as morning diet.

Figure 2

Results showed no effect of reduced energy on performance, feed intake and egg quality. Daily feed intake was not different between treatments.

The results confirmed that the daily energy intake was significantly reduced due to lower energy intake during the afternoon (Figure 1 and 2).

This energy reduction in the afternoon diet, while maintaining the energy levels as recommended in the morning diet, did not affect performances or egg quality, demonstrating that with split feeding, the energy content in the afternoon diet can be reduced by about 5% compared to the standard single diet recommendation.

Optimisation of protein intake Another trial was performed to evaluate the effects of protein reduction in the afternoon diet on performance, feed intake and egg quality. Protein levels were 8% and 17% lower than the single feed (control diet, based on recommendations).

In addition, energy level was also reduced in the afternoon diet by 3% compared to the morning diet. Energy and protein levels in the morning diets were same as the control diet.

The results showed that crude protein intake was reduced when the protein content of the afternoon diet had been reduced. No difference in performance was

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5 % & 36 7 2 $ 4 observed with 8% protein reduction in afternoon diet and slightly better FCR was also observed. (Figure 3 and 4) When the crude protein was reduced by 17%, a reduction in number of the eggs production was observed with poorer egg mass. Moreover, feed conversion ratio was impaired significantly.

Optimisation of Ca and digestible P intake This trial was designed to study the effects of different calcium and phosphorus levels in the morning and afternoon diets.

Each treatment had 36 replicates of individually housed laying hens.

The peak demand of for calcium appears to be in the late afternoon (Hughes, 1972.) Compared to the control diet (single feed) calcium levels can be reduced 40% in the morning and can be increased 15% in the afternoon diet without impairing production and egg quality.

In the same trial, 40% reduction in morning calcium and 35% increase in afternoon calcium did not show any extra benefit in terms of eggshell quality compared to the previous one (40% Ca in the morning and +15% Ca in the afternoon diet).

These results are also supported by the findings of Sauveur and Mongin (1974), D. Robinson (1985).

The digestible phosphorus level in the morning diet can be reduced by 12%, compared to the control single diet, without affecting performance, eggshell quality and saleable egg production. Phosphorus reduction in the morning diet had a direct impact on nutrient intake, but not on the total daily nutrient intake. Phosphorus level of the afternoon feed can also be reduced by 15%, as no detrimental effect on performance and eggshell quality was observed. w

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NUTRITION FEATURE v

The wide reduction in phosphorus content in the morning diet can be possible due to the fact that calcium level in the morning diet is also reduced considerably in the Split feeding system.

As calcium is an antagonist and can bind phosphorus, the lower level of calcium in the gut is translated into more phosphorus available for the animal, and consequently dietary phosphorus requirement is lower in the morning feed.

Split feeding had no negative effect on shell thickness, weight or shell weight per unit of surface area (SWUSA); compared to a single control diet, rather there were some improvements.

The split feeding system significantly reduced the percentage of broken and shellless eggs compared to the control diet which

resulted more saleable eggs.

Split Feeding consistently reduces the amount of nutrient loss in excreta. Results of another trial demonstrated that Split feeding reduces nitrogen, phosphorus and calcium excretion. It could be due to lower daily nutrients intake and a better utilisation of those nutrients.

The lower nitrogen content in manure might indicate a reduction in ammonia emissions and improved air quality.

Conclusions and application The ‘Split Feeding System’ is an alternative feeding system for feeding layers. It is a tool to adjust the nutrient consumption according to the different requirements throughout the day.

Split feeding brings an option to supply nutrients at optimal level in order to meet the requirements of hens in the egg formation process. It also opens up the opportunity of more profitable and sustainable egg production, with a lower production cost.

By implementing split feeding the following benefits can be achieved: • More profitable egg production, less production cost.

• Improved eggshell quality and increased number of saleable eggs.

• Improved performance and sustainable production.

Split Feeding by Bert Van Gils, Manager Nutritional Technologies, Nutreco Animal Nutrition. Poultry Update | Feed Recommendations |February 2013

NEWs NsW farmers support move away from unlimited cap on free range NSW Farmers’ Egg Producer Committee has supported a move in NSW away from the current unlimited cap on outdoor free range stocking density and toward one bird per square metre.

The association‘s Egg Committee Chair Bede Burke said this stocking density will remove the ambiguity of the current regulations and ensure that the high animal welfare standards in the industry are

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maintained.

