TEXT: WIEBE VAN DER SLUIS
After many years of trial and error, a successful system is now available
Early feeding system for turkey poults finally a reality The successful introduction of early feeding systems in the broiler industry raised the question whether turkey growers could also take advantage of it. After many years of trial and error, a successful system is now finally available with huge improvements in turkey poult performance.
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S company Life-Science Innovations from Willmar, Minnesota, has been working on early feeding and water for poults for over 5 years. The company has over 70 years’ experience in the different aspects of the turkey industry with extensive experience in the hatchery industry, operating the largest turkey hatchery and poult distribution in the world at one time. Since the hatch window in turkeys is much wider than in broilers, it is more difficult to give poults a perfect start after hatch. Therefore, early feeding and watering could provide opportunities to overcome the many early growth issues in turkey production. After trying various options, Life-Science Innovations had to admit that significant improvements could not be achieved with traditional techniques. Unknown world They approached HatchTech to develop a system for turkeys like they had done for broilers. ‘Initially, we were not ready to enter the turkey world because we wanted to first complete
our HatchCare system for broilers before making something for turkeys,’ HatchTech commercial director Joost ter Heerdt explains. ‘Besides, at that moment we knew a lot about chickens but little about turkeys, which made us reluctant to step into this unknown world.’ By the end of 2019, Life-Science Innovations and HatchTech got together and started discussing how they could collaborate and create value for the turkey industry. Through many trials and extensive adjustments, because a turkey is not just a big chicken, they managed to make a working early feeding system for turkeys, based on HatchCare.
A turkey is not just a big chicken
POULTRY NL 2022
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