Due to a continual growth in the world’s population and the prohibition of antibiotics in animal production, the livestock industry faces significant challenges in the global demand for meat, eggs, and dairy products. The growing demand for organic products and the prohibition on antibiotic growth promoters (AGPs) have compelled animal nutrition experts to search for natural substitutes that include medical plants and beneficial microorganisms. Natural feed additives like probiotics are found to be more effective than AGPs in reducing the load of harmful intestinal pathogens. One of the probiotics that has generated considerable interest since ancient times is yeast. Yeast is used as a supplement in animal feeds due to its relatively high protein, amino acid, energy, and micronutrient content. Yeast byproducts such as yeast cells and cell walls contain nutraceutical compounds (i.e., β-glucans, mannooligosaccharides, and nucleotides) and have been shown to improve animal growth performance and health. Though the application of yeast supplements has been reviewed to date, only a scarce amount of information exists on the yeast-derived products in non-ruminant nutrition. Additionally, it is difficult for nutritionists to differentiate the characteristics, composition, and optimal feeding among the diverse number of yeast-containing products. Due to the increasing popularity of using yeast-based products in animal feeds, the development of analytical approaches to estimate yeast and its components in these products is greatly needed. Thus, in this review, we intend to provide current knowledge of different categories of commercially available yeast and yeast-derived additives, along with their role in improving animal growth performance and health, their proposed mechanisms of action, and the challenges of quantifying yeast content and biologically active components.

The study was conducted to assess the effect of black pepper extract (BPE) supplementation on the growth performance, nutrient digestibility, fecal microbial, fecal gas emission, and meat quality of finishing pigs. A total of 180 crossbred [(Landrace × Yorkshire) × Duroc] finishing pigs with average initial body weight (BW) of 53.7 ± 1.42 kg were used in 10-week trial and allotted to 6 dietary treatments (6 replications pens/treatment with 5 pigs per pen). The dietary treatments were: CON (basal diet), TRT1-CON + 0.025% BPE, TRT2-CON + 0.05% BPE, TRT3-CON + 0.1% BPE, TRT4-CON + 0.2% BPE, TRT5-CON + 0.4% BPE. Linear increase in body weight gain (BWG) (p = 0.038, 0.006) and average daily gain (ADG) were observed (p = 0.035, 0.007,and 0.006 respectively), during the overall trial in pigs fed increasing levels of BPE in supplemented diet compared to control. The dietary supplementation of BPE showed a linear increase (p = 0.007) in gain-to-feed ratio (G:F) at week 10. However, there were no significant results observed on average daily feed intake (ADFI) during the overall experiment. The total tract digestibility of dry matter (DM) was linearly improved (p = 0.053) with graded levels of BPE. In addition, BPE diet supplementation had linearly increased fecal Lactobacillus counts (p = 0.048) and decreased Escherichia coli counts (p = 0.031) in pigs at week 10. Furthermore, NH3, methyl mercaptans, and acetic acid was linearly decreased (p = 0.023, 0.056, 0.054) in pigs fed graded level of BPE supplementation. The inclusion of BPE in pigs’ diet had linearly increased (p = 0.015) backfat thickness at week 10. Thus, we concluded that BPE supplementation had positively enhanced the growth performance, nutrient digestibility, fecal microbial, fecal gas emission, and meat quality of finishing pigs.

This experiment was performed to examine the hypothesis that blood plasma (BP) with yeast (Saccharomyces cerevisiae) supplement in the diet of weaning pigs could provoke the growth performance, nutrient digestibility, fecal microbial, and reduce harmful gas excretion. A total of one hundred and eighty healthy piglets were taken and assigned (complete random blocks) to three dietary treatments as: Phase 1: Treatment (TRT) 1-6% BP; TRT 2-3% BP + 3% yeast; TRT 3-6% yeast. Phase 2: TRT 1-3%; BP., TRT 2-1.5% BP + 1.5% yeast; TRT 3- 3% yeast. Phase 3: TRT 1- Control (CON) (Basal diet); TRT 2- CON; TRT 3- CON for six- weeks. Each treatment had twelve replicates and five (three gilts and two barrows) pigs per pen. Dietary inclusion of BP with yeast supplementation significantly increased the body weight of piglets during phase 2 (p = 0.003) and phase 3 (p = 0.032). In addition, TRT2 group piglets had a significant improvement in average daily gain at the end of each phase and overall (p = 0.047, 0.025, 0.018 and 0.012, respectively). At phase 3, TRT2 group piglets showed a significant improvement on nutrient digestibility of dry matter (p = 0.012) and nitrogen (p = 0.040). The fecal microbiota of TRT2 group piglets showed a tendency to increase the number of Lactobacillus counts at phase 1 (p = 0.07) and phase 2 (p = 0.06) as well as, a significant improvement at phase 3 (p = 0.021). In addition, TRT2 group piglets had trend to decrease NH₃ (p = 0.074) and H₂S (p = 0.069) during phase 2, and significantly reduced NH₃ (p = 0.038) and H₂S (p = 0.046) at phase 3. However, the fecal score of piglets remains unaffected during the entire trial. At the end of phase 1 piglets’ IgG (p = 0.008) was significantly increased with the inclusion of BP with yeast supplementation. Based on the positive effects on body weight, average daily gain, nutrient digestibility, Lactobacillus count, and reduced gas emission, we suggest that dietary supplement with BP and yeast in the diet of weaned piglet could serve as an excellent alternative to antibiotics growth promoters.

