Feed producers and nutritionists across Europe are currently facing one of the toughest challenges of the year: new crop variability. The issue of variability has been highlighted this month, with the release of a European Commission report. Summarising a 30-year study, the report concludes that climate change is responsible for 40% of wheat production variability[1].
New crop variability can negatively affect feed conversion and other production indicators, impacting performance and profits. In a bid to tackle this, more producers are using information provided by the latest NIR (near infrared spectroscopy) technology.
Recent advances in NIR mean that a wider range of parameters can now be analysed – including energy, starch and phytate. Measuring these elements within cereals enables producers to build a clearer picture of the new harvest quality and to make decisions to minimise the impact of variability.
William Greenwood, AB Vista NIR Technical Sales Manager EMEA, says:
“Such information is not limited to local stocks of crops, but is available on a global scale: our Feed Quality Service helps customers to understand variability of animal feed ingredients and finished feeds on a worldwide basis.
“Understanding how the new crop differs from the old crop is extremely valuable, as changes in levels of key parameters due to different growing conditions prior to harvest can negatively impact the business via increased feed costs, reduced animal performance and more complex formulation decisions. The level of impact can vary depending on a producer’s geographical location and on the choice of the cereal supplier.”
AB Vista uses advanced NIR spectroscopy, coupled with nutritional expertise and data analysis, to help customers make more informed buying decisions and quicker formulation choices. The company’s Feed Quality Service provides analysis on a wide range of parameters – including energy, phytate, non-starch polysaccharides (NSPs), reactive lysine and vitreousness – across a variety of raw materials.
For more information, contact AB Vista on +34 918591787 or emea@abvista.com. Follow AB Vista on Twitter: @ABVista_EMEA.
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Notes to editor:
AB Vista is an animal nutrition technology company offering pioneering products and technical services to the global animal feed industry. Since its establishment in 2004, AB Vista has grown to be a top-three player in feed enzymes and is also one of the largest suppliers of natural betaine to the global animal nutrition industry. The company invests heavily in research and development and has a growing portfolio of products and services spanning the poultry, swine, ruminant and aquaculture sectors. AB Vista is headquartered in the UK, with regional offices located in the USA, Brazil, Singapore, Spain, India, China, Germany and Finland.
AB Vista is part of AB Agri, the agricultural division of Associated British Foods, one of Europe’s largest food & retail companies with a market capitalisation of £22 billion.
For further press information please contact Nic Daley or Mike Keeler on +44 (0)20 8647 4467.
ABEMEA/027/17
[1] https://ec.europa.eu/jrc/en/news/extreme-weather-conditions-and-climate-change-account-40-global-wheat-production-variability
