WO2020254785A1

WO2020254785A1 - Seaweed blend

Info

Publication number: WO2020254785A1
Application number: PCT/GB2020/051403
Authority: WO
Inventors: Graham Ellis; Jason SANDS
Original assignee: Ocean Harvest Technology (UK)
Priority date: 2019-06-19
Filing date: 2020-06-11
Publication date: 2020-12-24
Also published as: GB201908755D0; GB2594432A; GB2594432B

Abstract

Use of a seaweed blend to improve the quantity and/or quality of eggs produced by egg laying birds. The seaweed blend may increase the mean number of eggs produced per egg laying bird; the mean mass per egg; or the total mass of eggs produced. The seaweed blend may comprise a blend of green seaweed, brown seaweed and red seaweed, such as 70 to 80wt% green seaweed, 15 to 25wt% brown seaweed and 2 to 10wt% red seaweed. The green seaweed may comprise Ulva; the brown seaweed may comprise Sargassum and/or Ascophyllum; and/or the red seaweed comprises Gracilaria.

Description

SEAWEED BLEND

The present invention relates to the use of a seaweed blend as a feed supplement, and feed compositions comprising the seaweed blend, particularly for egg laying birds.

Background to the invention

Eggs, especially chicken eggs, are a popular food for human consumption. Commercial laying hens are kept for egg production using a cage, barn or free-range system. While hens forage for food, they are also provided with specially formulated feed and feed supplements to meet their dietary needs. Common feed supplements for chickens include grit (to aid digestion), calcium and vitamins, such as vitamin D and vitamin E. More unusual supplements include Dunaliella, a single-celled algae, which is rich in beta-carotene.

There is a desire to improve egg production methods, including reducing the use of antibiotics and increasing efficiency. Increased efficiency is useful for economic reasons and may also have benefits in terms of reducing environmental impact and improving animal welfare.

Summary of the Invention

According to a first aspect of the invention there is provided the use of a seaweed blend to increase the quantity or quality of eggs produced by egg laying birds (hens).

Seaweed, or macroalgae, refers to macroscopic, multicellular, marine algae. The term includes Rhodophyta (red), Phaeophyta (brown) and Chlorophyta (green) macroalgae.

The inventors have determined that the seaweed blend of the invention provides surprising benefits when employed as a feed supplement for egg laying birds. The benefits may include an improvement in the quantity and/or the quality of the eggs laid by birds receiving the feed supplement.

GB2189675 describes the use of a beta-carotene rich algae of the Dunaliella genus as a feed supplement for poultry. The feed supplement is said to provide a source of vitamin A and to enhance the yellow colour of the egg yolk. Dunaliella is a single- celled algae whereas the present invention relates to a seaweed, which is a macroalgae. Moreover, GB2189675 is concerned with one specific type of algae that is unusually rich in beta-carotene, whereas the present invention requires a blend, i.e. more than one type of seaweed.

According to a second aspect of the invention there is provided a method of improving the quantity or quality of eggs produced by egg laying birds, the method comprising providing a feed supplement comprising a seaweed blend to the egg laying birds.

According to a third aspect of the invention there is provided a feed composition for egg laying birds, the composition comprising

wheat and/or maize (corn);

a protein source;

a calcium source;

a phosphorus source; and

a seaweed blend;

wherein the feed composition comprises at least 3wt% calcium and the ratio of calcium to phosphorus is at least 4: 1.

The feed composition of the third aspect provides nutrition for egg laying birds, which require more calcium and a higher calcium to phosphorus ratio than broiler birds, which are raised for meat.

Detailed Description of the Invention

Benefits

The seaweed blend provides benefits when employed as a feed supplement for egg laying birds (hens). The benefits may include an increase in egg numbers, an increase in mass per egg, an increase in the total mass of eggs produced, an increase in feed efficiency, increasing the strength of the egg shell and/or optimising egg shell properties (including shell thickness/weight). The benefits can be assessed by comparing eggs produced by birds fed the seaweed blend to eggs produced by control birds, not feed the seaweed blend. The invention resides in the use of the seaweed blend to increase the amount (quantity) of the eggs produced. This can be measured in terms of the average (mean) number of eggs produced by a hen in a given period, such as per day or per week. This can also be measured in terms of the proportion of hens that lay eggs in a given period, such as per day. An increase in egg production may also described by an increase in the mass of the eggs produced by the egg laying birds. This can be measured in terms of the average (mean) mass per egg or the total mass of eggs produced. An increase in egg production can be also be described in relation to an increase in feed conversion, i.e. the mass of eggs produced for a given amount of feed that is consumed by the egg laying birds.

