A feed composition and feed additive and its use in the breeding of laying hens

Abstract

The present application relates to the technical field of feed additive, in particular to a kind of feed composition and feed additive and its application in egg poultry breeding.The feed composition provided by the present application is balanced and reasonable in the proportion of short-chain fatty acid, medium-chain fatty acid and long-chain fatty acid, saturated fatty acid and unsaturated fatty acid, omega-3 fatty acid and omega-6 fatty acid, and realizes the balance of short, medium and long-chain fatty acid, the balance of saturated and unsaturated fatty acid and the balance of omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acid according to the characteristics of egg poultry.Compared with traditional soybean oil or palm oil as feed additive, it is more beneficial to improve the nutrient absorption efficiency, improve the health of egg poultry, effectively improve the production performance of egg poultry, improve the feed utilization rate, reduce the feed cost, ensure the production performance of egg poultry, and has good application prospect.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention relates to the field of feed additive technology, and in particular to a feed composition and feed additive and their application in egg-laying poultry farming. Background Technology

[0002] Improving livestock and poultry production performance is crucial for ensuring the economic benefits of farmed animals. Taking laying hens as an example, their production performance is influenced by various factors, including genetics, nutrition, immune function, stress response, environment, and feeding and management methods, among which nutrition is of paramount importance. Nutritional intervention during the rearing of laying hens can effectively enhance their immunity and stress resistance, making it a highly effective way to improve their production performance.

[0003] Soybean oil is one of the most commonly used feed additives in animal husbandry. Adding a certain amount of soybean oil to the basal diet can not only increase the energy density of the feed, improve the growth rate and feed conversion ratio of animals, but also provide the essential fatty acids needed by farmed animals and promote their growth and development. However, despite its widespread use in animal husbandry, soybean oil may not be the most ideal choice. The high fat content and proportion of unsaturated fatty acids in soybean oil may burden the digestive system of animals, leading to indigestion and intestinal problems. Therefore, there is a need to find an affordable alternative to soybean oil that can meet the daily basal energy and nutritional needs of farmed animals, significantly improve animal production performance, and be easily digested and absorbed by the body without causing diarrhea or indigestion.

[0004] Patent application CN106962678A discloses a poultry fat-replenishing nutrient solution, made from the following ingredients by weight percentage: water 64.7%, glycerol 1.3%, sucrose fatty acid ester 0.15%, distilled glyceryl monostearate 2.0%, coconut oil 1.9%, palm oil 3.3%, soybean oil 7.857%, modified phospholipid oil 6.2%, cottonseed oil 7.75%, flaxseed oil 0.093%, Tween-80 0.11%, and decolorized phospholipid oil 4.65%. This poultry fat-replenishing nutrient solution lacks short-chain fatty acids and is intended for broilers, aiming to improve survival rate and reduce feed conversion ratio. It does not affect the reproductive capacity of laying hens. However, it is understandable that the fatty acid balance required for weight gain and egg production is different.

[0005] Current feed fatty acid formulations have limited effectiveness in improving egg production rate and feed utilization (reducing feed conversion ratio), among other production performance-related factors. Therefore, there is an urgent need to develop fatty acid feed additives that can effectively improve egg production rate and feed utilization. Summary of the Invention

[0006] This invention provides a feed composition and feed additive, and their application in egg-laying poultry farming.

[0007] Existing fat feed additives often rely on the additive's efficacy and purpose, as well as the functional preferences of different fatty acids (e.g., long-chain fatty acids are more suitable for rapid weight gain, short-chain fatty acids are mainly for anti-inflammation, and unsaturated fatty acids are mostly used to prepare special enriched agricultural products), adding fatty acids while often neglecting the synergistic and complementary effects of different fatty acids and the balance of fatty acids. This invention targets laying hens, especially egg-laying poultry, by compounding short-, medium-, and long-chain fatty acids, saturated and unsaturated fatty acids, as well as ω-3 and ω-6 fatty acids under specific ratios. This achieves a precise balance of various fatty acids and allows them to better exert their synergistic effects, resulting in a significant improvement in the performance enhancement of laying hens by fat feed additives.

