Nanotechnological Plastic Flooring: Implications for Broiler Chicken Performance, Health, and Carcass Quality.

This study evaluated the effects of two types of plastic flooring-one with and one without nanotechnological antimicrobial additives-used as complete or partial replacements for wood shavings on broiler chicken performance, yield, meat quality, and litter microbiology over 42 days. A total of 1500 Ross 408 male broiler chicks were randomly assigned to five treatment groups: wood shavings (WS), plastic flooring (PF), a 50/50 mix of plastic flooring and wood shavings (PF + WS), plastic flooring with antimicrobial additives (PFA), and a 50/50 mix of antimicrobial plastic flooring and wood shavings (PFA + WS). This study evaluated organ biometrics (liver, heart, spleen, and gizzard), the severity of lesions, microbiological profiles, performance indices, and meat quality.

Occupational risks and their implications for the health of poultry farmers.

Background: Poultry activity exposes workers to accidents and unhealthy conditions with physical, chemical, biological, ergonomic and psychological risks.

Objective: The objective was to list risk factors in poultry farms in operational, behavioral, and environmental aspects.

Methods: We evaluated poultry farm workers through quantitative and qualitative analysis applying a semi-structured online questionnaire containing 58 questions to identify risks in the workplace and health implications.

Techniques for assessment of myopathies in broiler chicken breasts using a biopsy as a support tool.

An experiment was conducted to validate non-invasive evaluation techniques as evaluation tools for the myopathies wooden breast and white striping that affect broilers, using biopsy as a support tool. It evaluated 30 Cobb 500® broiler chickens in a completely randomized design consisting of two sexes (males and females) and 15 replications per treatment. At 14, 21, 35, 42 and 49 days, the surface temperature of the birds' breasts was recorded using infrared thermography, analysis of fillet depth, and echogenicity by ultrasound imaging.

Characterization of different types of broiler bedding including dehydrated grass and their influence on production.

The objective is to evaluate different bedding materials, including dehydrated grass, on performance and carcass yield and verify the physicochemical and microbiological characteristics of materials. The completely randomized experiment comprised 1,080 chicks in a 3 × 2 factorial design with three levels of dehydrated grass (0%, 25%, and 50%) and two bedding materials (rice husks and shavings). Total microorganism count and physicochemical characteristics, surface temperature of birds, and performance of birds were analyzed up to 42 days of age, when birds were slaughtered, and carcass yield was evaluated.