“One bird per square metre is a sustainable outdoor free range stocking density which reflects consumer expectations, commercial realities and the best scientific information available,” Mr Burke said.

“This standard will ensure happy healthy hens, safe eggs and will keep pricing within the reach of Australian families.”

“Consumers can be confident that Australian egg farmers know the importance of giving their hens the best quality animal care,” said Mr Burke.

“Great eggs come from healthy hens that are kept to the highest welfare standards and this stocking density is in line with this.”

The committee has also called for a move towards national consistency and is looking to the NSW Government and major retailers to accept this stocking density (one bird per square metre) as standard.

“It would be optimal if all eastern states were aligned and moved towards this maximum density. Coles is also on board with this standard and it is time for all major retailers to reflect industry and consumer calls,” Mr Burke said.

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POULTRY CRC NEWs PhD candidate presents paper on odour and air emissions Poultry CRC PhD student Mr Hung Viet Le recently travelled to San Francisco to present a paper entitled â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;Stability of volatile sulfur compounds (VSCs) in sampling bags â&#x20AC;&#x201C; Impact of temperatureâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;. â&#x20AC;&#x153;The paper contained a segment of the results of my PhD research which is sponsored by the Poultry CRC,â&#x20AC;? Hung said.

The paper was presented at the 5th International Water Associationâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Specialised Conference on Odour and Air Emissions, held in conjunction with the 10th Conference on Biofiltration for Air Pollution Control.

Hung observed a common theme throughout his time in the US; that odour complaints remain a major challenge for intensive agricultural facilities such as animal feeding operations (poultry, piggeries and feedlots), and activities like waste water treatment plants or industrial composting. â&#x20AC;&#x153;This was especially serious in regions with diminishing buffer zones between these types of facilities and residential areasâ&#x20AC;?, he added.

Interestingly, Hung noted, odour impacts from poultry broiler sheds tend to be higher when atmospheric conditions are categorised as stable or neutral.

In terms of his own research, Hung said that there have been some standardised

PdD candidate Hung Viet Le speaks with Dr Tim Walker protocols for volatile organic compound (VOC) odour sample collection, but that H2S (Hydrogen Sulphide) was still considered the surrogate compound for sulfur odour measurements.

In many cases, however, it has been acknowledged that H2S cannot be relied upon as the sole indicator of odour in odour assessment. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Many papers and delegates noted that, in terms of odour assessment, other volatile sulfur compounds (mercaptan, sulfides, poly-sulfides) needed to be seriously considered.â&#x20AC;?

Currently, the predominate methods for odour mitigation of VOC odorants in industry are through the use of biofiltra-

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tion, biotrickling filters, or activated carbon. However, these methods introduce additional costs to producers in terms of energy consumption and maintenance, with little to no return on investment. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Another problem with these methods can be the formation of unwanted by-products, such as the greenhouse gases NH3 and N2O, that require further treatment,â&#x20AC;? said Hung.

Hung continued, â&#x20AC;&#x153;As previously mentioned, use of odour treatment methods such as biofiltration, biotrickling filter or activated carbon can introduce more cost in terms of energy and maintenance.

Further study is needed into possible correlations between odour emissions and the food used in poultry sheds, as well as microbial activities in poultry manure.

Results can then be used to establish effective odour mitigation schemes at the very source of odour emissionsâ&#x20AC;?.

Through research such as Hungâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s the Australian poultry industry will have greater capacity to analyse volatile sulfur compounds in order to obtain accurate odour assessment results. This will in turn lead to more effective odour management strategies for poultry sheds. â&#x20AC;&#x153;By learning from the experience of overseas poultry shed operations we can better manage odour emissions during the planning stages of future expansion/development.â&#x20AC;?

Hung concluded by saying that â&#x20AC;&#x153;I am grateful to the Poultry CRC for allowing me this opportunity. The conference gave me a chance to meet and exchange ideas with many people in the field of odour sampling/assessment, modelling, management/treatment, which is the main topic of my PhD researchâ&#x20AC;?.

POULTRY CRC NEWs 2013 Jeff Fairbrother scholarship recipient Congratulations go to new Poultry CRC Honours student Mr Ben Vezina, who has been awarded the 2013 Jeff Fairbrother Scholarship. This award gives Ben an extra $2000 on top of his existing CRC scholarship. Well done Ben! Ben’s project, ‘Development of plasmid cloning vectors for use in Lactobacillus’ aims to develop new plasmid cloning vectors suitable for use in the live delivery vector strain aspect of Dr Rob Moore’s Project (Project 3.1.4).

