New corn has potential to take poultry production to higher levels of productivity, studies show
WOBURN, Mass.,—November 6, 2018—Agrivida, a privately held biotechnology company, today announces the availability of its innovative GRAINZYME® Phytase for use in poultry operations. An industry first, the new enzyme feed additive is delivered in corn, offering a more convenient, nutritious, and responsible phytase than previously available. Approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), new GRAINZYME Phytase makes it possible for producers to provide their flocks with higher, optimal doses of phytase, enabling them to increase their return on investment by improving bird performance, lowering production expenses, and reducing waste.
GRAINZYME Phytase has potential to transform the industry
“Study results with GRAINZYME Phytase demonstrate in excess of $20 worth of improved animal performance per ton of feed over traditional phytase doses,” says Michael Lanahan, Ph.D., chief commercial officer at Agrivida and one of the scientists involved in its development. “I believe GRAINZYME Phytase has the potential to bring exceptional added value to the poultry industry.
“GRAINZYME Phytase is an elegant solution because the functional benefits of enzymes are built right into the grain,” he continues. “GRAINZYME corn is grown, milled, and then provided to customers for inclusion in animal feed, replacing just a fraction of the traditional corn that producers already feed their flocks. No special processing is required to use it.”
Current phytase production methods come with high operating and capital investment costs, not to mention downstream recovery and formulation costs. Small additions of corn-based GRAINZYME Phytase can deliver high levels of the enzyme to poultry diets, providing producers with a simple, easy, and sustainable alternative that provides substantial benefits over microbially produced phytase.
Strong body of evidence-based data
Over 30 well-controlled studies of GRAINZYME Phytase have been conducted at independent laboratories and multiple universities across the U.S., including the University of Georgia, University of Missouri, N.C. State University, Texas A&M University, West Virginia University, and others.
An important late-stage evaluation of GRAINZYME Phytase took place at West Virginia University which recently invested $1 million in a new feed mill to further support poultry research. The university’s team, headed by Joe Moritz, Ph.D., professor of nutrition and feed manufacturing, helps manufacturers like Agrivida evaluate products for stability and uniformity.
“I’ve known for a long time that there was a lot of excitement about this GRAINZYME corn,” says Moritz. “Other additives may dilute the nutritional content of the feed, but GRAINZYME Phytase doesn’t. This is an easy way to add enzymes because they are delivered in corn–right there in the grain itself. Nutritionists deal with as many as 25 ingredients, so the fact that it’s in corn is very important to them. Having evaluated GRAINZYME Phytase in our laboratory, we have observed product uniformity post-feed mixing, high enzyme activity after steam conditioning and pelleting, and efficacy in broiler feeding studies.”
More innovative products to come using Agrivida’s corn platform
Having shown that it is possible to express a variety of functional proteins at high levels in corn, Agrivida intends to use its corn platform to deliver many different enzymes and to expand the scope of the technology to proteins that may benefit animal health.
About Agrivida
Imagine it. Deliver it. Committed to building a better future for everyone, Agrivida scientists are experts in biochemistry, plant biology, molecular biology, agriculture, and nutrition. Dynamically addressing the needs of both animal nutrition and animal health through its unique technology platform, Agrivida is delivering on its promise of innovative new corn products that offer effective, simple, and convenient solutions more sustainably than ever before. The company’s corn-based feed additive, GRAINZYME® Phytase, is just the first of many products that will benefit producers of poultry, swine, dairy and beef cattle, and aquaculture. For more information, visit Agrivida.com.