[0008] Specifically, the present invention provides the following technical solutions:

[0009] In a first aspect, the present invention provides a feed composition comprising short-chain fatty acids and / or their derivatives, medium-chain fatty acids and / or their derivatives, and long-chain fatty acids and / or their derivatives.

[0010] The derivative is selected from one or more salts, esters, and amides;

[0011] In the composition, the mass ratio of short-chain fatty acids, medium-chain fatty acids and long-chain fatty acids, based on the mass of fatty acids, is (3-8):(2-6):(86-95).

[0012] In this invention, "fatty acid by mass" refers to the sum of the mass of the fatty acids contained in the composition and the mass of the fatty acids contained in the fatty acid derivatives contained in the composition. For example, if a short-chain fatty acid ester is added, the amount of short-chain fatty acid added is calculated based on the amount of short-chain fatty acid ester added and its short-chain fatty acid content. If a mixture of short-chain fatty acids and short-chain fatty acid esters is added, the amount of short-chain fatty acid added, converted from the short-chain fatty acid ester, is calculated based on the amount of short-chain fatty acid ester added and its short-chain fatty acid content. Then, the sum of the amount of short-chain fatty acid added, converted from the short-chain fatty acid ester, and the amount of short-chain fatty acid added is calculated.

[0013] In this invention, the esters include glycerides (such as monoglycerides, diglycerides, and triglycerides), ethyl esters, etc.

[0014] Preferably, in the composition, the mass ratio of saturated fatty acids to unsaturated fatty acids is (25-40):(60-75), based on the mass of fatty acids.

[0015] Preferably, in the composition, the mass ratio of ω-3 fatty acids to ω-6 fatty acids is (4-10):(30-40) based on the mass of fatty acids.

[0016] Based on controlling the ratio of short, medium, and long-chain fatty acids, controlling the ratio of unsaturated fatty acids and saturated fatty acids, as well as the ratio of ω-3 fatty acids and ω-6 fatty acids in the composition within the above-mentioned range is more conducive to improving the composition's effect on improving the production performance of animals (especially laying hens), and has obvious advantages compared with traditional soybean oil or palm oil additions.

[0017] In this invention, the short-chain fatty acid is a fatty acid with 6 or fewer carbon atoms, such as valeric acid, butyric acid, and propionic acid.

[0018] In some embodiments of the invention, the short-chain fatty acids are provided by specific short-chain fatty acid glycerides.

[0019] The medium-chain fatty acids are fatty acids with 6-12 carbon atoms, such as lauric acid and decanoic acid, which can be provided by specific fatty acid glycerides or by coconut oil, soybean oil, etc.

[0020] The long-chain fatty acids are fatty acids with more than 12 carbon atoms, including palmitic acid, stearic acid, and myristic acid, which can be provided by vegetable or animal oils such as palm oil, soybean oil, peanut oil, cottonseed oil, and coconut oil.

[0021] The unsaturated fatty acids are fatty acids containing double bonds, and the saturated fatty acids are fatty acids that do not contain double bonds.

[0022] In this invention, saturated fatty acids include short-chain saturated fatty acids, medium-chain saturated fatty acids, and long-chain saturated fatty acids. Therefore, the content of saturated fatty acids is the sum of the contents of short-chain saturated fatty acids, medium-chain saturated fatty acids, and long-chain saturated fatty acids. Similarly, unsaturated fatty acids include short-chain unsaturated fatty acids, medium-chain unsaturated fatty acids, and long-chain unsaturated fatty acids. Therefore, the content of unsaturated fatty acids is the sum of the contents of short-chain unsaturated fatty acids, medium-chain unsaturated fatty acids, and long-chain unsaturated fatty acids.

[0023] The ω-3 fatty acids include alpha-linolenic acid, docosahexaenoic acid, eicosapentaenoic acid, and DPA(n-3), which can be provided by flaxseed oil, fish oil, algal oil, etc.

[0024] The ω-6 fatty acids include gamma-linolenic acid, linoleic acid (LA), and arachidonic acid, which can be provided by cottonseed oil, fish oil, algal oil, and arachidonic acid oils.

