Effect of fermented feed material on growth performance and health parameters of Yorkshire/Norwegian Landrace/Duroc (J/NL/D) F2 crossbred fattening piglets
Source: PubMed Central Open Access, NCBI / U.S. National Library of Medicine
Nutritional approaches to enhancing pig health and production efficiency remain an important area of research. In this study, the effect of supplementing the diet of Yorkshire/Norwegian Landrace/Duroc (J/NL/D) F2 crossbred fattening piglets withspp.-fermented feed material (Lb.-FM) was investigated. Growth performance and health parameters were evaluated, including body weight (BW), feed conversion ratio (FCR), plasma concentrations of immunoglobulins (IgA, IgM, and IgG), the activities of aspartate aminotransferase (AST), and alanine aminotransferase (ALT). Additionally, fecal parameters were analyzed, including pH, dry matter (DM) content, texture hardness, lactic acid bacteria (LAB), total enterobacteria counts (TEC), yeast and mold (Y and M) counts, and fecal microbial metataxonomic profiles. Furthermore, fecal volatile organic compound (VOC) profiles were analyzed as sensitive chemical markers of nutrient metabolism. The piglets were reared on a group farm operating under a multi-site production system. Piglets were obtained from the “Vyturys” Agricultural Company farm (Lithuania) and, after weaning at 21 days of age, weighing an average of 6.3 kg, were transported to the “Kontvainiai” Agricultural Company farm (Lithuania) for further fattening. The experiment began with 21-day-old piglets (after weaning) and lasted 40 days (until the 61st day of the piglets’ lives). The animals were divided into two groups: 175 piglets in the control (C) group, which received a complete
Abstract
Nutritional approaches to enhancing pig health and production efficiency remain an important area of research. In this study, the effect of supplementing the diet of Yorkshire/Norwegian Landrace/Duroc (J/NL/D) F2 crossbred fattening piglets withspp.-fermented feed material (Lb.-FM) was investigated. Growth performance and health parameters were evaluated, including body weight (BW), feed conversion ratio (FCR), plasma concentrations of immunoglobulins (IgA, IgM, and IgG), the activities of aspartate aminotransferase (AST), and alanine aminotransferase (ALT). Additionally, fecal parameters were analyzed, including pH, dry matter (DM) content, texture hardness, lactic acid bacteria (LAB), total enterobacteria counts (TEC), yeast and mold (Y and M) counts, and fecal microbial metataxonomic profiles. Furthermore, fecal volatile organic compound (VOC) profiles were analyzed as sensitive chemical markers of nutrient metabolism. The piglets were reared on a group farm operating under a multi-site production system. Piglets were obtained from the “Vyturys” Agricultural Company farm (Lithuania) and, after weaning at 21 days of age, weighing an average of 6.3 kg, were transported to the “Kontvainiai” Agricultural Company farm (Lithuania) for further fattening. The experiment began with 21-day-old piglets (after weaning) and lasted 40 days (until the 61st day of the piglets’ lives). The animals were divided into two groups: 175 piglets in the control (C) group, which received a complete commercial feed, and 177 piglets in the Lb.-FM group, which received Lb.-FM with,, and. The results showed that the inclusion of Lb.-FM in piglet diets improved FCR, suggesting enhanced nutrient utilization. Additionally, Lb.-FM did not significantly affect growth performance, blood parameters, fecal physicochemical properties, microbial counts, or faecal VOC profiles, confirming its safety and suitability. It also positively influenced gut microbiota composition without disrupting the core microbial balance. Overall, age-related changes had a greater impact than diet on most analyzed parameters, indicating that the benefits of fermented feed are more functional than quantitative. In conclusion, the findings of this study show that fermented feed containing.,,, andsupports gut microbial diversification and homeostasis, potentially leading to more sustainable pig farming due to improved FCR.