Ben’s project will build upon previous PhD projects that identified a number of Lactobacillus strains that can reliably persist in birds, and that can be genetically manipulated, thus being excellent candidates for development as live strains for antigen delivery.

Dr Moore explains, “This Honours project will assist with the development of the underlying technology and will develop new plasmid shuttle-vectors, specifically tailored to our needs, which can replicate in both Escherichia coli and L. agilis.

Shuttle-vectors have been developed for use in other lactobacillus species, and we are currently utilizing these plasmids, however, they have a number of limitations in terms of structure, size, restriction enzyme sites, and stability.

The plasmid cloning vectors developed in this Honours project will be a significant advance on the current tools and this pro-

ject will significantly aid our efforts to develop a Campylobacter vaccine”.

Ben explained how this all came about.

“My bachelor degree at Deakin University required a unit of work experience, so I decided to step out of my suburban comfort zone and apply for CSIRO’s Australian Animal Health Laboratory” said Ben. “I landed with Dr Rob Moore and his chicken team and moved down to Geelong for two weeks. Within that time I had learned not so much about the glossy term “science”, but about science in the real world. They were a team of intelligent people who got together and tried to solve problems; I felt like they were a team of molecular detectives.

After I left I knew that I wanted to be a part of a team like that, and if I wanted to learn about good science in the field I was interested in, then I should apply for Honours with these people.

“So I picked a project Rob was supervising and got accepted. I guess when it comes down to it, I chose to do research because I am interested in learning, and I honestly couldn’t think of a more interesting career than having someone pay you to learn things.

“My project involves looking at trying to develop a vaccine for Campylobacter using a probiotic organism”.

Ben’s plans to complete his Honours and is fairly certain his future will involve

Poultry CRC Honours student Ben Vezina. molecular/microbiological research, and possibly a PhD. “So far I have learned a lot while enjoying my time being part of the team” he said. “It is nice feeling like my time is being spent in a meaningful way and I am contributing to something bigger than myself.

The work is challenging and I am enjoying the responsibility I have been given”.

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NEWs Don McLeod retires as General Manager Aviagen New Zealand Don McLeod has had an extensive career within the poultry industry, dedicating the majority of his working life to a handful of different companies over a 40 year period.

Don graduated from Lincoln College in Canterbury with a Diploma in Valuation and Farm Management and initially joined the Lands & Survey Department where he spent the next two years.

He then branched out and signed on with a small family company called Wood Brothers and involved himself in broiler production for a further two years before marrying and moving to the UK to pursue a post graduate course studying Agricultural Extension Methods at Reading University in the United Kingdom.

Don returned to New Zealand in 1972 and commenced work as a Poultry Advisor for Northern Roller Milling for the next six years before they were acquired by Tegel Foods Ltd in 1980. He left Tegel and became a partner for the next four years in a commercial egg farm operation in Sheffield, a small town outside Christchurch on the Canterbury Plains.

After deciding that commercial egg farming was not for him he joined Tegel and moved to New Plymouth as Hatchery Manager in 1984 before returning to Christchurch to manage the breeder operation for a short period.

A subsequent move back to the hatchery in New Plymouth resulted in Don accepting management responsibilities for the companyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s total breeding and hatchery

Don McLeod with Mr Kaleli in Turkey in 2003.

operation in the early 1990s.

He followed this with a short period in broiler management before being promoted to Livestock Manager for the Tegel New Plymouth Operation which he ran for the next four years.

In 1998 Don accepted the role of General Manager Ross Poultry New Zealand where he worked for four years running all aspects of the companyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s breeding business. He indicated that this was a particularly enjoyable period becoming part of the Ross team, getting to know the key technical team in the companyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s head office in Newbridge, Edinburgh and having them come to New Zealand to assist the local technical and production teams.

In May 2002 Don accepted the role of General Manager for Ross Anadolu in Ankara, moved the family to Turkey and spent the next five years running the joint

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venture operation and market leading breeding company during a time of rapid growth. The company had just completed the construction of a new hatchery and immediately purchased the first farming operation in early 2003.

The business continued to expand, producing over twice the volume of breeding stock by the time Don departed in 2007.

