The preferences of broiler and layer strains of fowl for four different intensities of incandescent luminaire (6, 20, 60 and 200 lux; Osram, 60W, pearl) were tested at 2 and 6 weeks of age. With each strain, four replicates of 12 birds were each allowed to move freely between four compartments illuminated continuously at the different intensities for 6 days. The distribution of light intensities among the compartments was changed daily. After 2 days of conditioning, the birds’ location and behaviour were recorded once every 15min over 23h on each of the remaining 4 days. The other hour was devoted to changing light intensities and refilling the feeders and drinkers. Six, mutually exclusive behaviours were defined: resting, perching, feeding, drinking, litter-directed activity and locomotion.

With both strains, most time was spent in the brightest (200 lux) environment at 2 weeks of age. but in the dimmest (6 lux) at 6 weeks. This apparent change in preference was associated only with the two behaviours which took up most time, resting and perching, whereas the highest intensity was consistently preferred for all other behaviours. Older birds thus preferred to be in dim light when they were relatively inactive.

The finding that older birds prefer to spend much of their time in a light environment of < 10 lux intensity, depending on behaviour, is contrary to current recommendations that minimum light intensities for broilers and laying hens should be increased to as much as 20 lux. Some variation in the spatial or temporal distribution of ambient light intensity, to provide both dimly (< 10 lux) and brightly (eg > 50 lux) lit environments, might benefit the welfare of older poultry, although further work is needed to establish their optimal light environment.

Feather-pecking and cannibalism may reduce the potential of organic husbandry to enhance the welfare of laying hens. We report risk factors for these issues based on a large survey of 107 commercial flocks in eight European countries. Information was collected regarding housing, management and flock characteristics (age, genotype). Near the end of lay, 50 hens per flock were assessed for plumage condition and wounds. Potential influencing factors were screened and submitted to a multivariate model. The majority of the flocks (81%) consisted of brown genotypes and were found in six countries. Since white genotypes (19%) were found only in the two Scandinavian countries, a country effect could not be excluded. Therefore, separate models were made for brown and white genotypes. Feather damage in brown hens could be explained by a model containing a lower dietary protein content and no daily access to the free range (30% of the variation explained). For feather damage in white hens, no model could be made. Wounds in brown hens were associated with not having daily access to free range (14% of the variation explained). Wounds in white hens were explained by a model containing not topping-up litter during the laying period (26% of the variation explained). These results suggest that better feeding management, daily access to the free-range area and improved litter management may reduce incidence of plumage damage and associated injurious pecking, hence enhancing the welfare of organic laying hens. Since this was an epidemiological study, further experimental studies are needed to investigate the causal relationships.

Feed cost is a major impediment to commercial poultry production in the South Pacific region because traditional feed ingredients (grains and oilseeds) are not grown in the region and imported at high price. As a result, meat has to be imported, which in Fiji increased by 69% between 2010 and 2011 (Diarra, 2017). Samoa was valued at about US$ 17 million or 87% of total cost of meat import in the country in 2012 and 2013. Several ingredients, which are available locally, could be included to reduce feed cost in the region. By-products of root/tuber harvest (peels and leaves), low value crops, fruits and by-products (peels and pulps), oil cakes (copra and palm kernel), by-products from the brewery, livestock/poultry slaughter, hatchery and fish processing and insect meal are readily available in most countries of the region. With adequate processing and correct diet formulation, these materials could replace reasonable proportions of the conventional energy and protein ingredients and reduce feed cost. Several factors including the type and source of material, processing method, diet composition, species, age and class of poultry affect the dietary recommendations of alternative ingredients. Currently however, the use of these resources in feed production in the region is limited due to lack of processing and analytical facilities, likely presence of antinutritional substances and poor knowledge on their nutritive value. Continued research into processing technology, regular training for farmers and extension staff and establishment of community owned feed processing units for optimum utilisation of locally available resources will benefits the poultry industry in the region.

