January 29, 2008

Impextraco finds Belgian and Dutch nutritionists satisfied on AGP alternatives

Impextraco recently initiated a survey among Belgian and Dutch nutritionists and found that the current AGP alternatives on the market satisfy the group.

However, the nutritionists said that they are still open for new and better concepts.

Alternatives like yeast and yeast cell walls, organic acids, plant extracts, pro- and prebiotics, heat treated grains and combined products emerged after the ban on growth promoters.

Combined products (organic acids combined with essential oils and plant extracts) are found to be widely used. Some nutritionists said they use a combination of several products and/or have adapted their feed formulation.

Some respondents said that the effect of alternatives is less pronounced compared to the growth promoters used before the ban.

Most nutritionists also shared that they have altered their feed formulation when using alternatives. They agree that it's not enough to simply replace one product by another in the post-AGP era.

Impextraco is a Belgian manufacturer of micro-ingredients for the feeding industry, which produces and sells vitamins and minerals, and also sells antibiotics and coccidiostats.