As demonstrated in the examples, the mean number of eggs produced per hen was 77.9, 78.3 and 78.4 for laying hens fed a control diet or the control diet with the seaweed blend included at 0.5wt% and 1.0wt%, respectively.

As demonstrated in the examples, egg production (%/hen/day) was 92.6, 93.4 and 93.4 for laying hens fed a control diet or the control diet with the seaweed blend included at 0.5wt% and 1.0wt%, respectively.

As demonstrated in the examples average (mean) egg mass was 60.2g, 60.2g and 60.7g for laying hens fed a control diet or the control diet with the seaweed blend included at 0.5wt% and 1.0wt% respectively. As demonstrated in the examples, the average (mean) egg mass (g/cage/day) was 223.6g, 227.2g and 227.7g for laying hens fed a control diet or the control diet with the seaweed blend included at 0.5wt% and 1.0wt% respectively.

The invention resides in the use of the seaweed blend to improve feed conversion efficiency. This can be measured in terms of the mass of eggs produced for given mass of feed.

As demonstrated in the examples, laying hens fed a control diet or the control diet with the seaweed blend included at 0.5wt% and 1.0wt%, converted feed to eggs at an average (mean) of 0.448, 0.451 and 0.454, respectively. The invention resides in the use of the seaweed blend to increase the quality of eggs produced, such as the quality of the egg shell, the colour of the yolk and the height of its egg white (albumin). The quality of the egg shell can be measured in terms of the number of cracked eggs produced, the number of soft eggs produced and/or by measuring the egg shell thickness/weight.

As demonstrated in the examples, a total of 20 cracked or soft eggs were produced by hens fed a control diet compared to 13 and 15 cracked or soft eggs produced by hens fed the control diet with the seaweed blend added at 0.5wt% and lwt%, respectively.

The seaweed blend may be employed to enhance the colour of the yolk, to provide a deeper yellow or orange yolk. This may be determined visually or spectrally, such as by using an acetone extract. The AOAC method (AOAC 958.05-1974, Color of egg yolks) may be employed.

The seaweed blend may be used to increase the Haugh Unit (HU) of the eggs produced by the egg laying birds that are fed the seaweed blend. The higher the HU, the higher the quality of the egg: AA = 72 or more; A = 71 - 60; B = 59 - 31 and C = 30 or less.

HU is a measure of egg protein quality based on the height of its egg white (albumen), using the formula:

HU = 100 x logio(/?-1.7w^{0 37} + 7.6) h = observed height of the albumen (mm) and w = weight of egg (g)

To determine HU, an egg is weighed, then broken onto a flat surface (breakout method), and a micrometer is used to determine the height of the thick albumen (egg white) that immediately surrounds the yolk. A thicker (more viscous) egg white will be higher than a thinner (more watery) egg white. HU can be measured at a temperature from 45 to 60 ° F (7.2 to 15.6 °C). The eggs produced from birds fed the seaweed blend may have an average (mean) HU of 60 or more, 65 or more, 70 or more or 75 or more and/or the eggs may have an average (mean) HU of 130 or less, 110 or less, or 90 or less.

Seaweed blend

As noted above, seaweed, or macroalgae, refers to macroscopic, multicellular, marine algae. The term includes Rhodophyta (red), Phaeophyta (brown) and Chlorophyta (green) macroalgae.

The seaweed blend may comprise a blend of green seaweed (e.g. Ulva), a brown seaweed (e.g. Sargassum or Ascophyllum) and a red seaweed (e.g. Gracilaria). The seaweed blend may comprise 50 to 90wt% (e.g. 70 to 80wt%) green seaweed, 10 to 30wt% (e.g. 15 to 25wt%) brown seaweed and 2 to 10wt% (e.g. 3 to 8wt%) red seaweed. All values are given on a dry weight basis.