The population of the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region was 432 million in 2007 and it is estimated that in 2050 this figure will rise to 692 million inhabitants. The poultry industry in the MENA region depends heavily on imported soybeans and soybean meals. About 8.5 million metric tons of soybean meal (SBM) are needed for the production of poultry meat and eggs every year, based on the production of about 8.2 million tons of poultry meat and 3.7 million tons of eggs. Poultry feed prices are consistently increasing because of dependence on imported soybean meal. Hence, it is essential to find sustainable alternative protein sources. Several countries in the region produce sizeable amounts of oil seed meals that can partially or fully replace soybean meal in poultry rations. Nearly 5 million tons of cottonseed meal (CSM), peanut meal, sesame meal, sunflower meal and rapeseed meal are produced yearly in this region. The neighbouring countries of India, Pakistan and Sudan produce over 36 million tons of these meals. This study focused on these five meals in relation to amounts produced, quality and possible levels of use in various poultry rations. Data will be presented on availability, constraints of these meals as replacements for SBM, economic feasibility, and methods of improvement for possible utilisation at higher levels. Oil seed meal digestibility, quality, naturally occurring toxins, antimetabolites, mycotoxins, nutrient imbalances, and prices play a major role in determining the use of these meals for the production of poultry meat and eggs.

Based upon its economical perspective, the phenomenon of forced moulting in the poultry industry has become a common practice to increase the productivity and reproductive life span of birds. Different feed supplements, including vitamins, minerals, probiotics and prebiotics have been extensively used by poultry farmers for many years. In the last decade, researchers have reported advantageous effects of these supplements in improving different health biomarkers of post moult poultry birds. Therefore, including with these supplements in post moult feed is believed to exhibit better results than moulting alone. The current review is aimed at highlighting the empirical data available on the importance of various feed supplements that are considered favourable in ameliorating the health status of moulted poultry birds.

The housing and management of laying hens and their productivity has gone through enormous developments in the last century. Housing has changed from free-range systems, via battery cages to a variety of loose housing and different types of battery cages, and back to outdoor access systems. Although battery cages are still the main system used worldwide, the number of hens housed in aviaries and free-range systems has increased in Europe, Australasia and some parts of the USA, but aviaries and free-range systems are still considered a niche sector compared to caged housing. The following paper reviews how breeding and selection have responded to changes in housing and management and whether different types of housing require different breeding programmes and, more specifically, whether a dedicated breeding programme should be developed for aviary and free-range systems.

From the available literature it was concluded that broadening the selection goal in existing lines is the best option for breeding programmes to provide genotypes that are suitable for a range of housing systems.

Nutritional manipulation of diets for layers can help to naturally modify thenutritional content of eggs. The objective of this study was to increase theconcentration of the omega-3 fatty acid, docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), in the eggyolk by feeding a diet rich in omega-3 fatty acids from microalgae compared toone containing fish oil to layers. A total of 480 layers (Babcock B308) aged 28weeks old were divided into four treatment groups with four replicates pertreatment. The layers were fed a control diet, a diet containing 4% crudesalmon oil, or microalgae (Schizochytrium spp.) at 1% or2% in the diet for eight weeks. Feed intake and egg production wererecorded daily and egg quality tested every two weeks. There were no significantdifferences between the control and treatment groups as regards feed intake, eggproduction, egg weight, egg mass, albumin height, and Haugh unit of the eggs.The egg samples were obtained at the start of the trial, four weeks and eightweeks for the analysis of the fatty acid profile in the eggs. The DHA level inthe eggs from layers fed even 1% or 2% algae was higher (P< 0.05) compared to the level from those fed with the control diet and4% fish oil supplementation. The omega 6:3 ratio in eggs wassignificantly reduced (P < 0.05) compared to the control diet and thefish oil groups. Feeding 2% microalgae (Schizochytriumspp.) in hen diet resulted in an increase in the DHA level (above100 mg/egg) and a decrease in the omega 6:3 ratio to the optimal level. Thetrial demonstrated that DHA concentration in eggs can be enriched throughnutritional management of layers by using algae supplementation in order toprovide more favourable fatty acids for consumers.

