December 11, 2013

Norel launches ECOBIOL probiotic in Indonesia

 

On 19 November 2013, Norel Animal Nutrition, together with its Indonesian partner PT. Sehat Cerah Indonesia, launched its probiotic ECOBIOL, consisting of sporulated, heat-resistant bacteria of the CECT-5940 strain of Bacillus amyloliquefaciens isolated and cultured by NOREL S.A.

 

Registered in European Union and other markets, Bacillus amyloliquefaciens is a non-pathogenic bacterium producing large quantities of enzymes such as amylases and proteases, and other types of extracellular enzymes like cellulases and xylanases, which are released in the gut of the animal. This allows a higher degradability of the nutrients from the feed.

 

These enzymatic activities are especially important in young animals which have low enzyme production. Bacillus amyloliquefaciens also produces significant amounts of lactic acid, causing a drop in pH, which affects pathogenic bacteria.

 

The strain has been registered under number 5940 and deposited into the Spanish Collection of Standard Cultures (Department of Microbiology, Faculty of Biology, University of Valencia).

 

At the launch, Eri Desra, general manager of PT. Sehat Cerah Indonesia, welcomed the participants and gave an introduction of the company. He was followed by Mathieu Cortyl, general manager for Asia-Pacific at Norel Animal Nutrition, who presented the activities of Norel in the region.

 

A seminar took place at the launch, led by Prof Budi Tangendjaja, technical consultant at the US Grains Council, who gave an overview of probiotics used in animal nutrition, their potential benefits and how to select them. He was followed by by Alvaro Ortiz, probiotics and aquaculture product manager at Norel, who explained in detail the features and benefits of ECOBIOL.

 

Trial data presented by Ortiz indicates that ECOBIOL improves digestibility of dry matter, crude protein, energy, fat, starch and fiber in animals such as broilers and shrimp. The animals will have more nutrients available and this should be taken into account in formulation. Besides, the bacterium is shown to be tolerant to organic acids, as well as to several antibiotics and coccidiostats.

 

Ortiz also illustrated that ECOBIOL has a positive effect on bird health by preventing Salmonella colonisation at both intestinal and systemic phases. He explained that ECOBIOL produces bacteriocins, substances that are able to control pathogens such as Clostridium or Salmonella, as well as organisms affecting aquaculture species, for instance Vibrio Parahaemolyticus or Aeromonas hydrophila. He mentioned research conducted on broilers where ECOBIOL helped control Salmonella infection by reducing Salmonella shedding in faeces; as well as salmonella infection levels at crop, caecum and liver.

 

One essential feature of ECOBIOL that was discussed during the seminar is that, being in the form of spore, it is a heat resistant organism. This is of utmost importance when producing pelleted or extruded feeds and also ensures the product shelf life is long enough. Ortiz shared several trial results with the audience, demonstrating that bacteria are able to survive very difficult situations and can meet the requirements of the feed industry.

 

Ortiz wrapped up his presentation by sharing results of performance trials in broilers, layers, shrimp, and tilapia. Performance and economical return were significantly improved when using ECOBIOL on those species. In several tests, compatibility of Bacillus amyloliquefaciens with antibiotic growth promoters (AGP) was demonstrated. Other parameters of interest were, for instance, the beneficial effects the bacteria can have on the immune response of the animals.

 

The launch and seminar took place in Grand Zuri Hotel, Bumi Serpong Damai (BSD) City in the Greater Jakarta region, Indonesia.