Supplementing Xylanase Improves Egg Production
Xylanase is a widely used enzyme in broiler diets, but its application in layer diets is less common. This is mainly due to layers being more susceptible to fluctuations in energy intake. A recent study has shown that supplementing laying hen diets with xylanase can increase FCR and improve egg production.
The study included a total of 288 Lohmann White laying hens at 67 weeks of age that were distributed in 36 traditional cage facilities. Each cage was considered an experimental unit and housed eight birds where six replicate cages were assigned to each treatment in a completely randomized design. Diets were based on corn, soybean meal and corn gluten meal, with different levels of xylanase added to low-energy diets and fed from 69 to 85 weeks of age. Feed consumption, egg production and other parameters were measured and compared.
The results showed that overall feed intake was higher in laying hens fed the unsupplemented low-energy diets compared to the control, which resulted in a numerically worse feed conversion (I.e., higher FCR) per dozen eggs. Additionally, when xylanase was supplemented with the low-energy diets, it numerically improved egg production and FCR expressed as egg mass compared to control. Furthermore, the 100 g/MT xylanase dose resulted in the best egg production and FCR compared to all treatments, which was a 3% improvement in egg production and 3 points in egg mass FCR compared to the control.
In conclusion, supplementing xylanase while feeding a low-energy diet is a potential solution for producers to reduce feed costs while improving egg production in laying hens. The study results concluded that 100g/MT xylanase supplementation efficiently compensated for energy reduction, as well as sustained egg production, weight, and mass in laying hens.
Learn more about Xylamax here.