Improved contribution of local feed to support 100% organic feed supply to pigs and poultry

Summary

This project is highlighted by the requirement to base the feeding of organic produced poultry and pigs on feed of 100% organic origin from the 1st January 2012. The aim is to produce economically profitable feeding strategies based on 100% organic feed across Europe, which will supply poultry and pigs the required level of nutrients in different phases of production and support high animal health and welfare. This is done on the basis of the following tasks:
• Improved knowledge of availability and nutritional value of underutilized or new organic feed ingredients per animal category with a focus on local feed resources
• Improved understanding of the possible benefits of roughage inclusion in relation to nutritional and behavioural needs as well as its impact on health and welfare
• Understanding how direct foraging in the outdoor area can contribute to meeting the animals nutritional needs
• Assessing the economic and environmental consequences of increased reliance on local organically produced feed
The working hypothesis is that it is possible - through an extended knowledge of the characteristics of different local feeds and their wider impact on growth, health and welfare and environment - to produce strategies which comply with the aims for high animal welfare, production economy and environmental concerns. Through co-operation between 11 partners, a range of feeding experiments will be carried out with pigs (sows, piglets and finishers) and poultry (layers and broilers), clustered around concentrate feedstuffs, roughage, and foraging. The insight gained from these activities will be used to analyse and produce feeding strategies adapted to the differences in local feed supply, the economic impact related to different feed procurement, and variations in production structure in different countries/agroecological zones in Europe.