[0025] Preferably, based on the mass of fatty acids, the composition comprises: 4-8 parts of short-chain fatty acids, 2-5 parts of medium-chain fatty acids, and 88-95 parts of long-chain fatty acids; wherein the mass ratio of saturated fatty acids to unsaturated fatty acids is (25-35):(60-70); and the mass ratio of ω-3 fatty acids to ω-6 fatty acids is (5-8):(35-40).

[0026] Preferably, based on 100 parts of total fatty acids contained in the composition, it includes 4-8 parts of short-chain fatty acids, 3-4 parts of medium-chain fatty acids, and 88-91 parts of long-chain fatty acids; wherein the mass ratio of saturated fatty acids to unsaturated fatty acids is (28-35):(65-70); and the mass ratio of ω-3 fatty acids to ω-6 fatty acids is (5-7):(35-40).

[0027] The fatty acids in the above composition may be provided in the form of fatty acid derivatives or oil raw materials, including vegetable oils (soybean oil, palm oil, coconut oil), animal oils (fish oil), and functional oils (tributyric acid esters, monoglycerides of laurate).

[0028] If the fatty acids are provided by fatty acid derivatives or oil raw materials, the amount of fatty acid derivatives or oil raw materials in the composition can be calculated based on the fatty acid content corresponding to the derivatives or oil raw materials and the ratio of the amounts of the fatty acids.

[0029] Preferably, in the composition, the total mass of short-chain fatty acids, short-chain fatty acid derivatives, medium-chain fatty acids, medium-chain fatty acid derivatives, long-chain fatty acids, and long-chain fatty acid derivatives accounts for at least 10% of the mass of the composition.

[0030] If the fatty acids are provided by oil raw materials (such as animal fats, vegetable oils, functional oils, etc.), it is preferable to control the total amount of fatty acids and their derivatives in the composition within the above-mentioned range.

[0031] In some embodiments of the present invention, the components providing fatty acids in the composition include soybean oil, palm oil, fish oil, coconut oil, glyceryl tartrate, and glyceryl monolaurate.

[0032] In some embodiments of the present invention, the composition comprises the following components: 15-35 parts soybean oil, 5-20 parts palm oil, 2-15 parts glyceryl tartrate, 1-5 parts coconut oil, 1-5 parts fish oil, and 0.1-1 parts glyceryl monolaurate. In the composition, the mass ratio of short-chain fatty acids, medium-chain fatty acids, and long-chain fatty acids is (3-8):(2-6):(86-95); wherein the mass ratio of saturated fatty acids to unsaturated fatty acids is (25-40):(60-75), and the mass ratio of ω-3 fatty acids to ω-6 fatty acids is (4-10):(30-40).

[0033] Secondly, the present invention provides the use of the above-described feed composition in the preparation of feed or feed additives.

[0034] Thirdly, the present invention provides a feed additive comprising the feed composition described above.

[0035] In some embodiments of the present invention, the feed additive is an emulsion, powder, or oil. A fatty acid-balanced emulsion is preferred. The feed additive of the present invention not only provides laying hens with essential fatty acids that they cannot synthesize themselves, but the certain proportion of unsaturated fatty acids in the oil phase can also promote protein synthesis, thus better promoting animal production and playing a very important role in maintaining animal health and production performance.

[0036] Among them, the oil is a mixture of oils formulated from different oil raw materials according to the balanced composition of fatty acids.

[0037] Powder is a solid dosage form obtained by adding emulsifiers, fillers, antioxidants and other raw materials to the obtained mixed oils and then spray drying.

[0038] Fatty acid balanced emulsions are emulsions prepared based on fatty acid balance. Essentially, they are mixtures of water and various oil phases stabilized by emulsifiers. Balanced emulsions consist of tiny oil droplets dispersed in an aqueous phase, with a particle size between 2 and 10 μm. These small oil particles are more easily absorbed by the intestines of farmed animals, enhancing energy supply. Adding balanced emulsions to the basal diet of laying hens improves the bioavailability of oils and has a significant effect on improving the intestinal health and production performance of laying hens. Preferably, the fatty acid balanced emulsion, in addition to the feed composition, also contains water and an emulsifier.

