SCREENING ALTERNATE SOURCES OF ANTIBIOTICS FOR BROILER PRODUCTION: A REVIEW

Abstract

Antibiotics are commonly used in poultry industry for their antimicrobial activity, ability to prevent diseases, therapy and widely used as sub-therapeutic doses for promoting growth. Overuse and misuse of antibiotics in food animal induces resistant bacteria into the environment so that consumer demand for poultry products rises from ‘Antibiotics free’ or ‘No Antibiotics Ever’ flocks .Because of banning on the use of antibiotics as growth promoters in poultry industry, the search for alternatives to replace antibiotics, without causing loss of productivity or product quality, has gained increasing interest in poultry nutrition. In this review, we are going to discuss the potential for alternatives available to increase productivity and help to perform their genetic potential under existing commercial conditions. Several classes of alternatives described including probiotics, prebiotics, synbiotics, organic acids, phytobiotics, and antimicrobial peptides with their mechanism of action, efficacy, and advantages and disadvantages of their uses. Good management and husbandry practices with proper combinations of various alternatives will maximize the performance and production with the ultimate goal of reducing antibiotic use in the poultry industry.