Seaweed can be described by reference to its genus. Seaweed genera include Ulva (green), Sargassum (brown), Fucus (brown), Gracilaria (red), Ascophyllum (brown), Uaminaria (brown), Macrocystis (brown), Monostroma (green) and Porphyra (green).

The seaweed blend may comprise seaweed from at least two, at least three or at least four different genera. The seaweed blend may be prepared by drying different types of seaweed and then combining them. Alternatively, different types of seaweed may be combined and then dried to form the seaweed blend.

The Ulva genus includes Ulva lactuca, known by the common name sea lettuce. The seaweed blend may comprise at least 50wt%, at least 60wt% or at least 70wt% Ulva and/or the seaweed blend may comprise 90wt% or less, 85wt% or less or 80wt% of less Ulva.

The Sargassum genus includes Sargassum muticum (species), known by the common name Japanese wireweed. The seaweed blend may comprise at least lwt%, at least 3wt%, at least 5wt, at least 10wt% or at least 15wt% Sargassum and/or the seaweed blend may comprise 50wt% or less, 30wt% or less, 20wt% or less, 10wt% or less or 5wt% or less Sargassum. The seaweed blend may comprise 0% sargassum. The genus Ascophyllum includes Ascophyllum nodosum. The seaweed blend may comprise at least 3wt%, at least 5wt%, at least 8wt%, at least 10wt%, at least 15wt% or at least 20wt% Ascophyllum and/or the seaweed blend may comprise 30wt% or less, 25wt% or less, 20wt% or less, 12wt% or less or 8wt% or less Ascophyllum.

The genus Gracilaria includes the species: Gracilaria bursa-pastoris, Gracilaria multipartite, Gracilaria gracilis, Gracilariopsis longissimi, Gracilaria verrucosa and Gracilaria confervoides. The seaweed blend may comprise at least 2wt% at least 3wt% or at least 5wt% Gracilaria and/or the seaweed blend may comprise 20wt% or less, 12wt% or less or 8wt% or less Gracilaria.

The seaweed blend may comprise Uithothamnion corallioides, Uithothamnion glaciale and/or Phymatolithon calcareum, commonly referred to as“Maerl”.

Specific seaweed blends are set out in the table below.

The seaweed blend may comprise Ulva, Sargassum, Gracilaria, Ascophyllum and/or Maerl. For example, the seaweed blend may comprise 70-80wt% Ulva, 10-20wt% Sargassum, 3-8wt% Gracilaria, 3-8wt% Ascophyllum and 0-3wt% Maerl.

The seaweed blend comprises seaweed from the genera (i) Ulva, (ii) Gracilaria, and (iii) Sargassum, Gracilaria and/or Ascophyllum, for example (i) 65-85wt% Ulva, (ii) 2-15wt% Gracilaria, and (iii) 5-25wt% Sargassum and/or Ascophyllum.

Feeding regime

The seaweed blend may be provided to the egg laying birds together with their regular feed (e.g. incorporated into a feed composition) or it may be provided separately from their regular feed. The seaweed blend may be incorporated into feed pellets. The feed pellets may be mixed into a diet on site (e.g. at a farm), or fed separately.

In either case, the amount used can be described relative to the amount of feed. The seaweed blend may be fed to the egg laying birds in an amount that is at least 0.2wt%, at least 0.3wt%, at least 0.5wt%, at least 0.7wt%, at least 1.0wt%, at least 1.5wt% or at least 2.0wt% of the regular feed and/or the seaweed blend may be fed to the egg laying birds in an amount that is 5wt% or less, 3wt% or less, 2wt% or less 1.5wt% or less of the regular feed.

The seaweed blend may be provided ad libitum to allow the hens to consume the supplement as desired. Alternatively, the seaweed blend may be provided at regular intervals, such as once as day; every other day; or one a week.