[0039] In some embodiments of the present invention, the fatty acid balanced milk comprises 20-85 parts of a feed composition, 40-60 parts of water, and 1-5 parts of an emulsifier.

[0040] Preferably, the emulsifier comprises 0.5-1% sodium citrate, 0.5-2% mono- and diglycerides, and the balance modified starch.

[0041] The preparation method of the above-mentioned fatty acid balanced emulsion includes: first preparing an oil phase and an aqueous phase separately, then mixing the oil phase and the aqueous phase, and performing shear emulsification.

[0042] In some embodiments of the present invention, a method for preparing the fatty acid balanced milk described above is provided, comprising the following steps:

[0043] (1) Mix soybean oil, palm oil, glyceryl tartrate, fish oil and coconut oil evenly and use a mixer to obtain a mixed oil phase;

[0044] (2) Mix hot water (60-65℃) with glyceryl monolaurate evenly, then add emulsifier, mix, and shear using a shearing machine to obtain the aqueous phase;

[0045] (3) Add the mixed oil phase to the aqueous phase and shear to obtain an emulsion.

[0046] Fourthly, the present invention provides a feed comprising the above-described feed composition or the above-described feed additives.

[0047] Preferably, the feed additive in the feed has a mass percentage of 0.5-5%.

[0048] Fifthly, the present invention provides any one of the following applications of the above-described feed composition, the feed additive, or the feed:

[0049] (1) Application in animal husbandry;

[0050] (2) Application in improving animal production performance and / or reducing animal mortality.

[0051] Preferably, the animal is an egg-laying poultry.

[0052] More preferably, the animal is a laying hen.

[0053] The improvement of animal production performance is selected from one or more of the following: increasing egg production rate, reducing feed conversion ratio, improving egg quality, and reducing feed intake.

[0054] The feed composition, feed additive, or feed described above can be used as functional feed for laying hens to improve their production performance, increase egg production rate, reduce feed conversion ratio, improve egg quality, improve gut health, and increase survival rate, thereby reducing the cost of laying hen farming and further tapping the production potential of laying hens.

[0055] In a sixth aspect, the present invention provides a method for feeding animals, the method comprising: feeding animals with the above-described feed composition or the feed additive or the feed;

[0056] Preferably, the animal is an egg-laying poultry.

[0057] More preferably, the animal is a laying hen.

[0058] Preferably, the feeding is daily.

[0059] The beneficial effects of this invention include at least the following: the feed composition provided by this invention has a balanced and reasonable ratio of short-chain fatty acids, medium-chain fatty acids, and long-chain fatty acids, as well as saturated and unsaturated fatty acids, and ω-3 and ω-6 fatty acids. It achieves a balance of short, medium, and long-chain fatty acids, saturated and unsaturated fatty acids, and ω-3 and ω-6 fatty acids, specifically tailored to the characteristics of laying hens. Compared with traditional soybean oil / palm oil as feed additives, it is more conducive to improving nutrient absorption efficiency, improving the health of laying hens, and effectively enhancing the production performance of laying hens (reducing the feed conversion ratio, increasing egg production rate, etc.). Under the same productivity conditions, it can reduce the amount of energy and protein used, greatly improving feed utilization. While reducing feed costs, it ensures the production performance of laying hens and has good application prospects. Detailed Implementation

[0060] To make the objectives, technical solutions, and advantages of this invention clearer, the technical solutions of this invention will be clearly and completely described below. Obviously, the described embodiments are only some embodiments of this invention, not all embodiments. Based on the embodiments of this invention, all other embodiments obtained by those skilled in the art without creative effort are within the scope of protection of this invention.

[0061] In the following examples, the butyric acid content in glyceryl tributyrate is ≥95%, and the lauric acid content in monoglyceride of laurate is ≥90%.

[0062] In the following embodiments, unless otherwise specified, all percentages are by mass.

[0063] Example 1

[0064] This embodiment provides a feed composition comprising short-chain fatty acids, medium-chain fatty acids, and long-chain fatty acids, wherein the proportion of short-chain fatty acids is 4.02%, the proportion of medium-chain fatty acids is 3.04%, the proportion of long-chain fatty acids is 90.78%, the proportion of saturated fatty acids is 29.82%, the proportion of unsaturated fatty acids is 68.02%, the proportion of ω-3 fatty acids is 6.38%, and the proportion of ω-6 fatty acids is 38.35%.

