Effects of β-mannanase enzyme supplementation on the growth performance and post-weaning diarrhea incidence in piglets on an alternative diet with additional soybean meal

Substitution of the expensive protein sources included in the nursery diet with soybean meal (SBM) would be economically advantageous. β-Mannan is an antinutritive factor found in SBM that can be degraded with a β-mannanase, which has been shown to restore and improve performance in swine. The objective of the current study was to evaluate the effects of β-mannanase supplementation to nursery diets with reduced content of expensive, high-quality proteins on performance and health of nursery piglets. The current study was conducted on a farm which had historical episodes of post-weaning diarrhea. In total, 896 newly weaned piglets were enrolled in two consecutive trials. Each trial consisted of 32 pens of 14 piglets housed in one large post-weaning compartment. Piglets at the same feeder were randomly assigned to the two treatment groups. The study compared the performance of post-weaned piglets fed either a commercial 3-phase nursery diet (Control) or an adapted diet supplemented with a β-mannanase (Enzyme), with some of the more expensive proteins replaced by soybean meal in phase 1 and 2, and net energy (NE) content reduced by 65 kcal/kg in phase 3.

The study showed similar performance on the alternative diet with β-mannanase and the common commercial diets. However, the Enzyme treated group had a significantly better general clinical score. In total, 7 (1.56%) piglets died in the Control group, whereas only 2 (0.45%) piglets died in the Enzyme treated group, but the difference was non-significant.

In conclusion, the results suggest that the use of an exogenous heat-tolerant β-mannanase allowed reduced levels of expensive protein sources to be used in the first two diets fed post-weaning, and 65 kcal/kg lower net energy content to be used in the third diet without adverse effects on intestinal health or overall performance. In fact, the occurrence of post-weaning diarrhea and number of individual treatments during the post-weaning period were significantly reduced on the β-mannanase supplemented diets.

Vangroenweghe F, Poulsen K, Thas O. Supplementation of a β-mannanase enzyme reduces post-weaning diarrhea and antibiotic use in piglets on an alternative diet with additional soybean meal. Porcine Health Management. 2021; 7(1): 1-12. https://doi.org/10.1186/s40813-021-00191-5