A blend of benzoic acid and essential oil compounds as an alternative to antibiotic growth promoters in broiler diets

The discussions about the possibility of bacterial resistance resulting from the use of antimicrobial growth promoters in broiler feed. The limitations of international market have forced the exporting countries to search for alternatives to ensure the animal growth without affecting the quality of the final product. An experiment was conducted to evaluate the efficacy of in-feed CRINA (R) Poultry Plus (CPP, a mixture of benzoic acid and essential oils) in enhancing broiler growth performance and reducing coccidial lesions, as a non-antibiotic growth promoter. Effect of CPP on litter moisture content was also assessed. The treatments were: NC, a basal diet without growth promoters; PC, a basal diet with 10 ppm of Avilamycin (AVI); CPPD, a basal diet with 300 ppm of CPP from 1 to 42 d; AVI((1-21d))/CPP(22-42d), a basal diet with 10 ppm of AVI from 1 to 21 d and 300 ppm of CPP from 22 to 42 d; and AVI + CPP (1-42 d), a basal diet with 10 ppm of AVI and 300 ppm of CPP from 1 to 42 d. The 5 treatments were applied in a completely randomized arrangement and 10 replicate with 31 birds per pen. The diets with CPP increased body weight gain and feed conversion rates in the 1 to 42 d period and European productive efficiency index compared to birds fed with negative control diet (NC). Furthermore, lesion scores induced by E. acervulina were highest in the NC. The results suggest that CRINA (R) Poultry Plus can be used as an alternative to antibiotic growth promoters in broiler diets without losses in productive performance.