On his return to New Zealand the future was unclear until Aviagen acquired the Tegel-owned, Ross Poultry New Zealand in December 2007 and quickly followed that with the acquisition of Bartter Enterprises facilities in April 2008 to form Aviagen New Zealand and Aviagen Australia. Don accepted the role of General Manager, Aviagen ANZ and commenced running both operations. Three years later, Don stepped down to manage Aviagen New Zealand as part of the early preparation for his retirement. â&#x20AC;&#x153;I have enjoyed my time in the poultry industry and have been fortunate to experience a number of different roles and responsibilities both here in New Zealand and overseas. â&#x20AC;&#x153;My time earlier in Tegel laid the foundation and later in Ross Breeders was very rewarding as I had great affinity for the culture of the company and the capability of a tremendously talented technical team in Scotland. The family feel and support within Ross was very evident and helped a lot when we relocated to Turkey and I was able to run Ross Anadolu joint venture in a way that was needed to succeed in achieving and sustaining the rapidly expanding business. I have been fortunate to work for great companies and I leave an industry with good memories and many good friends,â&#x20AC;? said Don.

PRODUCT NEWs Pantek Cool Cell Cleanser new in Australia Cool cells, evaporative cooling pads, are an integral part of high density animal housing and tunnel ventilated evaporative cooling and ventilation systems.

Without cool cells, temperature, airflow and humidity would be difficult to manage and control.

From the very first day of use, cool cells capacity to cool and humidify starts to deteriorate due to the build-up of dust and dirt. Another detrimental factor can be the buildup of scale and dissolved solids on the surfaces of the cells, originating from the water source used to irrigate the cool cells.

A recent ASHRAE* Journal study found that “Several air handlers had their cells cleaned after a one-year period. The study found that the clean cells exhibited an energy savings of up to 20% or more than those cells that had been cleaned only one year before.”

Dirt and scale together with the biofilm that can form in evaporative cool cells can reduce surface area and airflow by up to 50%, significantly increasing power and water costs.

In addition, when the requirement for cool air is very high, the demand could exceed the design capacity, resulting in welfare and performance issues.

Recommendations are to clean the cells twice annually – once prior to the high demand season in the Spring and again in the Autumn.

This will result in energy costs savings and maintain the equipment in optimum condition.

Pantek Cool Cell Cleanser has been specifically designed to remove dirt, scale and biofilm from cool cells made from fiber, paper laminates or plastic and can be used in both recirculating and fogging systems.

It is available in a handy 3.8 litre pack which is sufficient for two or three units depending on size.

Pantek Cool Cell is available from the following stockists: DHA Rural, IFS, Biojohn, CCD Animal Health, All Farm and other quality distributers. *ASHRAE - American Society of Heating Refrigeration & Air-conditioning

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PRODUCT NEWs Minimising energy loss and costs with specialised brooder curtains Riverina Based Company Polytex has been working closely with PROTEN on the design of a simple yet efficient brooder curtain for the new Poultry complex at Griffith in NSW. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Polytex is a well-known tarpaulin and agricultural fabric manufacturer and has produced a brooder curtain that met and surpassed the tight specifications required

by PROTEN and the poultry equipment supplier who oversaw the measurement and installation of the curtains including the

winch system, which allows for easy lifting of the curtains to the roof when required,â&#x20AC;? said David Horsfall, General Manager of Polytex. â&#x20AC;&#x153;When the brooder curtains are in use they successfully seal off the production area and only the bottom section lifts when automatic ventilation fans turn on and drop back into place as the fans turn off, hence minimising the amount of warm air loss while allowing the optimum mix of fresh air to the production area, Mr

Horsfall said. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Polytex can quickly produce very consistent, accurate products due to the in house â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;state of the artâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; equipment used to design, cut and manufacture any industrial fabric or tarp required by industry users Australia wide.

stalosan F: setting new standards in biosecurity Stalosan F Now available in Australia. â&#x20AC;&#x153;It is a lethal addition to managing the bio-security plan for poultry producers who face the ongoing challenges of managing bird health. It is a dry disinfectant with documented efficacy against bacteria, viruses, fungi, parasites and fly larvae,â&#x20AC;? said Dr Plamen Nikolov International Marketing Manager from Vitfoss the manufacturer in Denmark. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Stalosan F is a proven cost effective performer in managing poultry for health and growth,â&#x20AC;? said Dr Nikolov.

