Current challenges of commercial poultry nutrition

Poultry meat and egg production have increased considerably worldwide since 1970. The increase in the size of the poultry industry has been much greater compared to the pork and beef industries. It is evident that the poultry meat industry has been more dynamic and has grown faster than the egg industry over these years. The trade volume of poultry products has also significantly increased . 

There are, however, challenges that the industry is currently facing and it seems that these challenges are going to be present for many years to come. Dr. Steve Leeson of the University of Guelph, Canada has recently discussed the future directions of commercial poultry nutrition. This review paper is published in Spring 2008 issue of journal of Applied Poultry Research. I suggest you to read this paper if you get a chance.

Rising cost of feed worldwide, removal or reduced use of antibiotic growth promoters and the search for viable alternatives, finding more cost effective feed ingredients for poultry, constant supply of quality water, implementing feedmill biosecurity (as part of the whole farm biosecurity measures), nutrition-related environmental concerns, and inconsistency in laboratory analyses of feed ingredients and compound feed samples are among challenges that the industry is currently facing. I personally believe that the industry will not be able to solve these problems by itself and poultry research centers can be of great help to address these issues.

How significant are these challenges in the poultry industry of your country?