Production and stability of a multi-strain Bacillus based probiotic product for commercial use in poultry

Uraisha Ramlucken; Santosh O Ramchuran; Ghaneshree Moonsamy; Christine Jansen van Rensburg; Mapitsi S Thantsha; Rajesh Lalloo

doi:10.1016/j.btre.2020.e00575

Production and stability of a multi-strain Bacillus based probiotic product for commercial use in poultry

Biotechnol Rep (Amst). 2020 Dec 31:29:e00575. doi: 10.1016/j.btre.2020.e00575. eCollection 2021 Mar.

Authors

Uraisha Ramlucken^{1

2

3}, Santosh O Ramchuran¹, Ghaneshree Moonsamy¹, Christine Jansen van Rensburg³, Mapitsi S Thantsha², Rajesh Lalloo¹

Affiliations

¹ The Council for Scientific and Industrial Research, Pretoria, 0001, South Africa.
² Department of Biochemistry, Genetics and Microbiology, University of Pretoria, Pretoria, South Africa.
³ Department of Animal and Wildlife Sciences, University of Pretoria, Pretoria, South Africa.

Abstract

Probiotics can be effective alternatives to the prophylactic use of antibiotic growth promoters (AGPs) in response to industry and consumer concerns around their use in poultry. Studies on the suitability of Bacillus probiotics are emerging and showing benefits, but information on the production technology is limited. We developed the production process for a novel probiotic product previously shown to be effective in field trials. All strains were cultivated to a spore concentration exceeding 1 × 10¹⁰ CFU. mL^-1. The spores of each strain were harvested, processed into a powder intermediate and formulated into an end product with 100 % recoveries and a shelf life stability >1 year. The probiotic was shown to be incorporated into broiler feed exceeding the desired concentration of 1 × 10⁶ CFU. g^-1. Using efficient process technology and lower cost materials, this study presents a commercially relevant case for the potential adoption of probiotic products by the poultry industry.

Keywords: Bacillus; Feed-incorporation; Formulation; Probiotics; Production; Shelf life.