July 11, 2008

Feeding dried chicory root to organic piglets can benefit their growth in the period immediately after weaning, according to a Danish study by the University of Aarhus.

The study said the root minimises pig taint while the dried root could influence piglet growth positively after weaning.

Piglets often succumb to diarrhoea after weaning and while the chicory root is unable to prevent that, but it is able to strengthen piglet health, according to the study.

There is an improved growth rate and increased concentration of lactic acid in the manure right after weaning, which indicates that chicory root has an overall beneficial effect on piglet health immediately after weaning at seven weeks of age, said senior scientist Mette Skou Hedemann and research professor Knud Erik Bach Knudsen.