In order to improve the productivity of turkey breeders, an adequate supply with all nutrients including proteins, fats, carbohydrates, vitamins, minerals and water has to be secured. Among these elements vitamins are particularly important, since they are essential for optimum health as well as normal physiological functions of the birds. As most vitamins cannot be synthesised by poultry in sufficient amounts to meet physiological demand, they must be obtained from the diet. Insufficient supply of vitamins to high-performing breeding poultry has detrimental effects on both productivity of the dam and development of the offspring.

Optimum embryonic development and ultimately hatchability of the chicks are dependent on the adequate nutrient mix, which is present in both egg yolk and albumin at the time of lay. In order to correct an insufficiency with micronutrients, injection of embryonated eggs with vitamins was proposed to support the development of the embryo. Gore and Qureshi (1977, Poult. Sci, 76, 984-991 ) injected the amnion of turkey embryos 3 days prior to hatch with different levels of vitamin E. Although the higher vitamin E injection doses reduced percentage hatchability below that of the controls, poults at hatch exhibited a dose related increase in plasma vitamin E levels. When challenged at 7 days posthatch, total and IgM anti-SRBC antibodies were higher in the injected poults than in the contols. Futhermore, poults in the vitamin E injected group had higher numbers of inflammatory exudate cells as well as a greater percentage of phagocytiv macrophages. The results from this study suggest that in ovo exposure with vitamin E may improve post-hatch poult quality.

Now, the inventors have surprisingly found that canthaxanthin can also be used to improve hatchability. Therefore, the present invention relates to the use Canthaxanthin containing compounds for improving breeder hatchability. More particularly, the invention relates to the use of

Canthaxanthin optionally in combination with 25-hydroxy vitamin D ₃ , in the manufacture of a food or veterinary composition for improving hatchability in poultry.

In accordance with the present invention it has been found that problems in chicken breeding can be eliminated or substantially ameliorated by administering to the animals an effective amount of Canthaxanthin, optionally in combination with 25-hydroxy vitamin D ₃ . According to the invention, Canthaxanthin, optionally in combination with 25-hydroxy vitamin D ₃ , is applied to the animal either as feed additive in the feed of broiler breeders or by injection of broiler breeders eggs.

Canthaxanthin and 25-hydroxy vitamin D ₃ (hereinafter inventive ingredients) are suitably administered together with the food. The term food as used herein comprises both solid and liquid food as well as drinking fluids such as drinking water. Particularly, inventive ingredients can be added as a formulated powder to a premix containing other minerals, vitamins, amino acids and trace elements which is added to regular animal food and thorough mixing to achieve even distribution therein. In the manufacture of poultry feed in accordance with the invention, from about 2 ppm to 100 ppm, preferably 2 - 10 ppm of Canthaxanthin and, if required, from about 10μ/kg to about 100μg/kg of 25-hydroxy vitamin D ₃ are added to regular poultry food. Alternatively, a food premix may be prepared on the basis of regular food components by adding these active ingredients to such food components in higher concentration. According to the present invention the vitamin D ₃ compound is available under the Trademark ROVIMIX® Hy-D® 1.25 % and Canthaxanthin under the Trademark CAROPHYLL®Red.

According to the present invention it is further advantageous if the composition also contains one or more of the following ingredients: Vitamin A, Vitamin E, Biotin, copper (e.g. as CuSO ₄ ), zinc (e.g. as ZnSO ₄ ), cobalt (e.g. as CoSO ₄ ), selenium (e.g. as Na ₂ SeO ₃ ), iodine (e.g. as Kl), manganese (e.g. as MnSO ₄ ) and/or calcium (e.g. as CaSO ₄ ).

The invention is further illustrated by the following examples.

Study if the Supplementation of Canthaxanthin and HyD in broiler breeder hens

Material & Methods:

The test is gone take a place in the Universidade Federal de Santa Maria, Spain. The trial is gone be from 30 to 40 weeks old. However, from 40 to 50 weeks performance will also be recorded to understand when the treatments effects disappeared.

The treatments are:

T1 - Control diet

T2 - Control diet + 60 ppm of Carophyl Red

T3 - Control diet + 69 ppb of HyD

T4 - Control diet + 60 ppm of Carophyll red + 69 ppb of HyD With 6 replication/treatment of 40 broiler breeder and 4 cockerels per replication. Egg production, fertility and hatchability are recorded weekly.

The results are shown in Table 1. The data shows a good response for HyD and CR. Table 1 :

Effects of in ovo Canthaxanthin injection on hatchability of broiler breeders

Two experiments were conducted to evaluate the effects of in ovo Canthaxanthin injection on hatchability of broiler breeder eggs. Effects of in ovo injection of water and Canthaxanthin solution on hatchability were compared in Experiment 1 , and effects of 3 different injection periods on hatchability of broiler breeder eggs were studied in Experiment 2. Broiler hatching eggs were produced from commercial flocks of Cobb strain. Experiments group were divided into 3 groups with 40 and 25 hatching eggs in Experiments 1 and 2, respectively. Sterilized

CR)

water or 50 μL Canthaxanthin (CAROPHYLL Red, DSM Nutritional Products AG, Switzerland) water solution (1.0mg/mL) was injected into hatching eggs on Day 18 in Experiment 1 , and 50 μL Canthaxanthin water solution was injected into hatching eggs on Day 14 and 18 of incubation in Experiment 2, respectively. Another hatching eggs group was as control group in each experiment. Hatchability and chick weight after hatched were determined. - A -

(R)

The data was analyzed by ANOVA using the general linear model procedure of SAS software.

The comparison of hatchability data was statistically-considered by chi-squared test.

Differences were significant at P < 0.05.

There were no significant differences in hatchability among treatments but both of the Control and the Water group were 90% and the Canthaxanthin group was 95% on hatchability in Experiment 1. Meanwhile, the Day 14 group was significant higher hatchability than the control group in Experiment 2. The Day 18 group also showed similar tendency for the control group but it was comparatively low compared to Day 14 group. The present study indicated that Canthaxanthin improved hatchability of hatching eggs from these results. Therefore, some biological function of Canthaxanthin was determined to influence during the process of developing egg embryo in this study.

Antioxidant property was recognized as one of the biological effect of Canthaxanthin. Presumed cause of result is that the antioxidant property of Canthaxanthin is referable to prevent cell membrane, scavenge active oxygen during metabolic process. Experiment 1 and 2 indicates that Canthaxanthin improves hatchability of broiler breeder eggs and biological function of Canthaxanthin has greater effect at beginning to middle stage than at later stage in developing embryo. Future studies are necessary to consider about the effect of in ovo Canthaxanthin injection from beginning to middle stage in developing embryo and biological function, such as the antioxidant property. Table 2. Effects of in ovo Canthaxanthin injection on hatchability of broiler breeder eggs 1

(Experiment 2).

Values are means ± SD for 25 eggs.

a b

' Means in the same column with no common superscripts differ significantly (P < 0.05).