[0065] The fatty acids in the feed composition are provided by soybean oil, palm oil, fish oil, coconut oil, glyceryl tartrate, and glyceryl monolaurate. The specific fatty acid composition of the feed composition is shown in Table 1 (the fatty acid content in Table 1 was obtained by gas chromatography analysis. Due to the presence of trace impurities in gas chromatography analysis, and the fact that some fatty acids with very low content (area ratio less than 0.02), such as C22:0, C14:1, C20:2, and C20:3, are not listed in the table, the total content of each fatty acid is not 100%. However, the resulting error is within the conventionally acceptable range and does not affect the overall scheme).

[0066] Table 1

[0067]

[0068]

[0069] Example 2

[0070] This embodiment provides a feed composition comprising short-chain fatty acids, medium-chain fatty acids, and long-chain fatty acids, wherein the proportion of short-chain fatty acids is 7.92%, the proportion of medium-chain fatty acids is 3.86%, and the proportion of long-chain fatty acids is 88.03%; the proportion of saturated fatty acids is 34.16%, the proportion of unsaturated fatty acids is 64.76%; the proportion of ω-3 fatty acids is 5.54%, and the proportion of ω-6 fatty acids is 35.70%.

[0071] The fatty acids in the feed composition are provided by soybean oil, palm oil, fish oil, coconut oil, glyceryl tartrate, and glyceryl monolaurate. The specific fatty acid composition of the feed composition is shown in Table 2 (the fatty acid content in Table 2 was obtained by gas chromatography analysis. Due to the presence of trace impurities in gas chromatography analysis, and the fact that some fatty acids with very low content (area ratio less than 0.02), such as C22:0, C14:1, C20:2, and C20:3, are not listed in the table, the total content of each fatty acid is not 100%. However, the resulting error is within the conventionally acceptable range and does not affect the overall scheme).

[0072] Table 2

[0073]

[0074]

[0075] Example 3

[0076] This embodiment provides a fatty acid balanced milk, which comprises the feed composition of Example 1, water and emulsifier, wherein the feed composition accounts for 50%, the emulsifier accounts for 2.5%, and water is the balance; the emulsifier has the following composition: sodium citrate 0.5%, mono- and diglycerides 1%, modified starch is the balance.

[0077] The preparation method of the above-mentioned fatty acid balanced milk includes the following steps:

[0078] (1) Mix soybean oil, palm oil, glyceryl tartrate, fish oil and coconut oil evenly, and shear using a shearing machine (6000 rpm / min, 10 min) to obtain a mixed oil phase, and let it stand for later use;

[0079] (2) Mix hot water (60-65℃) with monoglyceride of laurate evenly, then slowly add emulsifier to the hot water and stir to mix. Use a shearing machine to shear (6000rpm / min, 10min) to obtain the aqueous phase, and let it stand for later use.

[0080] (3) Add the mixed oil phase to the water phase for shearing at a speed of 8000 rpm / min for 10 min to obtain the final product.

[0081] Example 4

[0082] This embodiment provides a fatty acid balanced milk, which contains the feed composition of Example 2, water and emulsifier, wherein the feed composition accounts for 50%, the emulsifier accounts for 2.5%, and water is the balance; the emulsifier has the following composition: sodium citrate 1%, mono- and diglycerides 2%, modified starch as the balance.

[0083] The preparation method of the above-mentioned balanced milk is the same as that in Example 3.

[0084] Comparative Example 1

[0085] This comparative example provides soybean oil, the fatty acid composition of which is shown in Table 3.

[0086] Table 3

[0087] fatty acid Quality percentage (%) C14:0 0.05 C16:0 11.12 C16:1 0.04 C18:0 4.82 C18:1T 1.09 C18:1 31.36 C18:2 50.69 γ-C18:3 0.49

[0088] Comparative Example 2

[0089] This comparative example provides a fatty acid balanced milk, which comprises a feed composition, water, and an emulsifier, wherein the feed composition accounts for 50%, the emulsifier accounts for 2.5%, and water is the balance; the emulsifier has the following composition: sodium citrate 0.5%, mono- and diglycerides 1%, and modified starch as the balance.