The seaweed blend may be provided for at least 1 week, at least 4 weeks, at least 8 weeks, at least 12 weeks, at least 24 weeks, at least 36 weeks or at least 50 weeks and/or the seaweed blend may be provided for 60 weeks or less, 45 weeks or less, 30 weeks or less, 24 weeks or less or 20 weeks or less.

The seaweed blend may be employed in the absence of antibiotics and/or coccidiostat.

The seaweed blend may be incorporated into a feed composition as described in the third aspect of the invention. The composition comprises wheat and/or maize (corn), a protein source, a calcium source, a phosphorus source and a seaweed blend, wherein the feed composition comprises at least 3wt% calcium and the ratio of calcium to phosphorus is at least 4: 1.

The feed composition comprises a calcium source. Suitable calcium sources include limestone and oyster shell. While the seaweed blend may contain calcium (such as from maerl), it will be understood that the calcium source is a separate ingredient from the seaweed blend. Of course, when analysing the end product it may not be possible to determine the source of the calcium. The feed composition may comprise at least 3.5wt%, at least 4wt%, at least 4.5wt% or at least 5wt% (total) calcium and/or the feed composition may comprise 6wt% or less, 5wt% or less or 4wt% or less (total) calcium. The feed composition comprises a phosphorus source. Suitable phosphorus sources include inorganic feed phosphates (IFP), such as anhydrous dicalcium phosphate (DCP, CaHP0₄). While the seaweed blend may contain phosphorus (such as from red seaweed), it will be understood that the phosphorous source is a separate ingredient from the seaweed blend. The feed composition may comprise at least 0.1 wt%, at least 0.3wt%, or at least 0.5wt% (total phosphorus) and/or the feed composition may comprise lwt% or less, 0.8wt% or less or 0.6wt% or less (total) phosphorus. The feed composition comprises calcium and phosphorus and the ratio of (total) calcium to (total) phosphorus may be at least 5: 1, at least 6: 1 or at least 7: 1 and/or the ratio of (total) calcium to (total) phosphorus may be <20: 1, <15: 1, <10: 1 or <8: 1.

Not all phosphorus is digestible so the feed composition may be described with reference to its digestible phosphorus content. The digestible phosphorus content may be quoted by the manufacturer or determined by analysis (a digestibility assay). The feed composition may comprise at least 0.1wt%, at least 0.2wt%, or at least 0.4wt% digestible phosphorus and/or the feed composition may comprise 0.9wt% or less, 0.7wt% or less or 0.5wt% or less digestible phosphorus.

The feed composition comprises calcium and digestible phosphorus and the ratio of calcium to digestible phosphorus may be at least 5: 1, at least 6: 1, at last 7: 1, or at least 8: 1 and/or the ratio of calcium to digestible phosphorus may be <20: 1, <16: 1, <12: 1 or <10: 1.

The feed composition comprises a protein source. Suitable protein sources include soybean meal, sunflower meal, crabmeal, fishmeal, alfalfa meal, peas, lentils, and quinoa. The feed composition may comprise at least 10wt%, at least 14wt%, at least 16wt%, at least 18wt%, or at least 20wt% protein and/or the feed composition may comprise 21wt% or less, 20wt% or less, 19wt% or less, 18wt% or less, 17wt% or less, 16wt% or less, 16.5wt% or less, 16wt%, 15.5wt% or less or 15wt% or less protein. Egg laying birds generally require 16 to 20wt% protein whereas broiler (meat) birds require higher protein diets, such as 22 to 24wt% protein. The feed composition may comprise from 10 to 70wt% wheat and/or maize; from 20 to 60wt% wheat and/or maize; or from 30 to 50wt% wheat and/or maize. The feed composition may comprise from 0 to 75wt% wheat, from 10 to 65wt% wheat, from 20 to 60wt% wheat and/or maize, or from 30 to 50wt% wheat.

The feed composition may comprise from 0 to 50wt% maize, from 5 to 40wt% maize, from 10 to 30wt% maize or from 15 to 20wt% maize.

The feed composition may comprise additional ingredients such as a fat or an oil (e.g. soya oil), salt, vitamins and minerals.