In Kuwait, poultry meat is popular and a major source of dietary protein. Despite the increase in local production, importation to Kuwait has increased, to cover the high local demand for poultry meat. Self-sufficiency has, however, reached 20% of the local demand for poultry meat. This is mainly due to the continuous rise in human population and an increased demand for poultry meat with an average of 75.3 kg/capita/yr from year 2000 to 2011. Conversely, local egg production reached 42000 tons in 2011 with self-sufficiency of 101%. The poultry industry in Kuwait depends on the import of major feed ingredients such as corn and soybean from Unite States of America (USA) and India. In addition, the industry imports one day old chicks for layer and broiler hatching from Europe. Therefore, any changes in the quality or price in Europe and USA will affect the local poultry industry in Kuwait. As a result, the major challenges facing the poultry industry in Kuwait include high production costs, improvements in production efficiency, health monitoring programmes, environmental impact, and changes in policies and trade practices in the country. Solutions to these challenges are discussed in this paper. It can be concluded that more development and improvement in poultry meat production is needed through technology transfer as well as research and development relative to local production. This can be done by working closely with the local scientific institutions and government organisations to enhance and develop the poultry sector's capability to reduce production cost and improve profit.

Continuous advances in the poultry industry have stimulated the use of alternative feeds in poultry diets, and in particular glycerine, given its availability via the increase in world production of biodiesel. Glycerol is the principal component of glycerine, and can be used as an energy source to replace e.g. corn. However, other residual compounds, such as methanol and high levels of sodium, limit its use in animal feeds in large quantities. Several studies have found that the nitrogen-corrected apparent metabolisable energy of glycerine (AMEn) varies significantly between broilers, laying hens and quail, due to different processing/extraction methods (via biodiesel production). However, an energetic availability of at least 85% has been verified. Knowledge of the main metabolic pathways of glycerol and other components of glycerine is important for future studies on this feed material and to determine its main limitations. Understanding the relationship between the quality of the glycerine and its role as a source of dietary energy will allow more precise inclusion of glycerine in the formulation of balanced diets, without negatively affecting the performance of poultry.

Upcoming nesting behaviour traits, such as the exact oviposition time or the time spent in the nest, have a direct impact on economically relevant aspects. Hens which stay for a long time inside the nest box, require more nest capacity which result in higher investments for the farmer. This is similar to flocks in which most of the layers have the need to lay their eggs in a short time frame during the day. For both of these nesting behaviour traits, published data have shown strain differences. While brown layers are more relaxed in terms of their oviposition time, almost 90% of a white layer flock lay their eggs within 3 hours during the morning. Additionally, a white layer on average occupies the nest 15 minutes longer than a brown layer. The estimated heritabilities for both traits are on a medium level of around h² = 0.25, and are therefore susceptible to genetically-linked changes. Lower heritabilities are estimated for indirect nesting behaviour traits such as the time interval between two consecutively laid eggs (h² = 0.09) or the total clutch size (h² = 0.25). Ranging behaviour traits also show heritabilities on a medium level. The published heritability for the frequency of passages as well as for the length of stay in the winter garden is h² = 0.24, however, their relationship to the most important selection trait ‘egg number’, is negative. The laying performance tested with the Funnel Nest Box (FNB) show differences to the recorded egg number of full sibs which have been tested in cages. Tabled genetic parameters showed low correlations for the egg number at peak production (rg = +0.2 to rg = +0.4) which could be explained by genotype x environment effects. Other traits like egg weight, early egg production and body weight show high correlations between both testing environments.

In the last decade, there has been growing interest in the use of natural herbs and medicinal plants as feed additives in poultry diets to maximise their potential output. Ginger is one such potential rhizome with a wide range of medicinal effects. In broilers and layers, this plant has been used in different forms, doses and durations. In this review, documented effects of ginger in poultry feed on feed intake and feed conversion ratio, growth and weight gain, carcass yield, egg production and quality, antioxidants and blood biochemistry, with their possible mechanisms of action, are discussed.