[0090] The feed composition in this comparative example contains short-chain fatty acids, medium-chain fatty acids, and long-chain fatty acids, wherein short-chain fatty acids account for 9.90%, medium-chain fatty acids account for 9.54%, and long-chain fatty acids account for 80.369%; saturated fatty acids account for 39.15%, unsaturated fatty acids account for 59.77%; ω-3 fatty acids account for 5.44%, and ω-6 fatty acids account for 34.34%.

[0091] The fatty acids in the feed composition are provided by tributyric acid esters, coconut oil, soybean oil, lard, palm oil, and fish oil. The specific fatty acid composition of the feed composition is shown in Table 4.

[0092] Table 4

[0093] fatty acid Quality percentage (%) C4:0 9.9 C6:0 0.08 C8:0 1.20 C10:0 0.96 C12:0 7.31 C14:0 3.21 C16:0 13.20 C16:1 0.63 C18:0 3.29 C18:1 19.96 C18:2 34.32 C18:3 4.14 C20:1 0.11 C20:4 0.02 C20:5 0.42 C22:1 0.12 C22:2 0.06 C22:6 0.89

[0094] Experimental Example 1

[0095] This experiment used laying hens as the feeding subjects, feeding them with a laying hen feed consisting of a basal chicken feed and balanced milk, and examining the effect of balanced milk on the laying hen production performance of each embodiment. The balanced milk accounted for 1.5% by weight in the laying hen feed. The basal chicken feed consisted of the following ingredients by weight percentage: corn 30%, fermented bran 35%, fermented soybean meal 5%, fermented soybean residue 15%, limestone powder 5%, fish meal 5%, calcium gluconate powder 3%, methionine iron 0.5%, and vitamin premix 1.5%.

[0096] The experimental animal facilities were maintained at normal environmental standards, with an ambient temperature of 20-28℃, a relative humidity range of 40% to 70%, artificial lighting, and a light-dark cycle every 12 hours. The feeding conditions were managed in accordance with the "GB / T 40837-2021 Technical Regulations for Feed Safety Evaluation of Laying Hens in Experimental Studies".

[0097] Over 180,000 36-week-old laying hens of the Dawu Jinfeng variety were randomly selected and divided into five groups: a control group and three experimental groups, each with 36,000 hens. The control group was fed a basal diet; experimental group 1 was fed a diet consisting of the basal diet supplemented with 1.5% of the fatty acid balanced milk from Example 3 (by weight); experimental group 2 was fed a diet consisting of the basal diet supplemented with 1.5% of the fatty acid balanced milk from Example 4 (by weight); experimental group 3 was fed a diet consisting of the basal diet supplemented with 1.5% of the feed additive from Comparative Example 1 (by weight); and experimental group 4 was fed a diet consisting of the basal diet supplemented with 1.5% of the feed composition from Comparative Example 2 (by weight). The experiment lasted 26 days. Egg production rate, feed conversion ratio, and mortality rate were analyzed. The results are expressed as averages for each group, with feed intake per hen. The results are shown in Table 5.

[0098] Table 5 Results of Egg Production Performance Testing

[0099]

[0100] The quality of eggs produced in each group was tested, and the results are shown in Table 6.

[0101] Table 6. Egg quality test results (Week 2)

[0102]

[0103] Note: Watermarked eggs refer to eggs with dark, fine lines on the shell membrane. As the eggs are left for a longer period of time and the temperature is higher, the fine lines become more obvious and their number increases, thus forming watermarked eggs. This is a type of defective egg. The data in the table is based on the sensory scores (0-5 points, six levels in total, with higher scores indicating more severe watermarking) of each test egg or sample egg according to the Novus Watermarked Egg Scoring System.

[0104] The results showed that, compared with the control group and the comparative groups (experimental groups 3-4), the experimental groups (experimental groups 1-2) significantly improved the egg production rate and the qualified rate of eggs (P<0.05), while significantly reducing the feed conversion ratio (P<0.05), feed intake and mortality rate.