This study aims to investigate the effect of synbiotic-glyconutrients (SB-GLN) additive on growth performance, fatty acid profile, sensory characteristics, and texture profile analysis in finishing pig. Landrace × Yorkshire ♀ × (Duroc ♂) (n = 60) pigs with average body weight of 54.88 ± 1 kg were allocated into one of three dietary treatment groups in a complete randomized block design with four replicates of five pigs (two barrows and three gilts) per pen. The test treatments (TRT) were CON—corn-soybean meal basal diet; TRT 1—CON+ 0.25% SB-GLN; and TRT 2—CON + 0.5% SB-GLN. SB-GLN contains 1 × 10⁷ CFU/g each of: L. plantarum, B. subtilis, and S. Cerevisiae, and 5% yeast cell wall β-Glucans (from S. Cerevisiae), and 14% of glyconutrients (N-acetylglucosamine, D-xylose, and Fucose). Pigs fed SB-GLN supplement showed linearly increased (p < 0.05) body weight, daily gain, and daily feed at the end of week 5, 10, and the overall experimental period. In addition, G:F showed a tendency to decrease (p < 0.1) at the end of week 10 and the overall experimental period. In addition, pigs that received a graded level of SB-GLN showed a tendency to increase (p < 0.1) their longiness muscle area and decreased (p < 0.05) cooking loss. The sensory results of pork belly (tenderness and juiciness) and loin (flavor) meat, and the texture profile analysis parameters of hardness 1, cohesiveness, and gumminess (belly), and hardness 2, chewiness, and springiness (loin) meat were linearly higher (p < 0.05) in the SB-GLN group. The values of fatty acid like butyric acid, caproic acid, undecylic acid, tridecylic acid, myristic acid, pentadecyclic acid, palmitic acid, margaric acid, stearic acid, eicosapentaenoic acid, and lignoceric acid were higher in pork belly fat of the SB-GLN-treated group compared to CON. Moreover, pigs that received SB-GLN exhibited higher crude fat and lauric acid, myristic acid, pentacyclic acid, palmitic acid, margaric acid, Octadecanoic acid, Oleic acid, linoleic acid, and eicosapentaenoic acid FA profiles in belly-lean meat. Also, the FA profile of the SB-GLN-treated group loin-lean meat showed increased lauric acid, myristic acid, palmitic acid, margaric acid, stearic acid, oleic acid, linoleic acid, alpha-linoleic acid, and eicosapentaenoic acid. The SB-GLN-treated group pork belly fat, belly lean meat, and loin-lean meat showed linearly increased docosahexaenoic acid, nervonic acid, omega 3, omega 6, ω-6: ω-3, Σ saturated FA, Σ un-SFA, Σ mono-USFA, Σ poly-USFA, MUFA/SFA, and PUFA/SFA. Therefore, we infer that the inclusion of 0.5% SB-GLN additive to finishing pig diet would be more beneficial to enhance their performance, and to increase the essential FA profile of pork meat for human consumption.

Bacteriophages, or phages, are viruses that infect and kill specific bacteria, offering a promising alternative to antibiotics in livestock production. With growing concerns over antibiotic resistance, phages have gained renewed interest due to their ability to target harmful pathogens without disturbing beneficial gut microbiota. This review explores the application of dietary phage supplementation in monogastric animals, particularly pigs and poultry. In pigs, phage use has demonstrated beneficial effects such as improved growth performance, enhanced gut health, and reduced infections from Salmonella and E. coli. Various delivery methods, including feed and water supplementation, have been studied, with microencapsulation showing promising results for stability and effectiveness. Similarly, in poultry, phages have been successfully used to control pathogens like Salmonella, Campylobacter, and avian pathogenic E. coli, improving gut health, immunity, and overall performance. Several commercial phage products are already in use, demonstrating both safety and efficacy. Despite these advantages, challenges such as a narrow host range, bacterial resistance, and regulatory limitations remain. Therefore, further research is necessary to understand phage–host interactions, optimize delivery strategies, and evaluate long-term effects under normal and disease-free conditions. This review highlights the potential of bacteriophages as safe, targeted, and sustainable alternatives to antibiotics in monogastric animal production, contributing to improved animal health and reduced antibiotic use.

The use of antibiotics as growth promoters (AGPs) has been a common practice in animal production; however, concerns over microbial resistance have led organizations, such as the FAO, EU, and EFSA, to restrict or ban their use. This has prompted a growing interest in natural alternatives, particularly medicinal herbs, for enhancing animal performance and health. Among these, Scutellaria baicalensis (Chinese Skullcap) and Lonicera japonica (Japanese Honeysuckle) have gained attention for their high medicinal value in monogastric animal diets. These plants contain bioactive compounds, such as flavones (baicalin, baicalein, oroxylin A), iridoids (loganin), and saponins (including loniceroside hederagenin), which exhibit a range of biological activities, including antioxidative, anti-inflammatory, antibacterial, antiviral, and anti-stress effects. Notably, these herbal extracts are natural, safe, and unlikely to induce microbial resistance. Recent studies suggest that supplementation with S. baicalensis and L. japonica can improve livestock production performance by mitigating oxidative stress. This review aims to highlight the potential application of these plant-based additives in reducing oxidative damage and enhancing productivity in animal agriculture.