Jumpstarting the Development of the Chick

In-ovo feeding is becoming a key issue in poultry. The industry is looking to see how it can boost the quality and liveability of the day-old chick through improving embryonic stage nutritional approaches.

In-ovo feeding is applied to the amniotic fluid of eggs typically at 18 days incubation. It can involve the administration of nutrients and additives such as amino acids, nucleotides, trace minerals, enzymes or probiotics.

Data from in-ovo nutrition and also from spray-gel feeding of newly-hatched chicks show that such innovative practices can help reduce antibiotic use in the first few days of a chick’s life, as well as achieving significant reductions in early bird mortality related to dehydration and starvation.

We hear about the benefits of in-ovo feeding from the world’s leading experts in this area. We will also hear about critical considerations as regards neo-natal feeding programs.