The Effect of Enteric-Coated Tannin as a Zinc Oxide Alternative on Growth Performance in Weaned Piglets
Release date:
2025-08-01
| Tannins have proven highly effective in controlling diarrhea in piglets and safeguarding intestinal health, making them a top choice for many manufacturers—and they’re widely regarded as the star alternative to zinc oxide. However, tannins’ inherent characteristics also pose limitations that currently restrict their broader adoption in animal feed formulations. "Wei Chang Ning," developed by Guangdong Nan Kun Biotechnology Co., Ltd., addresses this challenge by introducing premium-quality tannin ingredients sourced from overseas, combined with cutting-edge encapsulation technology and enteric-coated materials. This innovative approach ensures the product maintains excellent feed palatability while allowing for controlled, delayed release in the lower intestine—specifically targeting damaged areas of the gut. As a result, "Wei Chang Ning" effectively reduces diarrhea in animals and enhances overall production performance. |
This experiment used weaned piglets as the research subjects, with the aim of investigating how Weichangning, when used as a substitute for high-dose conventional zinc oxide in weanling pig diets, affects their growth performance.
Materials and Methods
Experimental Design and Grouping
Table 1: Experimental Design
Group Don't | Levels of addition in the basal diet |
Control group | 2000 g/t conventional zinc oxide |
Trial Group 1 | 2500g/t Wei Chang Ning |
Trial Group 2 | 2000g/t Wei Chang Ning + 200 g/t Easy-to-drive zinc |
Note: Wei Chang Ning: Coated with natural plant tannins, with an effective tannin content of ≥50%; Easy-to-drive zinc: Water-soluble nano zinc oxide, with an effective ZnO content of ≥70%.
The trial involved 180 nursery piglets with an average body weight of 7.67 ± 0.5 kg, randomly divided into 3 treatment groups, with each group consisting of 3 replicates, and each replicate containing 20 piglets. The trial lasted for 16 days.
Test location and time: The trial was conducted at the Guangxi Agricultural Reclamation Farm from May 13, 2024, to May 29, 2024, lasting a total of 16 days.
Experimental Diet
Table 2: Experimental Diet Formulation and Nutritional Composition
Ingredient Composition | Percentage % | Nutritional value | Content |
Corn | 28.1 | Digestible energy ( ( Kcal/kg ) | 3306 |
Puffed corn | 34 | Crude Protein (%) | 19.08% |
Hulled soybean meal | 10 | Calcium (%) | 0.90% |
Fermented soybean meal | 10 | Available Phosphorus (%) | 0.58% |
Imported fishmeal | 4 | Lysine (%) | 1.40% |
Lysine | 0.50 | Egg + Cystine (%) | 0.84% |
Methionine | 0.20 | Threonine (%) | 0.72% |
Premix | 5.00 | Tryptophan (%) | 0.22 |
Total | 99.80 |
|
Test indicator measurement: Daily record the feed intake, number and weight of dead or culled pigs, and calculate the average daily gain, daily feed consumption, feed-to-meat ratio, as well as mortality and diarrhea rates for each phase of the trial.
Results and Analysis
Table 3: Effects of Different Types of Tannin Products on Growth Performance in Weaned Piglets
Project | 2000g ZnO | 2500g Wei Chang Ning | 2000g Weichangning + 200g Haokai Zinc |
Initial weight (kg) | 7.14 ± 0.51 | 8.08 ± 0.41 | 7.80 ± 0.44 |
Final weight (kg) | 9.74 ± 0.44b | 11.13 ± 0.52a | 10.88 ± 0.80 ab |
Total Weight Gain (kg) | 2.60 ± 0.07 years | 3.05 ± 0.16b | 3.08 ± 0.37b |
Average Daily Weight Gain (g) | 236.4 ± 6.69a | 277.3 ± 14.85b | 279.5 ± 34.07b |
Initial feed intake (kg) | 3.45 ± 0.07 | 3.83 ± 0.51 | 3.98 ± 0.54 |
Average Daily Feed Intake (kg) | 313.6 ± 6.43 | 348.5 ± 46.40 | 362.1 ± 49.00 |
Feed-to-meat ratio | 1.33 ± 0.07 | 1.25 ± 0.12 | 1.29 ± 0.04 |
Note: In the same column, identical letters for the data indicate no significant difference (P > 0.05), while different lowercase letters denote a highly significant difference (P < 0.05). The same applies to the table below.
The results show that adding either 2,500 g/t Weichangning or 2,000 g/t Weichangning plus 200 g/t NaZnO to the basal diet during the weaning phase can effectively replace the conventional 2,000 g/t zinc oxide. This supplementation not only improves weight gain, feed intake, and feed-to-meat ratio, enhancing the production performance of weaned piglets, but also prevents diarrhea from occurring.
Summary
| Under the conditions of this trial, adding either 2,500 g/t of enteric-coated tannins or a combination of 2,000 g/t enteric-coated tannins plus 200 g/t Bio-Zinc to the weaning-phase basal diet effectively replaced the conventional 2,000 g/t zinc oxide. Both options not only improved weight gain, feed intake, and feed-to-meat ratio but also enhanced the overall performance of weaned piglets—without causing diarrhea. |
Related News
Nacore Biotech, located in Huizhou Shiwan Industrial Park, is a high-tech company specializing in feed additives for livestock, ruminants, aquaculture, and pets—integrating R&D, production, sales, and service.
North Side of Keji North Road, Shiwan Town, Boluo County,Huizhou City, Guangdong Province (No.15)