Probiotics Control Poultry Odor

Make nice with neighbors and control poultry odor!

Our last post covered the top 20 issues with raising poultry. In the upcoming posts, we will discuss how probiotics mitigate many of these issues, including odor, performance, and overall poultry health. There are hundreds of published papers that document these benefits. Check them out on Google Scholar. If you have poultry or are considering raising them, it is best to know how to prevent all the issues in the previous post. It is your responsibility to care for the animals you raise. Let’s get into using probiotics for controlling odors.

Are you raising poultry? Let me know if the chat.

Because of their potential to reduce smells, probiotics—beneficial microorganisms—have been used in various industries, including chicken farming. Several studies have found that some probiotics may help lessen the disagreeable smells connected to poultry production. Here are a few examples:

Bacillus subtilis: A common probiotic in poultry husbandry is Bacillus subtilis, a lactic acid bacteria that is only one micron in size. It has been demonstrated that encouraging the breakdown of organic substances, including animal feces, has odor-reducing qualities. It can aid in reducing the production of offensive odors in poultry operations by promoting the breakdown of organic pollutants.

Lactobacillus spp. Various Lactobacillus strains' ability to lessen the smell of poultry has been researched. These probiotics have the ability to create enzymes that degrade organic molecules, including those that cause odors. Additionally, Lactobacillus spp. can aid in fostering an environment where good bacteria predominate, preventing the formation of bacteria that cause odors.

Yeast probiotics: Some yeast species, including Saccharomyces cerevisiae, can reduce smells in chicken production. These probiotics can promote nutrition absorption, improve bird gastrointestinal health, and lessen the discharge of chemicals that give dung an unpleasant odor.

Photosynthetic bacteria: In poultry feeds, photosynthetic bacteria can function as probiotics, encouraging the growth of good bacteria and enhancing gut health. They can assist digestion, improve nutritional absorption, and balance the intestinal bacteria population. The competition for accessible nutrients, such as organic matter and nitrogen sources, between photosynthetic bacteria and other environmental microbes is fierce. They aid in regulating microbial populations and decrease the synthesis of ammonia and other odor-causing substances by outcompeting odor-producing bacteria. Photosynthetic bacteria can create biofilms on various surfaces, including the walls of poultry cages and manure dumps. (Biofilms are literally thin films covering a surface that the microbes produce that act as layers of protection and communication.) As a barrier, these biofilms stop the release of ammonia and other volatile substances into the atmosphere. Furthermore, lowering the possibility of odor formation aids in decomposing organic materials.

Multi-strain probiotics: The effectiveness of multi-strain probiotics in reducing poultry smells has been investigated in the research. These compositions frequently combine various types of good bacteria, including Lactobacillus, Bacillus, yeasts, and others. Multi-strain probiotics can aid in the establishment of a more-balanced microbial population in the poultry gut and lessen the synthesis of odor-causing compounds, like ammonia, by introducing a broad microbial community.

Only a handful of multi-strain products are used in the USA for poultry feeding. The product I worked with for 25 years, EM-1, was a multi-strain probiotic containing fifty-plus species from three separate groups of microbes; Lactic Acid Bacteria, Photosynthetic Bacteria, and Yeasts. My partner and father-in-law used EM-1 in their poultry operations, although they used them differently and raised different birds. Over the years, I worked with many poultry farms, including chickens (broilers and layers), squab, and turkeys. Mixed cultured products were high-performing with multiple benefits from a single product, sometimes so much so that the integrators (the large companies that owned the birds) used the product as if it were a medication.

It's important to remember that the efficiency of probiotics in controlling odors can vary based on elements like dosage, application technique, and particulars of the poultry facility. Probiotics should be used for odor control as part of a comprehensive strategy involving good waste management, ventilation, and hygiene procedures.

If you’re planning to raise poultry, it would be recommended to start the probiotics in the drinking water from the day of placement until the birds die or are sold.

References

Mgunda, Honorius Dismas. (2011). Assessment Of Effects Of Effective Microorganisms ON Broiler Chicken Performance And Malodour Reduction In Poultry House. [Doctoral Dissertation, Sokoine University Of Agriculture], http://repository.costech.or.tz/handle/123456789/94312

Murugesan Gnanadesigan, Sandhanasamy Isabella, Ponnusamy Saritha, Lakshmanan Ramkumar, Natarajan Manivannan, Rajagopal Ravishankar. Quality evaluation of egg composition and productivity of layers in EM (Effective Microorganisms) treatments: A field report. Egyptian Journal of Basic and Applied Sciences. Volume 1, Issues 3–4, 2014. Pages 161-166. ISSN 2314-808X. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ejbas.2014.06.003.(https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2314808X14000281)

Nuengjamnong, Chackrit & Luangtongkum, Taradon. Effects of Effective Microorganisms on Growth Performances, Ammonia Reduction, Hematological Changes and Shedding of Salmonella enterica and Campylobacter spp. in Broilers. The Thai Journal of Veterinary Medicine. Thai J Vet Med. Vol. 44 (2014). Iss. 1. https://digital.car.chula.ac.th/tjvm/vol44/iss1/8/

Weijiong Li & Yongzhen Ni (2001) Use of Effective Microorganisms to Suppress Malodors of Poultry Manure, Journal of Crop Production, 3:1, 215-221, DOI: 10.1300/J144v03n01_17