The feed composition may comprise (i) 50 to 70wt% wheat and/or maize; (ii) 20 to 25wt% protein source; (iii) 5 to 15wt% calcium source; (iv) 1 to 3wt% phosphorus source; and (v) 0.3 to 3wt% seaweed blend.

Examples of suitable nutrient diets for egg laying birds (at 100 g per day intake level):

Egg laving birds

The seaweed blend of the present invention is useful for all egg laying birds including chickens, ducks, quail, goose, turkey, pheasant, guineafowl, and ostrich. It will be understood that the term hen is not limited to female chickens.

The eggs laying birds may comprise chickens, ducks, quail, geese and/or turkeys.

The eggs laying birds may comprise chickens. The egg laying birds may comprise chickens of one or more of the following breeds: Ancona, Andalusian, Asturian Painted Hen, Barnevelder, Campine, Catalana, Easter Egger, Egyptian Fayoumi, Norwegian Jaerhone, Kraienkoppe (Twentse), Lakenvelder, Leghorn, Marans, Minorca, Orloff, Penedesenca, Sicilian Buttercup, White-Faced Black Spanish, and Welsummer. These breeds are primarily used for egg production. Commercial hybrids include Hyline White, Hyline Brown, Shaver Brown, Bowans, Dekalb, Lohmann Leghorn, Lohmann Brown, and ISA Brown.

The egg laying birds may comprise chickens of one or more of the following breeds: Australorp, Barnevelder, Brahma, Braekel (Brakel), Buckeye, California Gray, Chantecler, Cubalaya, Derbyshire Redcap, Dominique, Dorking, Faverolles, Holland, Iowa Blue, Java, Jersey Giant, Marans, Marsh Daisy, Naked-neck, New Hampshire, Norfolk Grey, Orpington, Plymouth Rock, Poltava, Red Shaver, Rhode Island Red, Rhode Island White, Sombor Kaporka (Somborska kaporka), Scots Dumpy, Scots Grey, Sussex, Winnebago and Wyandotte. These breeds are considered dual purpose, and may be farmed for eggs and meat production.

The egg laying birds may not comprise one or more of the following breeds: Bresse, Cornish (a.k.a. Indian Game, including Cornish Cross), Ixworth and Jersey Giant. These breeds are primarily used for meat production. They are sometimes known as broiler chickens.

The egg laying birds may comprise Shaver (red and/or brown) chickens.

The feed supplement may be provided to egg laying birds from the on-set of laying, around 16-18 weeks of age, such as from 20 to 24, 20 to 28 or 20 to 32 weeks of age or from 18 to 55, 20 to 48, or 24 to 40 weeks of age.

The invention will now be described, in a non-limiting fashion, with reference to the following figures:

Fig. 1 and fig.2 show egg production (percent/hen/day) and number of eggs produced per cage respectively, for hens fed a control diet or the control diet supplemented with a seaweed blend at 0.5wt% or lwt% of the feed over a period of 12 weeks;

Fig. 3 and fig. 4 show average egg mass (g) and egg mass (g/cage/day) respectively, of laying hens fed a control diet or the control diet supplemented with a seaweed blend at 0.5wt% or lwt% of the feed over a period of 12 weeks; Fig. 5 and fig. 6 show feed conversion efficiency and total cracked/soft shelled eggs respectively, for laying hens fed a control diet or the control diet supplemented with a seaweed blend at either 0.5wt% or lwt% of the feed 0 to 42 days of age . MATERIALS

Blended seaweed supplement

Composition of experimental diets, as fed basis

Provided per kilogram of diet: Vitamin A : 7200 IU; Vitamin D3 : 3000 IU; Vitamin E : 30 IU; Vitamin K: 1.8 mg; Vitamin B l : 1.2 mg; Vitamin B2: 4.2 mg; Vitamin B6 : 3.0 mg; Vitamin B 12: 9.0 mg; Nicotinic acid: 30 mg; Pantothenic acid: 9.0 mg; Folic acid: 0.6 mg; Biotin: 120 mg; Iron: 48 mg; Copper: 6 mg; Manganese: 60 mg; Cobalt: 0.3 mg; Zinc: 48 mg; Iodine : 0.6 mg; Selenium: 0.12 mg; Molybdenum: 0.3 mg.

