Grupo Alvorada has Biocamp’s probiotic program

Grupo Alvorada is one of the largest producers and traders of fertile eggs and day-old chicks in the country. For over 50 years it has invested in technology and production techniques to ensure the quality of its products.

All these years of history have contributed to a well-consolidated sanitary identity. Grupo Alvorada is recognized as one of the greatest national examples of biosecurity in its segment. With 100% owned units, the production process is closely monitored, which enables greater sanitary control and standardization of the breeding processes. All this care allows the company to produce fertile eggs and chicks without the use of antibiotic growth promoters.

However, to control the health of the broiler breeder flocks, Grupo Alvorada uses other tools. One of them is a program of competitive exclusion probiotics developed by Biocamp.

This partnership has lasted for over 10 years and exists not only because of the trust and good relationship established between the parties, but mainly because of the results achieved. It is about them that we will talk in this article.

Biosecurity is the watchword

Currently, Grupo Alvorada has a breeding stock with more than 2 million broiler breeders. The production is of 27 million fertile eggs per month, a portion of which is sold in the internal/external markets and the other part is incubated for chick production.

Biosecurity has always been a key word within the Group, something essential for the production of fertile eggs and high-quality day-old chicks. The company

follows all the requirements of the Brazilian legislation established by the Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Supply (MAPA), such as total isolation of the production areas, for example. But the care goes beyond.

André Pessamilio, veterinarian and production director of Grupo Alvorada

André Pessamilio, veterinarian and production director of Grupo Alvorada, says that the “fight” with salmonella and mycoplasma goes beyond the physical structure of the company and the handling processes. It also applies to the hiring process of a new employee, checking whether he has contact with chicks in his home or in other places.  “We have a control of monitoring the baths to enter the farm and change clothes. Besides this, the farms, feed mills and wood shavings factories are all surrounded not only by fences, as required by law, but also by walls and anti-mouse plates.

These are some of the measures that make Grupo Alvorada one of the greatest examples of biosecurity in the production of fertile eggs and day-old chicks.  “We have all the necessary barriers so that diseases and contaminants do not reach the chickens. However, we also need to take care of the health of the chickens. That is why we make use of probiotics,” says André.

Competitive exclusion probiotics

The probiotics used by Grupo Alvorada are classified as competitive exclusion products. This type of probiotic has hundreds of species of bacteria that colonize all intestinal segments of the poultry – including the cecum – bringing as direct benefits the balance of the microbiota, intestinal integrity, control of pathogenic bacteria such as salmonella, Escherichia coli (APEC) and Clostridium perfringens, and zootechnical gains in the rearing and production stages.

Benefits for the rearing phase

“In the rearing phase, between 0 and 22 weeks, is when the chicken is still growing. A colonization with beneficial bacteria comes in to protect the poultry and further improve their immune system. After all, a sick hen does not eat, and lags behind in her development compared to other poultry. And this impacts negatively on the uniformity of the flock. By using probiotics, we will have a more uniform reared hen with a body condition suitable to be a good egg producer,” André explains.

Benefits for the production phase

“The production phase is a continuation of the rearing phase, but with the addition of being a more stressful period for the hens. This is because they are transported to the production farm, males and females are mated, there is a dispute over territory and a great hormonal discharge for egg production. The onset and peak of egg production usually occurs between 25 and 35 weeks. This period demands a lot from the broiler breeders, which makes this phase very challenging for the chickens, and can negatively impact the intestinal quality. Probiotics help maintain a healthy gut, favoring the absorption of nutrients and contributing to better flock productivity,” says André.

Maintaining the intestinal quality of the chickens both in rearing and production is fundamental to Grupo Alvorada’s business, which has plans to expand its production by the end of the year to 30 million fertile eggs per month. And the challenge of raising broiler breeding stock without the use of antibiotic growth promoters is possible with the continuous use of competitive exclusion probiotics, which modulate the intestinal microbiota of broiler breeders from the first day of life, allowing these chickens to have optimal intestinal quality and high zootechnical indexes.

You can’t change a winning team

For André Pessamilio, biosecurity and the use of competitive exclusion probiotics of Biocamp have been extremely important for the quality of the product they sell, to ensure deliveries to customers and maintain the company’s credibility. “We can even add other tools and solutions, but we are not going to mess with a gear that has been running for so long and bringing satisfactory results.”

When we talk about fertile egg quality, we refer to two essential issues: hatchability and the sanitary status of the chicks. If these two items are not satisfactory, the sustainability of the business may be at risk. “Today, with all the measures adopted, Grupo Alvorada can set up a sales program for the whole year with the assurance that there will be no setbacks along the way,” assures Pessamilio.

Colostrum® Line and Grupo Alvorada

Grupo Alvorada uses the competitive exclusion probiotics Colostrum® Mix and Colostrum® Liquid. Their continuous use from the first day of life is essential for the control of pathogenic bacteria.  

They are part of the NAGF (Normal Avian Gut Flora) group of probiotics, which have a great diversity of lactic, anaerobic and facultative anaerobic bacteria species. This type of probiotic is able to colonize all intestinal segments, including the poultry´s cecum, and this makes a big difference in the sanitary control and zootechnical performance of the broiler breeders.

 The Colostrum® line is indicated to promote the intestinal health of the poultry through the colonization/recolonization of the intestinal microbiota, to control enteric diseases such as salmonellosis, clostridiosis and colibacillosis and to help achieve improvements in the zootechnical performance of the chickens.

It is an honor for Biocamp to have a partner such as Grupo Alvorada, which is synonymous with quality, biosecurity and reference in the market. It is a great satisfaction to know that the systematic use of the probiotics Colostrum® Mix and Colostrum® Liquid are essential tools to achieve this level.