Increased emphasis on animal nutrition has been supplementing the growth of the feed phytogenics market. The expanding global population, coupled with increased health consciousness among consumers, has created significant product demand supported by growing consumer inclination toward emerging fad diets. Burgeoning demand for meat and dairy products has also played a crucial role in fostering the need for feed phytogenics.
Feed additives are widely used in animal nutrition to bring about the desired effect on the feed, animals, food products obtained from the animals that are consuming the feed additive, or the environment. Phytogenic feed additives (PFAs), also known as botanicals, refer to plant-based substances that are added to animal diets in order to improve animal performance.
Feed phytogenics have gained popularity among producers since they boost animal performance, reduce emissions, and increase feed efficiency, among other benefits. When used as animal feed additives, phytogenics can decrease microbial threats and promote gut health, which helps optimize profitability and performance.
Backed by these qualities, the feed phytogenics market is estimated to surpass $900 million by 2028, as per a recent research report by Global Market Insights Inc. Key product benefits that are impelling market growth through the forecast period have been discussed hereunder.
- Enhanced feed utilization among animals
Animal feed additives consisting of natural ingredients like essential oils are increasingly being used in livestock production. Feed phytogenics are not limited to essential oils and also include a broad range of ingredients right from herbs & spices to other non-volatile extracts. Recently, the incorporation of phytogenic feed additives in poultry production viz., minerals, vitamins, or acidifiers, along with the administration of a wide range of medications has become common practice.
With livestock producers realizing the value of PFAs, they have started adding phytogenic feed additives to drinking water. When added to drinking water, feed phytogenics either complement or act as an alternative to in-feed inclusion, wherein they offer many benefits. Nonetheless, the application of these additives on-farm, for instance, with a dosing system, is easily achievable and provides the producer with a guarantee that the PFA would reach the animal.
In some instances, when animals are sick, they can reduce or completely stop their feed intake. In these cases, PFAs added to drinking water still reach the animals as water intake does not decrease. This allows the additives to continue to exert their benefits, accelerating the recovery of ill animals. As a result, improved feed utilization is a key factor driving the growth of the feed phytogenics industry.
2 . Rising demand for poultry products
Consumption of poultry products has increased drastically, particularly in key regions across the globe. The rising global human population and increasing human welfare standards have substantially bolstered the demand for animal protein. It is extremely vital to support superior broiler gut health as only healthy birds can perform and become lucrative for poultry producers.
Flock performance can be preserved through preventive management measures, the use of high-quality feed, and consistent hygiene practices. Phytogenics are believed to offer an array of biologically active features that are advantageous in modern livestock production, such as anti-inflammatory, anti-microbial, antioxidative, and digestion-enhancing properties.
Phytogenic feed additives exert several other biological benefits, including gut microbiota modulation and improved gut barrier function. This results in better quality and function of the gut, which increases animal performance. Thus, superior animal performance enables producers to meet consumer demand for poultry products, which is set to stimulate feed phytogenics market expansion.
3 . Greater productivity and gut health of animals
In order to fulfill the proliferating demand for animal products, resilient animals are important. For this purpose, an optimally developed and functional intestine is key for exploiting the animals’ genetic potential with the aim to promote economic production of animal-derived food. Phytogenic feed additives have been proven to encourage better animal performance.
In effect, as PFAs aid greater digestive health, fewer nutrients are available for undesirable bacteria. This inhibits their population growth and the adverse consequences of their resultant uncontrolled growth. To cite an instance, in fish, these additives have the closest contact with the tissues and organs once ingested. When digested and absorbed, these substances are distributed throughout the fish’s body where they affect the physiological conditions and their ability to offer resistance to infectious diseases.
Furthermore, studies have also shown that PFAs can potentially improve lactational performance, milk production, and feed utilization in ruminants. As a result, the excellent impact of these additives on productivity and intestinal health in livestock is positively influencing feed phytogenics industry development.
4 . Improved reproductive performance of livestock
Phytogenics, which are found in high levels in animal feeds, have powerful immunomodulatory, antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and metabolism-regulating properties. Apart from promoting gut health, several methods have been developed to utilize feed phytogenics as animal feed additives for various purposes, such as decreasing methane emissions and acting as alternative to antibiotics, among others.
The influence of diet on fertility complications that are usually seen in ruminants has gained massive interest. Recent studies examined the effect of feed phytogenics on the semen quality, hematobiochemical indices, and hormonal profiles in male ruminants, and demonstrated that their addition in animal nutrition can improve reproductive performance, oocyte quality and pregnancy.
High research focus on the analysis of the use of phytogenics as animal feed additives has been favorable for product outlook. Consequently, increased exploration of the benefits of the product in augmenting livestock reproductive performance is driving feed phytogenics industry.
Huge growth prospects for phytogenics as animal feed additives
Widespread adoption of phytogenics as animal feed additives owing to their numerous benefits for livestock has played a vital role in feed phytogenics market growth in key regions globally.
In the future, increased research emphasis to explore the application of feed phytogenics in animal nutrition, along with high demand for phytogenics among producers to improve animal performance, is likely to offer promising growth opportunities for the overall industry.