This study aimed to investigate whether suboptimal incubation (SI) temperature in weeks 1 and 3 of layer embryo incubation affects their development and post-hatch adaptive capacity during infectious challenges, by using Eimeria as a model infection under normal and immediately after more challenging environmental conditions of 72 h heat exposure. Eggs (n = 160 per treatment) were incubated at optimal (OI = 37.8°C continuously) or suboptimal eggshell temperature (36.7°C, 37.8°C and 38.9°C in weeks 1, 2 and 3, respectively). At day 33 of age, half the chickens of each incubation treatment were exposed to 72 h heat (35°C), whereas the other half remained under control conditions (21°C). At day 36 of age, all chickens were inoculated with 1 ml of a phosphate buffer saline solution containing 25 000 sporulated Eimeria acervulina oocysts/ml. The adaptive response to E. acervulina was measured by BW gain and FI from days 0 to 3 post infection (p.i.), days 3 to 5 p.i. and days 5 to 7 p.i., and by oocyst production (days 4 and 7 p.i.) and lesion scores in the duodenum (day 3, 4 and 7 p.i.). Our results demonstrated that SI temperatures in weeks 1 and 3 of incubation resulted in a reduction in yolk-free BW, chick length and navel condition. Moreover, SI temperature appeared to reduce the adaptive capacity to E. acervulina. This was demonstrated by tendencies to lower FI (P = 0.07) and BW gain (P = 0.08), more duodenal lesions (P = 0.09) and higher oocyst production (P = 0.02) after inoculation of E. acervulina. Higher lesion scores and faecal oocyst numbers were especially found when suboptimal incubation was combined with heat exposure preceding the infection. In conclusion, SI layer chickens tend to be less able to cope with an infectious challenge post hatch.

Growth promoters are feed additives used to improve the rate and uniformity of broiler growth whilst increasing feed efficiency. Low, prophylactic doses of antibiotics have been standard practice. The development of direct antibiotic resistance of pathogens in the species receiving the feed, as well as the indirect resistance to similar antibiotics used in human medicine as the result of food chain residues, led to the suspension of the licenses for several major antibiotics in the European Union since 1971, and in 2006 licenses for all sub-therapeutic levels for growth promotion were withdrawn. Therefore, there is great interest in developing natural alternatives to antibiotic growth promoters in order to maintain both bird performance and health. Nigella sativa (black cumin) has been used – in herbal medicine- for centuries for treatment of various disorders including infections. The following review details recent studies on the potential benefits of black cumin in broilers and laying hens performance.

The current NRC recommendations for broiler chickens and laying hens are cause for concern within the animal feed industry, as they are based on very old trial data. This means the work was not only conducted with old-fashioned breeds of commercial chickens, but also relied on inorganic oxides and sulphates in feed and archaic diet formulation, with different quality and types of raw materials compared to those fed now. For modern poultry producers, these recommendations are so obsolete that they may be considered redundant for practical purposes. Broiler chickens and laying hens have benefitted from improvements in genetics and feeding practices since the 1950's and 60's, when many of the trials were run. They now also have the viable option of using chemically organic forms of minerals, which are known to be better absorbed, utilised and stored in tissues compared to inorganic ores. Since 2003, a program of research has been conducted comparing commercial organic minerals (Bioplexes®, Alltech Inc, USA) with inorganic forms, which monitored performance and excretion of minerals, as well as evaluating the new (lower) levels of organic minerals required for sustaining poultry performance. This large scale project began with a series of seminars, including one day on poultry, where global experts in this area discussed the problems and issues relating to mineral nutrition. A collection of the papers from these seminars were compiled and published (Taylor-Pickard and Tucker, 2005), and gave rise to a global project to redefine mineral nutrition. The following paper reviews the work completed to date, where chemically organic forms of minerals have been used in poultry diets.

An adequate supply of all nutrients, including proteins, fats, carbohydrates, vitamins, minerals and water, has to be provided to support maximum productivity of laying hens. Among these nutrients, vitamins are particularly important, since they are essential for optimum health as well as normal physiological functions of the hens. As most vitamins cannot be synthesized by poultry in sufficient amounts to meet physiological demand, they must be obtained from the diet. The absence from feed or impaired absorption or utilization of vitamins can lead to specific deficiency disorders. This review reports on the occurrence and the physiological functions of all vitamins and summarizes research related to the requirements for and the beneficial effects of supplemental vitamins for laying hens. The recommendations for dietary supplementation of vitamins from various organizations are compared and put into perspective of modern poultry genotypes and current husbandry conditions. As there is good evidence that the minimum dietary vitamin levels, required to prevent clinical deficiencies may not support optimum health, performance and welfare of poultry under today's conditions it is recommended to include a safety margin to the vitamin requirements of laying hens.

Most nutritional studies with minerals have been carried out using dietary supplements, with little attention given to the role of those commonly found in drinking water. This is important since underground water supplies, which may contain high concentrations of dissolved salts, is a common source of drinking water for poultry in many countries. Recent evidence suggests that some minerals may exert adverse effects on the performance of growing broilers and laying hens when present in drinking water at concentrations similar to those found in other sources. Commercially farmed birds already receive a balanced diet and if they are also receiving high levels of nutrient as salt in the water in the form of sodium and chloride ions, then the performance of the birds may be negatively affected.

