Cargill has introduced a new complete diet for broiler and layer chicks in mini-pellet form.
The new diet, Neochicc, can improve feed conversion rates, chick weights, and overall profitability, Cargill said, citing on-farm trials.
Neochicc is designed for feeding in the first 120 hours of life. It includes precise amounts of protein, starch, fat and additives in highly digestible ingredients to promote maximum nutrient digestibility.
It also includes essential oils and organic acids which work together to support gut health and nutrient absorption, and Cargill’s natural antioxidant Proviox to support performance, and an organic selenium yeast to support bird health.
“This new diet is designed to enable young chicks to achieve their genetic potential with improved feed efficiency,” said Cargill’s poultry manager David McBride. “The protein source is specifically important in promoting performance and uniformity in flocks.”
Results from Neochicc UK trials carried out from winter 2021 to spring 2022 compared the performance of 25,000 broiler bird flocks on Neochicc and on a standard broiler crumb. Results showed an improvement in feed conversion rates, with an average reduction across all trials of three points. Weights from day seven were consistently higher and overall profitability improved by 5p a bird.
“A young chick only eats about 100g of feed from birth to about day four or five, which is about 3% of the total feed intake. But this relatively small volume of feed, can promote cost-effective improvements in lifecycle performance,” said McBride. “By feeding a well-designed pre-starter feed we can expect birds to achieve higher carcase weights, with greater uniformity, improved welfare and with fewer setbacks, such as leg issues.”