Effect of a Polyphenol-Based Additive in Pig Diets in the Early Stages of Growth

SIMPLE SUMMARY: The health of piglets, especially the health of the gastrointestinal tract, is subject to severe stress during weaning. The use of antibiotics can help piglets to counteract the negative effects of this period. However, the use of antibiotics as growth promoters can increase the risk of antibiotic resistance. For this reason, antibiotic replacement products are sought to promote gut health. We tested the commercial product GreenFIS(®) (New Feed Team Ltd., Lodi, Italy), a blend of natural substances acknowledged as beneficial for gut health, at two levels of inclusion, compared to a control diet, on 60 piglets. No differences were recorded between diets regarding the growth performance. The gut histological analysis performed on some animals did not reveal any difference between diets. Microbiological analyses were also performed on the feces and the piglets fed GreenFIS(®) showed a higher number of a group of bacteria positively associated with starch utilization. After the post-weaning trial, a digestibility study was conducted on six pigs randomly chosen for each treatment. The addition of GreenFIS(®) to the diet led to higher digestibility compared to the control, although it did not reveal, in the excellent hygienic conditions of the experimental farm, a positive effect on the gut heath. ABSTRACT: The weaning period is a stressful period for the gastrointestinal tract (GIT) of piglets. This work aims to evaluate the effects of the commercial polyphenol-based product GreenFIS(®) on: (1) GIT health and performance of 60 weaned piglets; (2) digestibility in 18 growing pigs. Three diets were tested: a control diet (C), C plus 2.5 g of GreenFIS(®)/kg C (T1), and C plus 5 g of GreenFIS(®)/kg C (T2). After the post-weaning trial three piglets per treatment were sacrificed for the GIT histological analysis. No differences between diets were recorded in terms of growing performance or clinical and biochemical blood parameters. The GIT histological analysis did not show any indicators of inflammation for any of the groups. The feces of the two extreme treatments (C and T2) were analyzed for microbiota, revealing a greater presence of the Ruminococcus bromii group, positively associated with starch degradation, in T2. In the second experiment six pigs per treatment were randomly chosen for the digestibility study. The inclusion of GreenFIS(®) at both levels led to a higher fecal digestibility of gross energy (86.2%, 89.1%, and 89.5%, for C, T1, and T2, respectively) and crude protein (87.0%, 90.2%, and 90.0%). In conclusion, the additive did not improve, in the excellent experimental hygienic conditions, the gut health, but it did increase nutrient digestibility.