EW Nutrition GmbH has launched Globigen Pig Paste Fe, a combination of immunoglobulin-rich egg powder and iron to replace iron injections and provide passive protection to piglets.

 

Piglets are born with very low reserves of iron, and iron available from sow's milk only covers 23 percent of the daily requirement in suckling piglets. Therefore the already limited iron reserves of the piglet are exhausted very rapidly.

 

Iron was injected to prevent iron deficiency anaemia, one of the most economically-damaging metabolic diseases.

 

The second important component, immunoglobulin-rich egg powder, provides antibodies from the egg. Hens produce antibodies against the pathogens which they have contact with. They transfer these antibodies to the egg, as an immunological starter kit for the chick.

 

This production of antibodies can be influenced, so that hens mainly produce antibodies against pathogens causing diarrhoea in piglets. These eggs, which are processed into egg powder, accommodate the young animals exactly with those elements of defence, which they need in the critical phases during the first three weeks of life.

 

Field trials with hyper-immunised egg powder showed a reduction of mortality of more than 30 percent. In a university trial, mortality rate could be reduced from about 70 percent to zero.

 

Incidence of diarrhoea decreased from 100 to less than 40 percent.