Dr Nikolov emphasises that Stalosan F is specially formulated for application in presence of animals and is totally safe for humans and animals. â&#x20AC;&#x153;There are more than 24 years of scientific and farm testimonials to back up this claim.â&#x20AC;?

He goes on to say that if used for prevention of disease transmission, Stalosan

F plays an important role in animal bio-security and thus helps to reduce production losses, high costs of vet bills, antibiotics and other medications, used to cure and recover from diseases. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Stalosan F can reduce the cost of medication up to 60%,â&#x20AC;? he said â&#x20AC;&#x153;Stalosan F is a broad spectrum disinfectant, effective against a wide number of pathogenic microorganisms, including bacteria, viruses, fungi, some round worms and is capable of controlling fly population in the production units. It is proven and extremely effective against Coccidiosis, Campylobacter, Salmonella spp, E Coli, Pasteurella and much more. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Stalosan F was developed more than 40 years ago as an effective control of toxic gases in the farm as it binds ammonia, hydrogen sulphide and reduces moisture, thus improving environmental conditions and litter quality in animal housing.â&#x20AC;?

Dr Nikolov said, however, it was discovered that regular addition of Stalosan F stabilises the microbial flora and chemical balance of the litter and thereby creates a natural and healthy environment during the entire cycle of animal production. â&#x20AC;&#x153;It can be used for all animal species and sets a new standard in animal biosecurity throughout Europe, USA and Asia for years. Chemiplas Australia and New Zealand represent Vitfoss the Danish manufacturer of this exciting product and are promoting across both countries.â&#x20AC;? â&#x20AC;&#x153;Stalosan F can be used as a problem solver with very good results, but the real economical effect comes from the continuous use as prevention against disease transmission into and across the farm. Practical results shows three to five times return of invested money, based on reduced losses and better production results.â&#x20AC;?

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NEWs New service offered by Jansen Poultry Equipment â&#x20AC;&#x153;Jansen Poultry Equipment has been providing international poultry farmers in the broiler industry successful advice and guidance that improves the results of broiler production for years,â&#x20AC;? said Christine van Harn, from Jansen Poultry.

Now Jansen Poultry Equipment is also able to offer this service to farmers in the rearing, layer and breeder sector. â&#x20AC;&#x153;The advice that is given to increase the results of poultry businesses is focused on each individual situation. â&#x20AC;&#x153;An analysis of the house data and the management will often give quick insight where additional profit can be gained. â&#x20AC;&#x153;An increased number of hatching eggs, reduction of the amount of floor eggs or the rearing of perfectly trained laying hens are examples of improvements that increase the business results. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Sometimes small changes in the supply of food, water and light can already

ensure that chickens perform better. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Every situation requires its own research methods to uncover bottlenecks. If the health of the animals affect the results, than for example a professional autopsy can be performed on a number of chickens. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Every single situation requires its own research method to uncover the bottleneck.

On the basis of an analyses there can be decided which actions are need to be taken

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Do you want to know more about this service? Visit our website www.jpe.org or request information by emailing to info@jpe.org.

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NEWs AECL Conference trade stands, people, highlights & happenings

1 1. Sheriff John Reeves (centre) from Zoetis. 2.

Peter High from High Marketing. 3. Matthew Forster, Hy-Line and Tim Smith, Lohmanns.

4. Steve DAvies and Steve Cola. 5. Line dancing - first lesson. 6.

Liz Roan, Poultry CRC. 7. Leanne Davies with Joe and Chris Vella, Protective Fabrications.

2

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48 POULTRY DIGEST, April/May 2013

7

PRODUCT NEWs Novus wins excellence award for Mintrex Novus Internaitonal has announced that its product Mintrax has received the 2012 North American Animal Feed Ingredients Product Differentiation Excellence Award. â&#x20AC;&#x153;This is wonderful news for Novus, as it validates our confidence in this innovative product and recognizes the indisputable fact that the addition of Mintrex truly does make a difference to the health and nutrition of animals and as a valueadded product that effectively addresses the needs and demands of the customers we serve,â&#x20AC;? reported the company. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Mintrex chelated technology maximises the use of minerals by the animal through greater bioavailability and digestive tract stability,â&#x20AC;? a spokesperson said. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Since 2004 when Novus first introduced Mintrex, this product has been a trusted nutritional solution for multiple species, providing the essential trace minerals needed for the well-being of animals, immunity, production and reproduction.â&#x20AC;?

