Egg shell benefits from calcium source

//15 May 2012 Using the feed material calcium pidolate in layer feed reduces the number of downgraded eggs and is proven to improve bone strength, research from the French National Centre of Veterinary and Animal Studies (CNEVA) has revealed. Registered as PIDOLin PCa, calcium pidolate is derived partly from limestone, which contains supplementary amounts of the amino acids argenine and proline - both key components of collagen, which makes up 95% of the eggshell's membrane. While other sources of calcium are absorbed between 10-30%, depending on the pH of the gut, the calcium from PIDOLin PCa is absorbed in the gut at a constant 95%, because it isn't pH dependent. "Pidolic acid is a precursor of amino acids in intestinal cells. These amino acids (argenine and proline) are fundamental in the binding process of calcium. Argenine accounts for 28% of calcium binding protein. More presence of that binder results in better absorption and transfer of calcium in the blood and the uterus where the egg shell is produced," said Xavier Roulleau, manager of Terafeed, the French company which developed the calcium pidolate molecule. Although a balanced nutritious diet will provide the bird with calcium, as the bird gets older the hen is unable to mobilise enough for shell development and to fully replenish the calcium it has mobilised from the bone. This means it is left with a calcium deficit. "Producing an egg drains calcium reserves from the bone, so later in the laying cycle shell quality gets poorer. By using PIDOLin PCa, the bird is able to put more calcium into reserve," he told Poultry World on a fact-finding trip to France. The feed material could also aid broiler production, as it is proven to strengthen bones and accelerate growth. Source: Poultry World (FWi)