A face to face survey was carried out in randomly selected 124 layer producers in 7 most important egg producing cities in Turkey between September 2006 and May 2007 in order to investigate the financial impacts of the Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (HPAI) outbreaks in Turkish commercial layer-egg producers. The financial analyses were divided into 3 periods, namely ‘before the outbreak (October 2004-January 2005)’, ‘during the outbreak (October 2005 - January 2006)’ and ‘after the outbreak (February-May 2006)’.

Comparing the egg prices ‘before the disease’ with the situation during the outbreaks, the egg prices dropped from 0.091 YTL/egg to 0.038 YTL/egg. On average, the rate of capacity utilization, enterprise incomes and profits declined by 40%, 75% and 200% respectively. 14.5% of the producers had to stop production for about 5 months. 64.5% invested on average 6,648 YTL/enterprise to improve bio-security. The debts of the enterprises increased 3-4 folds due to the disease outbreaks, with 87% of the producers having to outlay an extra 153,426 YTL on average from their personal funds.

In the ‘after the outbreak’ period, the prices and sales of table eggs recovered and even exceeded those of the ‘before the outbreak’ period, and the producers who managed to continue production appeared to be better off.

The modern poultry industry has a remarkable record in reducing mortality, applying a combination of effective disease control, adequate nutrition, good husbandry and genetic selection. Primary breeders, specialized in the adaptation of layers, broilers and turkeys to changing demands of a global food market, have made three major contributions in the past: (1) eradication of vertically transmitted disease agents such as lymphoid leucosis viruses, mycoplasmas and salmonellae; (2) selection between and within lines for general liveability and specific disease resistance; and (3) dissemination of management recommendations which may help customers to minimize losses at the commercial level. Current focus is on components of liveability which are directly or indirectly linked to poultry welfare: selection against feather pecking and cannibalism in egg-type chickens and selection against leg disorders and heart/lung dysfunction in rapidly growing meat poultry.

Feather growth, structure and patterns of moulting are important characteristics of poultry in commercial environments. As the market age for broilers continues to decline, the “maturity” of feather cover becomes even more important for protection of the skin and underlying tissue. Feather growth begins at around day 5 of incubation while keratinisation is complete 2 – 3 d prior to hatch. Feathers do not grow randomly over the skin surface, but rather in distinct tracts, which cover at most 75% of the skin surface. Broiler chickens will have about 50 g of feathers by market age, although at this early age some feathers will have already been lost by sequential moulting. Although most modern strains of poultry have white or brown feathers, there are various colour schemes that are again dictated during embryo development. In a subsequent paper, we will detail factors affecting feather growth, moulting and the Occurrence of various abnormalities.

In commercial production, there is often concern about the quantity and/or quality of feathering in both broilers and layers. For broilers, the concern is adequacy of protective feather cover, while in layers it is usually the necessary degree of feathering needed to optimise feed efficiency. Feather development is under the control of hormones such as thyroxine and oestrogen and indirectly by testosterone. Environmental or nutritional status that influences such hormonal output will indirectly affect feathering. In broilers, rate of feathering is influenced by genetics, since some 20 years ago there was a conscious decision to introduce slow (K) vs. fast (k) feathering as a means of sexing day-old chicks. With the relative “immaturity” of modern broilers, these genes influence feather cover well into the production cycle. In White Leghorn crosses, initial problems with apparent Leukosis susceptibility of the progeny of slow feathering dams had to be overcome by eradication of Leukosis before feather sexing could be generally introduced. Nutrition can influence rate of feathering as well as feather structure, colour and moulting. Amino acid balance and especially deficiencies of TSAA and branched chain amino acids will influence feathering in young birds. Deficiency of vitamins and certain trace minerals also induce characteristic feather abnormalities, as does the presence of dietary mycotoxins. A number of viruses, bacteria and mycoplasma can infect the feather follicle and so influence feather development. Feather pecking and feather licking are behavioural abnormalities, although these conditions can be induced by changes in environmental conditions or nutritional adequacy of the diet.