[0105] Compared with the control group and each comparative group, each example group significantly increased the Haugh unit (P<0.05), while significantly reducing the score of watermarked eggs (P<0.05) and increasing eggshell strength (P<0.1).

[0106] Experimental Example 2

[0107] Molting is a physiological phenomenon in laying hens, referring to the process by which commercial laying hens molt their feathers after a laying year (generally 68-72 weeks). During this period, decreased ovarian function leads to reduced estrogen secretion, causing a drop in egg production. Laying hens that have just completed molting will experience changes in their production levels. This experiment selected 610-day-old laying hens as the subjects, feeding them with a laying hen feed consisting of a basal feed and a balanced milk, and tested the effect of the balanced milk on the laying hen production performance of each embodiment. The balanced milk accounted for 1.5% of the weight percentage in the laying hen feed. The basal feed consisted of the following ingredients by weight percentage: corn 30%, fermented bran 35%, fermented soybean meal 5%, fermented soybean residue 15%, limestone powder 5%, fish meal 5%, calcium pectin powder 3%, methionine iron 0.5%, and vitamin premix 1.5%.

[0108] The experimental animal facilities were maintained at normal environmental standards, with an ambient temperature of 20-28℃, a relative humidity range of 40% to 70%, artificial lighting, and a light-dark cycle every 12 hours. The feeding conditions were managed in accordance with the "GB / T 40837-2021 Technical Regulations for Feed Safety Evaluation of Laying Hens in Experimental Studies".

[0109] Ninety-six Hy-Line Grey laying hens aged 610 days in the late laying stage were randomly selected and randomly divided into three groups (control group, experimental group 1, and experimental group 2), with 16 replicates per group and 20 birds per replicate. The control group was fed a basal diet, experimental group 1 was fed a diet consisting of the basal diet supplemented with 1.5% of the fatty acid balanced milk from Example 3 (by weight of feed weight), and experimental group 2 was fed a diet consisting of the basal diet supplemented with 1.5% of the feed additive from Comparative Example 1 (by weight of feed weight). The experiment consisted of two phases: a one-week pre-feeding period and a four-week formal trial. The egg production rate, feed conversion ratio, and mortality rate were then analyzed. Feed intake was the average feed intake per hen, and egg production was the average egg production per hen. The results are shown in Table 7.

[0110] Table 7 Results of Egg Production Performance Testing

[0111]

[0112] Compared with the control group and the comparative group, the example group significantly improved the egg production rate (P<0.05), while significantly reducing the feed conversion ratio (P<0.05) and feed intake.

[0113] The quality of eggs produced in each group was tested, and the results are shown in Table 8.

[0114] Table 8. Egg quality test results (Week 4)

[0115]

[0116] Compared with the control group and the comparative group, the example group significantly improved eggshell strength (P<0.05) and significantly reduced the score of watermarked eggs (P<0.05, increasing Haugh units).

[0117] Similar to the effects of the fatty acid balanced milk in Example 3, when used in Hy-Line Grey laying hens during the late laying period, the fatty acid balanced milk in Example 4 also significantly improved egg production, significantly reduced feed conversion ratio and feed intake, significantly improved eggshell strength, significantly reduced watermarked eggs, and increased Haugh units.

[0118] The experimental results of Examples 1 and 2 above demonstrate that the fatty acid balanced milk of the present invention can be applied to laying hens of different ages and breeds, significantly improving their production performance. Specifically, the results of Example 1 show that the fatty acid balanced milk improved egg production and quality, increased feed utilization efficiency, and also showed potential in improving hen health and reducing mortality. The results of Example 2 show that, compared with the control group, the group supplemented with the fatty acid balanced milk had a significantly higher egg production rate, and significantly lower average daily feed intake and feed conversion ratio.

[0119] In summary, the fatty acid balanced milk of the present invention can be added to feed as a substitute for soybean oil. It not only provides a good energy supply, but also provides various essential fatty acids, fat-soluble vitamins, etc., which can significantly improve the laying hen's production capacity, reduce the feed conversion ratio, improve egg quality, improve intestinal health, and thus improve the survival rate of laying hens, thereby reducing breeding costs and further tapping the production potential of laying hens.