The award was presented by Frost & Sullivan, a 50-year old global research organization of 1,800 analysts, growth consultants and visionaries who monitor more than 300 industries and 250,000 companies.

To support its evaluation of best practices across multiple business performance categories, Frost & Sullivan employs a Decision Support Matrix (DSM) that is customised for each award.

Potential recipients of the Product Differentiation Excellence Award are evaluated on a scale of 1 to 10 using the following set of criteria: 1) Unique Features/Functionality; 2) Quality/Complexity; 3) Customization; 4) Matched to Target Market Needs; and 5) Brand Perception. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Mintrex received an overall rating of 9.4, outranking the next highest competitor by 2.4 points,â&#x20AC;? said the company.

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CD Supplies Pty Ltd, publisher of Poultry Digest has moved.

Please note our new address is: 22 George Street East Gosford NSW 2250.

For all advertising enquiries please conact Pete Bedwell on 0419 235 288 For production or subscription enquiries contact Rosemary Embery on 0409 944 472.

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POULTRY DIGEST, April/May 2013 49

NEWs v CONTINUED FROM PAGE 8 exhaustively search for the facts (which describe a product),” he said.

Poultry Digest has requested that Andy help growers and the industry in general to better understand the whole labelling issue by supplying us information for a future article – it’s a vexed subject!

AECL’ Managing Director James Kellaway then gave delegates an update: ‘A roadmap to new animal welfare standards and guidelines’.

Mr Kellaway outlined the history of previous standards rulings and definitions but identified some of the key standard setting considerations in the development, implementation and enforcement of standards and guideline and these were “consumer expectations, good science and last but certainly not least, commercial reality”.

In concluding Mr Kellaway reminded delegates that animal welfare is more important to affluent societies and communities like Australia than to those in developing countries and that in the development of standards and guidelines, standards were embedded in regulation and therefore must be adhered to whereas ‘guidelines’ should be followed but were not compulsory.

Professor Paul Hemsworth, Director Animal Welfare Science Centre, University of Melbourne, is arguable one of Australia’s best placed academics to speak on the topic of animal welfare.

His paper ‘The importance of rearing environment, space and nests for laying hens’ first described how to measure stress on hens by monitoring plasma corticosterone and ‘time budgets of behaviour’.

“In a reduced space environment less time was spent in mobility, inedible pecking, drinking and preening, but increased periods of resting and feed pecking,” he revealed.

50 POULTRY DIGEST, April/May 2013

Steven Bradbury (right) motivational speaker with some ‘volunteers’. Above (left) Rudi Stout from Premium Agri Products and Will Kemp, BEC Feed Solutions (right) on the trade stands.

In concluding Professor Hemsworth suggested that, “policy makers in developing animal welfare standards and recommendations should consider the implications of supplying commercial laying hens with both, increased space to allow more behavioural freedom, and nest boxes which it can be argued, provides experienced hens with positive emotional experiences based on their motivation to access them in preference tests”.

The final speaker, Dr Joy Mench, Professor of Animal Science, University of California -Davis, was again beamed in from cyber space to reveal her research on ‘Laying hen housing tradeoffs: comparing housing systems’.

The research was based on a variety of parameters including mortalities, feed costs and layer performance as well as OH & S issues for workers including dust and ammonia levels.

The three types of housing were conventional cage, enriched cage and aviary systems and though the findings were preliminary it would appear from the data accumulated so far by Professor Mench’s team from flock 1 there was a higher mortality rate in the aviary system when compared to that from conventional (the lowest) and enriched cages. Eggs per hen housed were 352 (conv) 363 (enriched) and 340 (aviary).

It will be interesting to see further results from these trials as the research progresses.

The AECL Forum has set a great standard for the delivery of interesting and practical information that is highly relevant to current and future issues for the layer industry. The social side of the proceedings ensures that delegates are happy as well as wiser as a result of the event.

As always gatherings like the Forum can’t be achieved at the high standard they achieve without the help of sponsors.

Hyline Australia, Zoetis, Kuhn Corp Press & Packaging, Jefo/Evonik, Big Dutchman, SCE Energy Solutions, BEC Feed Solutions, Premium Agri Products, Hartman, Salmet, Huhtamaki and Lohmann Layers Australia all contributed to a memorable 18th AECL Industry Forum.

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