Feed additives for swine: Fact sheets – high dietary levels of copper and zinc for young pigs, and phytase (2010)

Authors

J Y. Jacela
Joel M. DeRouchey
Michael D. Tokach
Robert D. Goodband
Jim L. Nelssen
David G. Renter
Steven S. Dritz

Keywords

http://www.aasv.org/shap.html; Swine; Copper; Zinc; Phytase; Feed additives; Growth performance

Abstract

Copper and zinc play important roles in many physiological processes. Dietary copper levels of 5 to 10 ppm and zinc levels of 50 to 125 ppm are generally enough to meet the pig's nutrient requirement for these processes. However, when supplied at high concentrations (100 to 250 ppm for copper and 2000 to 3000 ppm for zinc), these two minerals are known to exert positive influences on growth rate. In addition, copper is efficacious even when antibiotics also are included in the diets.2 This suggests that the response to copper is additive to the response to antimicrobials. Response to high levels of dietary copper decreases with increasing age and with longer periods of administration.3 Zinc fed at high dietary levels (2000 to 3000 ppm) reduces incidence of diarrhea and increases weight gain in newly weaned pigs. However, these high levels of dietary zinc are beneficial to pigs only during the early phases of the nursery period.6 Thus, feeding period for high dietary levels of zinc should be limited to approximately 3 weeks after weaning. Additive effects are usually not observed in weaned pigs when high levels of copper and zinc are added together. However, the data is conflicting and this observation needs to be further investigated. Recent research has indicated that feeding high levels of zinc until pigs reached 12 kg, then feeding high levels of copper for the remainder of the nursery period, was the most cost-effective strategy.; Journal of Swine Health and Production; 18; Swine Day, 2010, Kansas State University, Manhattan, KS, November 18, 2010

Recommended Citation

Jacela, J Y.; DeRouchey, Joel M.; Tokach, Michael D.; Goodband, Robert D.; Nelssen, Jim L.; Renter, David G.; and Dritz, Steven S. (2010) "Feed additives for swine: Fact sheets – high dietary levels of copper and zinc for young pigs, and phytase (2010)," Kansas Agricultural Experiment Station Research Reports: Vol. 0: Iss. 10. https://doi.org/10.4148/2378-5977.7068