Introductory Chapter: Requirements for Feed Additives in the Twenty-First Century

1. Introduction

1.1 Definition and classification of feed additives

Feed additives have been used by farmers since ancient times, when, for example, salt was added to animal feed to improve its taste. In the beginning, farmers added natural products such as plants, minerals, and waste products to feed [1].

Later, as technology and knowledge of physiology and biochemistry advanced, farmers and nutritionists used synthetic vitamins, minerals, and growth promoters as feed additives in animal husbandry.

Feed additives are defined in the literature in several ways. Due to limited space, let me present here only two examples:

According to the European Commission [2]: “Feed additives are products used in animal nutrition for purposes of improving the quality of feed and the quality of food from animal origin, or to improve the animals’ performance and health, e.g. providing enhanced digestibility of the feed materials. Feed additives may not be put on the market unless authorization has been given following a scientific evaluation demonstrating that the additive has no harmful effects, on human and animal health and on the environment.”

As defined by EFSA [3]: “Feed additives are products used in animal nutrition to achieve an effect on the feed itself, on the animals, on food products obtained from the animals consuming the feed additive, or on the environment. For instance, feed additives are used to enhance flavor of feed, to meet the need for certain nutrients, or to increase the performance of animals in good health. They are used in feed for food-producing animals and in pet food.”

I think that these two definitions summarize well what the term feed additive means. Feed additives are products that improve the digestibility and palatability of feed as well as the performance and health status of animals and the quality of animal products. The most important function of some feed additives is to reduce the environmental impact of animal agriculture, in such a way that the production of livestock does not decrease.

In addition to these, it is an important requirement that these additives cannot be harmful to human consumers, animal health, and the environment.

The use of feed additives also has an important economic condition, i.e., their use must not increase the price of feed to such an extent that the profitability of production is endangered.

Feed additives can be grouped in several ways. According to one of the most accepted classifications, there are the following feed additives [3, 4].

• Sensory additives (feed additives affecting the sensory properties of animal products e.g., flavors and colorants);

• Technological additives (preservatives, antioxidants, substances decreasing mycotoxin contamination of feeds, emulsifiers, acidity regulators, silage additives, etc.);

• Zootechnical additives (immunomodulators, digestive stimulants, growth promoters of non-microbial origin, substances increasing performance or quality of animal products, etc.);

• Nutritional additives (vitamins, amino acids, trace elements, minerals, plant enzymes, etc.).

• Coccidiostats and histomonostats.

2. Global market of feed additives

Statistical data and various forecasts show that the feed additive market is continuously growing and this trend will also be continued in the future. Forecasts show that significant growth is expected in the feed additives market in the coming years, mainly due to the increase in demand for pigs, sheep, poultry, and aquaculture [5].

According to FMI [6], the global animal feed additive market will grow from USD 55,842.2 million in 2024 to USD 109,184.5 million by 2034.

According to forecasts, the spread of plant-derived substances in particular will be significant in the coming year due to the ban on the use of certain antibiotics, harmful residual effects, and better cost-effectiveness [7].

This fact imposes additional tasks on feeding research and development.

3. Laboratory and animal experiments with feed additives according to today’s expectations

In the past, farmers and nutritionists decided only on the basis of practical experience which additive to add to the feed and in which concentration. However, nowadays this is no longer an acceptable method.

Today, one of the biggest issues in animal nutrition is how to feed farm animals so that the animal product (e.g., meat, milk, eggs, etc.) is safe for the consumer and the environment is not further burdened during animal production. One of the most important questions is in this regard, how to use feed additives in animal nutrition.

In order to develop a safe and environmentally friendly additive, very comprehensive laboratory analysis and animal experiments must be carried out.

It is also very important to know what is/are the active substance/substances in the feed additive. To this end, a reliable and accurate analytical method for measuring the active substance must be available.

In order to develop a safe feed additive, the metabolism (pathway) of the active substance must also be known. Furthermore, it must be ensured that no harmful intermediates are produced in the animal’s body during the metabolism of the active substance.

In all cases, the applicability and effectiveness of the given feed additives must be verified by animal studies in accordance with international standards. The repeatability of the treatment effect must also be confirmed by the results of animal experiments and their statistical analysis.

It is recommended to verify the results of animal studies obtained at the research site/development site and also in the practice (on the farm).

In addition to laboratory and animal experiments, it is very important that the feed additive can be homogeneously mixed into the compound feed. If the homogeneity value is adequate, we can be more or less certain that the daily feed additive intake of the animals is close to the planned value. It should be noted, that the homogeneity and absorption of the active substance can be favorably improved by the various nanotechnological processes available today.

The homogenization of the active substance in the compound feeds can be ensured by various technological procedures, including the application of nanotechnology.

A very important additional requirement is that, during mixing feed additive into compound feed, the active substance of the additive is not damaged during various physical treatments.

Summarizing the above, different feed additives can only be used in animal nutrition if:

• a suitable laboratory method is available to measure the concentration of the active substance in the feed additive and in the compound feed;

• the pathway of the active substance in the animal metabolism is known;

• the feed additive can be accurately and homogeneously mixed into the compound feed;

• the positive effect of the additives has been proven by animal experiments;

• the use of the feed additive is also justified from an economic point of view;

• the feed additive is demonstrably safe for both animals and the consumers.

4. The aim of the book

This book focuses on some newer aspects of the various feed additives (vitamins, enzymes, acidifiers, and various plant feed additives) in poultry, pig, and ruminant nutrition.

A further aim is to demonstrate the new trends in vitamin nutrition and the relationship among the metabolic disease and production level and application of plant feed additives in broiler nutrition.

Furthermore, the book also shows the use of molecular spectroscopy, when enzyme is added to the ruminant diets and how to mitigate ruminant methane emission with phytochemicals (plant feed additives).

This book is recommended for scientists, graduate students, and those working in the animal agriculture.

We do hope that readers will find useful information in this book for their daily work or studies.

If this is so, then our efforts were not in vain.

Acknowledgments

I would like to thank all the chapter authors for their excellent contributions. I’m also grateful to the staff at IntechOpen, particularly Publishing Process Manager Karmen Daleta and Commissioning Editor Lucija Tomicic-Dromgool.