Formaldehydes in Feed and Their Potential Interaction With the Poultry Gastrointestinal Tract Microbial Community–A Review

Abstract

As antibiotics continue to be phased out of livestock production, alternative feed amendments have received increased interest not only from a research standpoint but for commercial application. Most of the emphasis to date has focused on food safety aspects, particularly on lowering the incidence of foodborne pathogens in livestock. Several candidates are currently either being examined or are already being implemented in commercial settings. Among these candidates are chemical compounds such as formaldehyde. Formaldehyde has historically been used to inhibit Salmonella in feeds during feed processing. Currently, there are several commercial products available for this purpose. This review will cover both the historical background, current research, and prospects for further research on the poultry gastrointestinal tract and feeds treated with formaldehyde.

Formic Acid as an Antimicrobial for Poultry Production: A Review

“…Consequently, the development of feed additives and amendments that meet at least some of these requirements (improvements in animal health, welfare, and productivity of animals) has been an ongoing interest both from an academic research standpoint as well as a commercial development effort (5,9). Numerous commercial feed additive products have entered into the food animal production market ranging from probiotics and prebiotics to a broad spectrum of essential oils and related compounds from botanical sources as well as chemicals such as aldehydes (10)(11)(12)(13)(14). Other commercial feed additives common to the poultry industry are bacteriophages, zinc oxide, exogenous enzymes, competitive exclusion products, and acidic compounds (15,16).…”

“…Among the available choices of chemical feed additives, aldehydes and organic acids have historically been the more extensively studied and utilized group of compounds (12,(17)(18)(19)(20)(21). Organic acids, particularly short-chain fatty acids (SCFA), are well-known antagonists to pathogenic bacteria.…”

Draft Genome Sequences of 11 Bacterial Strains Isolated from Commercial Corn-Based Poultry Feed

“…T he microbial composition of poultry feed could be a critical factor for the development and growth of broilers and the establishment of their gastrointestinal tract (GIT) microbiome, particularly for those given feeds treated with antimicrobials, such as formaldehyde (1). Poultry feed harbors a wide array of microorganisms, including some potential pathogens (2).…”

“…However, little is known about the taxonomy of nonpathogenic bacteria associated with commercial feeds. Since the presence of pathogens is relatively infrequent, it is important to gain a better understanding of the distribution and prevalence of nonpathogens (1,2). Hygienic indicator organisms, represented by total aerobic colony count and coliform count, as well as Enterobacteriaceae, function in a way similar to that of particular foodborne pathogens and thus offer a permanent method for assessing and predicting the efficiency of sanitization agents against consequent pathogens that are difficult to detect (2).…”

Managing botulism outbreaks associated with poultry litter: balancing perceived animal welfare with disease prevention

“…A more pressing concern currently is the ban on formaldehyde as a feed additive 5. This ban has already led to an increase in the incidence of Salmonella species in indoor poultry,6 and it is possible that a similar increase to the risk of botulism may occur.…”