Effects of Dietary Supplementation With Saccharomyces cerevisiae Yeast Extract on Production Performance in Aged Commercial Laying Hens.

BACKGROUND

Broken-shell eggs in aged laying hens cause great losses to the egg industry. Saccharomyces cerevisiae yeast may improve shell quality by modulating intestinal health and oviduct function.

OBJECTIVES

This study was carried out to determine the effects of supplementing Saccharomyces cerevisiae yeast extract (SYE) to the diets of aged commercial laying hens.

METHODS

A total of 192 Shaver White laying hens aged 105-116 weeks were allocated to four dietary levels of SYE (0, 1.0, 2.0, 3.0 g/kg diet), with 6 replicates of 8 birds each. The experiment was performed in a randomized complete block design.

RESULTS

The use of different levels of SYE caused a significant linear and quadratic increase in the percentage of laying and daily egg mass production (p < 0.05). Feed intake (FI) in the 3 g/kg treatment was significantly higher than the control treatment in 113-116-week period (p < 0.05). The percentage of eggshell and shell thickness at 105-116 weeks of age (total period) in the 3 g/kg treatment was significantly higher than the control treatment (p < 0.05). Orthogonal comparison of the supplemented SYE against the control treatment also showed that the use of SYE in the diet significantly increased (p < 0.05) the percentage of shell (12.2% vs. 11.4%) and eggshell thickness (0.384 vs. 0.362 mm) compared to the control treatment.

CONCLUSIONS

The use of different levels of SYE did not have a significant effect on production performance indicators in old laying hens of the Shaver White strain. It significantly increased the thickness and relative weight of eggshell. Supplementing SYE 3 g/kg diet significantly increased the average eggshell percentage and shell thickness.