²Based on Roslin Nutrition or published values for feed ingredients.

METHODS A total of 288 Shaver Brown, point of lay pullets were randomly allocated to three dietary treatments:

Treatment 1 : Control

Treatment 2: Control + Seaweed blend supplement 5.0 g/kg (0.50wt% of the feed) Treatment 3 Control + Seaweed blend supplement 10.0 g/kg ( 1.0wt% of the feed)

The pullets were acclimatised to the laying facility for 4 weeks (from 16 - 20 weeks of age) prior to the start of the trial. At 20 weeks, layers were provided the trial diets for a further 12 weeks. The pullets were placed 4 per cage in a clean house, equipped with 384 cages. The building was supplied with programmable artificial lighting, automated gas heating and forced ventilation. The temperature inside the building was maintained as per breeder recommendations. The lighting programme of 16 hours light and 8 hours dark during each 24-hour period was used throughout the trial.

The pullets were housed in 72 cages (replicates) of the 384-cage layer house . Each dietary treatment was replicated 24 times with 4 birds per replicate cage, as an experimental unit. Replicates (cages) were allocated to the treatments for a homogeneous distribution of treatments within the house. The diets were formulated to be isonutritive and to meet or exceed the nutrient requirements recommended by NRC (1994) for layers (see above). Diets were prepared without the inclusion of any growth promoting antibiotic or coccidiostat. Diets were analysed for nutritional homogeneity prior to the start of the trial. The diets and water were provided ad libitum. The diets were presented to the birds in mash form.

Egg laying parameters, including: percent laying, egg numbers, egg weights, average egg weights, feed intake, egg mass, egg production, and feed conversion efficiency were reported for each 4-week period.

Data were analysed by ANOVA using Microsoft© Excel, data analysis package). Treatment was included as a main effect in the model. All data were analyzed for normality and equal variances, and if acceptable, one-way ANOVA run for main effect of treatment. For all response criteria, pen was the experimental unit. When ANOVA is significant at P <0.05, Tukey’s honest significant difference test was used to separate differences between means. RESULTS

Egg production

Egg production (%/hen/day) was determined by dividing the total number of eggs laid during the period (e.g. 311.5 x 24 = 7476 for the control) by the total number of hens housed at the beginning of the laying period (96 hens for each group) and dividing by the number of days (12 x 7 = 84). Referring to fig. 1 it can be seen that egg production (%/hen/day) was 92.6, 93.4 and 93.4 for laying hens fed a control diet or the control diet with the seaweed blend included at 0.5wt% and 1.0wt%, respectively. Hence, the use of the supplement increased the proportion of hens that produced eggs.

Referring to fig. 2, it can be seen that the number of eggs produced per cage (4 hens) was 311.5, 313.3 and 313.4 for laying hens fed a control diet or the control diet with the seaweed blend included at 0.5wt% and 1.0wt%, respectively. This corresponds to 77.9, 78.3 and 78.4 eggs per hen. Hence, the hens fed the seaweed blend supplement produced more eggs on average than those fed the control diet only.

Fig. 3 shows that the average (mean) egg mass was 60.2g, 60.2g and 60.7g for laying hens fed a control diet or the control diet with the seaweed blend included at 0.5wt% and 1.0wt% respectively. Hence, hens fed the seaweed blend supplement at 1.0wt% produced eggs having a greater mass than the control.

Fig. 4 shows that egg mass (g/cage/day) was 223.6g, 227.2g and 227.7g for laying hens fed a control diet or the control diet with the seaweed blend included at 0.5wt% and 1.0wt% respectively. Hence, a greater mass of eggs was produced from the cages where the hens received the supplement.