[0120] In laying hen trials, under the same feeding management and basal diet, hens not using fatty acid balanced milk had lower egg production, higher feed conversion ratio, and higher mortality rates. After using fatty acid balanced milk, egg production significantly improved, while feed conversion ratio and mortality rates significantly decreased. Compared to soybean oil, fatty acid balanced milk maintained a significant advantage in improving egg production, feed conversion ratio, and mortality rates. Furthermore, fatty acid balanced milk is suitable for laying hens of different ages and breeds, demonstrating its universal applicability to laying hens. The fatty acid balanced milk of this invention can unlock the production potential of laying hens, reduce the cost of raising laying hens, and has higher economic value.

[0121] Furthermore, the evaluation of technological effects in the feed industry cannot be based solely on the difference in a single indicator before and after use. Since the primary goal of technology in the feed industry is to reduce costs and increase efficiency, it is necessary to consider cost and scale of operation when evaluating technological effects. Under similar productivity conditions, the fatty acid balanced milk of this invention achieves soybean oil substitution with half the oil supply, resulting in more efficient energy absorption in poultry and superior reproductive / production performance. Simultaneously, if the feed intake of experimental group 1 in Experimental Example 1 is expanded to 60,000 chickens (a small to medium-sized chicken farm), the daily feed savings would be 154.8 kg. Moreover, the productivity of experimental group 1 is already higher than that of the control and comparative groups. Combined with the saved feed and increased egg production (based on egg production rate, experimental group 1 can increase daily egg production by 2220 eggs per 60,000 laying hens compared to the control group), the technological effects reflect significant benefits.

[0122] Finally, it should be noted that the above embodiments are only used to illustrate the technical solutions of the present invention, and not to limit them; although the present invention has been described in detail with reference to the foregoing embodiments, those skilled in the art should understand that modifications can still be made to the technical solutions described in the foregoing embodiments, or equivalent substitutions can be made to some of the technical features; and these modifications or substitutions do not cause the essence of the corresponding technical solutions to deviate from the spirit and scope of the technical solutions of the embodiments of the present invention.

Claims

1. A composition for feeding laying hens, characterized in that, The composition comprises short-chain fatty acids and / or their derivatives, medium-chain fatty acids and / or their derivatives, and long-chain fatty acids and / or their derivatives. The derivative is selected from one or more salts, esters, and amides; In the composition, the mass ratio of short-chain fatty acids, medium-chain fatty acids and long-chain fatty acids is (3-8):(2-6):(86-95) based on the mass of fatty acids; the mass ratio of saturated fatty acids and unsaturated fatty acids is (25-40):(60-75); and the mass ratio of ω-3 fatty acids to ω-6 fatty acids is (4-10):(30-40).

2. The feed composition according to claim 1, characterized in that, Based on the mass of fatty acids, the composition comprises: 4-8 parts of short-chain fatty acids, 2-5 parts of medium-chain fatty acids, and 88-95 parts of long-chain fatty acids; wherein the mass ratio of saturated fatty acids to unsaturated fatty acids is (25-35):(60-70), and the mass ratio of ω-3 fatty acids to ω-6 fatty acids is (5-8):(35-40).

3. The feed composition according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that, In the composition, the total mass of short-chain fatty acids, short-chain fatty acid derivatives, medium-chain fatty acids, medium-chain fatty acid derivatives, long-chain fatty acids, and long-chain fatty acid derivatives accounts for at least 10% of the mass of the composition.

4. The use of the feed composition according to any one of claims 1 to 3 in the preparation of feed or feed additives.

5. A feed additive, characterized in that, The feed additive comprises the feed composition according to any one of claims 1 to 3.

6. The feed additive according to claim 5, characterized in that, The feed additive is an emulsion, oil, or powder.

7. A feed, characterized in that, The feed comprises the feed composition according to any one of claims 1 to 3 or the feed additive according to claim 5 or 6.

8. The feed according to claim 7, characterized in that, The feed additive in the feed has a mass percentage of 0.5-5%.

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