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On the occasion of the Company's 25 years of existence, MICRO-PLUS invited guests to a scientific event at castle Warberg. Founder and sole proprietor, Randolf Nott welcomed the numerous specialists from the feed industry and representatives of the press and gave a brief overview of the development of the company. MICRO-PLUS was founded as a company that specialises in the field of flavourings used in animal nutrition. Initially the application of this technology for these flavours was a part of the business objective. In addition, work was done to solve problems for agricultural clients, especially those rearing horses. Thus emerged products such as the air disinfectant, "AEROLAT" and a dust binder that could be sprayed on roughage, so that the horse avoids ingesting dust particles.
The endeavour to further clarify the connection to feed acceptance was at the centre of the scientific research since the company was founded. So it was not surprising then, that based on this basic research, which is especially popular today, so-called phytogenic feed supplements emerged. The commencement of the development of this product group, which is in the meantime internationally renowned under the brand name “digestarom”, has been around now for more than 20 years. However, an end to research activity at MICRO-PLUS is not in sight. In the meantime, there are more than 300 scientific research documented for all major species.
Special “highlights” include the successful experiment on the influence of digestarom on the immune system (published in The Veterinary Record "ALTERNATIVE ANTIMICROBIAL IN THE NUTRITION OF POST-weaning PIGLETS" Savoini et.. Al, 2002 ") and the forthcoming publication on the research at the Free University of Berlin on higher availability of amino acids by the use of digestarom for piglets. In reference to poultry, in addition to the numerous publications on improving zootechnical performance, for the first time it has been proven that with the addition of digestarom, tenderness and juiciness of the meat is statistically significantly improved.
Wolfgang Kaul, a long-time employee, gave an overview of the activities at MICRO-PLUS in the field of research and development under the title "2 Decades of Research." Of course it was impossible to present the large quantity of trials implemented in a brief overview.
His speech focused on the development of different flavours and flavour lines as well as the method of processing in this field. Likewise, he demonstrated that during the ongoing development a division between “conventional” and “functional” flavours ensued. Especially the latter, plant and herbal-based raw materials formed the main part of the lecture.
Research and Development at MICRO-PLUS Konzentrate GmbH was designed from the beginning to improve feed intake with flavours and sweeteners. This was and is to understand the taste preferences of the target species, the basis for all further product development. Each species has its own gustatory and olfactory preferences, which sometimes change with the age of the animals. It is necessary to identify these preferences in order to create a flavour. The required studies were carried out in two stages. In the beginning work was done with individual substances whereupon simplified mixtures of aromatic chemicals and essential oils resulting in very complex flavour combinations were constructed. These tests were organized as preference tests. At this point in time, mid to late 80’s of the last century, these trials were mainly implemented with piglets and to a lesser extent, cattle and calves. In addition to farm animals, trials were conducted with dogs and cats. As flavour components, even essential oils were used since ancient times and are the basis for the development of the current phytogenic digestive enhancers.
The full presentation with tables and illustrations can be found in the Seminar Proceedings Manual, which can be requested by completing the form at the bottom of the page.
 - Prof. O. Simon, FU Berlin
Professor Ortwin Simon (Institute of Animal Nutrition, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Free University of Berlin) started his presentation with an overview of the current state of scientific papers published with phytogenic feed additives and their legal status. He pointed out that these feed additives are very often complex mixtures, whereas the published results produce a varied picture.
Several publications indicate that particularly essential oils might have beneficial effects on the performance and health status of animals due to other effects besides sensory properties. Such claimed beneficial effects are stimulated secretion of digestive juices, antimicrobial, anthelmintic or anti-inflammatory activities, and particularly antioxidant properties (Wenk, 2003). In vitro antimicrobial activity of essential oils has been reported frequently (e.g. Panizzi et al., 1993; Helander et al., 1998; Chao et al., 2000), however, Muhl and Liebert (2008a) did not observe significant modifications within four bacterial groups (intestinal samples and faeces) in weaned piglets.
These examples demonstrate the actual difficulty to assess conclusively the effectiveness of phytogenic compounds used as feed additives with regard to intestinal functions and improved performance. Additional difficulty arises from the fact that most properties were studied in vitro and because of the natural variability in composition of plant secondary metabolites, depending on botanical origin, processing, and composition of the plant from which the compound is derived.
The aim of the experiments on which Prof. Simon reported was to study the effects of two commercial phytogenic products differing in their composition of active substances (digestarom 1322 and digestarom 1324, MICRO-PLUS Konzentrate GmbH) on weaned piglets. There were 4 experiments conducted characterized by a high consistency of quality results.
This presentation is also included in the Seminar Proceedings Manual.
In an extensive investigation, Professor Sudipto Haldar from the West Bengal University, Calcutta (India) examined the influence of the phytogenic feed additive, digestarom on growth, development of live weight, and the meat quality of broilers.
In reference to microbiology, the researchers at the University of West Bengal achieved similar results as those presented by the Ernst-August University, Göttingen (Germany). The villi-crypt ration, by the use of digestarom changed, so that increases in the absorption of nutrients were available.
The data was presented by Dr. G. Prinz, MICRO-PLUS, in the context of her presentation on the topic of poultry. The details are also included here in the Seminar Proceedings Manual.
In addition to the presentation by Prof. Simon, Dr. Thomas Weiland, MICRO-PLUS, spoke in general about the positive effects of digestarom in the pig sector. A particularly recent example mentioned was the examination conducted by the Khon Kaen University in Thailand (Prof. Jowaman Khajarern) that confirmed the residual results of experiments conducted by the Centre for Agricultural Research in Nitra (Slovakia) in 2007. Most notably, besides the greater uniformity in live weight of piglets at weaning, the inclusion of digestarom yielded higher feed intake of sows and lower weight loss during suckling.
This presentation can also be found in the Seminar Proceedings Manual, which can be requested by completing the form at the bottom of the page.
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