As shown in the table above, the average (mean) daily feed intake per hen (g) was 125.7, 125.0 and 125.2 for laying hens fed a control diet or the control diet supplemented with a seaweed blend at 0.5wt% or lwt% of the feed respectively. This leads to a feed conversion efficiency (egg mass / feed intake) of 0.448, 0.451 and 0.454 as illustrated in fig. 5. Hence, the supplement provides greater feed efficiency than the control. As shown in the table above, the body weight change (g) was -7.93, -7.72 and -7.81 for laying hens fed a control diet or the control diet supplemented with a seaweed blend at 0.5wt% or lwt% of the feed over a period of 12 weeks. Fig. 6 shows the total cracked and soft eggs respectively, for laying hens fed a control diet or the control diet supplemented with a seaweed blend at either 0.5wt% or lwt% over a 12 week period. The Haugh Unit (HU) was determined for eggs produced in week 12 of the trial. One egg from each cage was tested and the HU determined using the formula:

HU = 100

h = observed height of the albumen (mm) and w = weight of egg (g)

It can be seen that the HU for eggs produced by birds fed the seaweed blend was higher (AA rating) than for the control (A rating).

CONCUUSIONS

Under typical commercial conditions, egg production, egg mass and feed conversion efficiency were indicatively higher (P > 0.05) in laying hens over a 12-week period, when the seaweed blend at 0.5% or 1% was added to a control diet without antibiotics and coccidiostats.

Over the 12-week trial, a total of 20 cracked or soft shell eggs were produced by hens on the control diet compared to 13 and 15 respectively by hens fed the control diet with the seaweed supplement added at 0.5% and 1%, respectively.

Based on higher egg production and better egg quality, the economic return is greater when the seaweed blend is added.

Claims

1. Use of a seaweed blend to improve the quantity and/or quality of eggs produced by egg laying birds.

2. The use of claim 1, to increase the mean number of eggs produced per egg laying bird.

3. The use of claim 1, to increase mean mass per egg.

4. The use of claim 1, to increase the total mass of eggs produced.

5. The use of claim 1, to increase feed conversion efficiency, feed conversion efficiency being defined as the mass of eggs produced / mass of feed consumed by the egg laying birds.

6. The use of claim 1, to improve the quality of eggs produced.

7. The use of claim 6, to reduce the number of cracked and/or soft eggs produced.

8. The use of claim 6, to increase Haugh Unit of the eggs produced.

9. The use of any one of the preceding claims, wherein the egg laying birds comprise chickens, ducks, quail, geese, turkeys, pheasants, guineafowl, and/or ostriches.

10. The use of any one of the preceding claims, wherein the seaweed is used as a feed supplement in an amount of at least 0.5wt% relative to a regular feed provided to the egg laying birds.

11. A feed composition for egg laying birds, the composition comprising

(i) wheat and/or maize (corn);

(ii) a protein source;

(iii) a calcium source;

(iv) a phosphorus source; and (v) a seaweed blend;

12. The feed composition of claim 11, which comprises (i) 50 to 70wt% wheat and/or maize; (ii) 20 to 25wt% protein source; (iii) 5 to 15wt% calcium source; (iv) 1 to 3wt% phosphorus source; and (v) 0.3 to 3wt% seaweed blend.

13. The use of any one of claims 1 to 10 or the composition of claim 11 or 12, wherein the seaweed blend comprises a blend of green seaweed, brown seaweed and red seaweed.

14. The use or composition of claim 13, wherein the seaweed blend comprises 70 to 80wt% green seaweed, 15 to 25wt% brown seaweed and 2 to 10wt% red seaweed.

15. The use or composition of claim 13 or claim 14, wherein (i) the green seaweed comprises Ulva; (ii) the brown seaweed comprises Sargassum and/or Ascophyllum; and/or (iii) the red seaweed comprises Gracilaria.

16. The use or composition of any one of the preceding claims, wherein the seaweed blend comprises at least three seaweed genera.

17. The use or composition of any one of the preceding claims, wherein the seaweed blend comprises seaweed from the genera (i) Ulva; (ii) Gracilaria; and (iii) Sargassum and/or Ascophyllum.

18. The use or composition of claim 17, wherein the seaweed blend comprises (i) 65-85wt% Ulva, (ii) 2-15wt% Gracilaria, and (iii) 5-25wt% Sargassum and/or Ascophyllum.