Use of emulsifiers in association with vegetable oleins in an animal feed

Abstract

A method of using emulsifiers in association with vegetable oleins in an animal feed. In particular, the present invention relates to a method of using emulsifiers E484 and/or E487 (Community Register of Feed Additives—EU Reg. No. 1831/2003) in association with vegetable oleins as a technological additive for increasing the hourly output (tons/hour) in a plant for preparing an animal feed and/or to improve the characteristics of an animal feed, preferably in the form of pellets, and/or to reduce the dustiness of the same. Furthermore, the present invention relates to an animal feed and a process for preparing the same wherein said emulsifiers are used in association with said vegetable oleins with the function of a technological additive.

Claims

1. A method for preparing an animal feed containing nutritive substances and an ethoxylated castor oil, the method comprising adding the ethoxylated castor oil to the animal feed containing the nutritive substances by preparing a first mixture comprising: an ethoxylated castor oil containing from 8 to 200 ethyleneoxy groups, and at least one vegetable compound selected from the group consisting of an oleic acid, linoleic acid, linolenic acid, a triglyceride of oleic acid and a vegetable oil or mixtures thereof; and adding said prepared first mixture to the nutritive substances, wherein the nutritive substances are in liquid, powder or granular form, in an animal feed production plant, said prepared first mixture optionally in combination with a substrate, carrier and/or vehicle in a solid form, the adding performed to produce a second mixture in a solid form; and extruding or pelleting the second mixture to obtain the animal feed containing said nutritive substances and the ethoxylated castor oil, wherein the ethoxylated castor oil is added to the nutritive substances only when together with the at least one vegetable compound.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein the ethoxylated castor oil is E484.

3. The method according to claim 1, wherein said ethoxylated castor oil contains from 10 to 150 ethyleneoxy groups.

4. The method according to claim 1, wherein said vegetable compound is selected from among: an oleic acid; or a mixture of oleic acid and linoleic acid; or a vegetable oil selected from olive oil, linseed oil, rapeseed oil, peanut oil, corn oil, palm oil, sunflower oil and soybean oil or mixtures thereof.

5. The method according to claim 1, wherein said ethoxylated castor oil and said vegetable compound are used in a weight ratio of from 1:4 to 4:1.

6. The method according to claim 1, wherein: said ethoxylated castor oil is used in an amount from 0.4 to 0.8 Kg/ton of feed; and said vegetable compound is used in an amount from 3 Kg to 10 Kg/ton of feed.

7. The method according to claim 1, wherein said ethoxylated castor oil contains from 20 to 80 ethyleneoxy groups.

8. The method according to claim 1, wherein said ethoxylated castor oil and said vegetable compound are in a weight ratio of from 1:2 to 2:1.

9. The method according to claim 1, wherein said ethoxylated castor oil and said vegetable compound are in a ratio by weight of 1:1.

10. The method according to claim 1, wherein: said ethoxylated castor oil is in an amount of 0.5 Kg/ton of feed; and said vegetable compound is in an amount from 5 Kg to 8 Kg/ton of feed.

11. The method according to claim 2, wherein said ethoxylated castor oil E484 contains from 10 to 150 ethyleneoxy groups.

12. The method according to claim 1, wherein the second mixture comprises at least a second vegetable compound selected from the group consisting of an oleic acid, linoleic acid, linolenic acid, and a triglyceride of oleic acid.

13. A process for preparing an animal feed comprising nutritive substances and an ethoxylated castor oil, the process comprising adding a first mixture directly into nutritive substances, wherein the nutritive substance are in liquid, powder or granular form in an animal feed production plant to produce a second mixture in a solid form, or optionally after the first mixture being first added into a substrate, carrier and/or vehicle in a solid form, and extruding or pelleting the second mixture to obtain animal feed containing said nutritive substances, the first mixture comprising: an ethoxylated castor oil containing from 8 to 200 ethyleneoxy groups, and at least one vegetable compound selected from the group consisting of an oleic acid, linoleic acid, linolenic acid, a triglyceride of oleic acid and a vegetable oil or mixtures thereof, wherein the ethoxylated castor oil is added to the nutritive substances only when together with the at least one vegetable compound within the first mixture.

14. An animal feed prepared by the process of claim 13, the animal feed comprising: nutritive substances in liquid, powder or granular form; an ethoxylated castor oil containing from 8 to 200 ethyleneoxy groups; and at least one vegetable compound selected from the group consisting of oleic acid, linoleic acid, linolenic acid, a triglyceride of oleic acid and a vegetable oil or mixtures thereof.

15. The feed according to claim 14, wherein said ethoxylated castor oil is in an amount from 0.4 to 0.8 Kg/ton of feed; and said vegetable compound is in an amount from 3 Kg to 10 Kg/ton of feed.

16. The process according to claim 13, wherein adding a first mixture to the nutritive substances is performed by mixing said ethoxylated castor oil and said vegetable compound, and adding the mixed said ethoxylated castor oil and said vegetable compound to the nutritive substances in liquid, powder or granular form.

17. The process according to claim 13, wherein adding a first mixture to the nutritive substances is performed by mixing said ethoxylated castor oil, said vegetable compound with the substrate, carrier and/or vehicle in a solid form, and adding the mixed said ethoxylated castor oil, said at least one vegetable compound and the substrate, carrier and/or vehicle in a solid form to the nutritive substances in liquid, powder or granular form.

18. The process according to claim 13, wherein adding a first mixture to the nutritive substances is performed by mixing said ethoxylated castor oil, said vegetable compound with a hydrophobic component that is liquid or solid at room temperature, the hydrophobic component selected from the group comprising an animal and/or vegetable lipid, an oil, a liquid and/or solid fat, and adding the mixed said ethoxylated castor oil containing from 8 to 200 ethyleneoxy groups, said at least one vegetable compound and the hydrophobic component to the nutritive substances in liquid, powder or granular form.

19. The feed according to claim 15, wherein said vegetable compound is selected from among: an oleic acid; or a mixture of oleic acid and linoleic acid; or a vegetable oil selected from olive oil, linseed oil, rapeseed oil, peanut oil, corn oil, palm oil, sunflower oil and soybean oil or mixtures thereof.

20. The feed according to claim 15, wherein said vegetable compound is selected from: an oleic acid, in a concentration greater than 70% by weight of the vegetable compound; or a mixture of oleic acid at a concentration equal to or greater than 75% by weight of the vegetable compound and linoleic acid at a concentration equal to or less than 25% by weight of the vegetable compound; or a vegetable oil selected from olive oil and/or palm oil.

21. The feed according to claim 20, wherein said ethoxylated castor oil and said vegetable compound are used in a ratio by weight from 1:4 to 4:1.

22. The feed according to claim 14 is in the form of pellets.

Description

EXAMPLES

(1) In a plant for preparing a chicken feed, the following feed was prepared. In a container provided with mixing means, heating means, water filling means and means for maintaining humidity, 50 Kg of corn, 18 Kg of soy, 12 Kg of sunflower and 10 Kg of barley, 4 Kg of sugar cane molasses and 6 Kg of a mixture of calcium carbonate, sodium chloride, vitamins and minerals were added in sequence to yield a powder mixture. Afterwards, 10 Kg of a hydrophobic component consisting in an animal fat was added. Said mixture was maintained under stirring at room temperature. Subsequently, the liquid components, if present, and 0.5 Kg of water/100 Kg of feed were added and after stirring said ethoxylated castor oil and said at least one olein or said polyethylene glycol esters of fatty acids obtained from soybean oil and said at least one olein were then added, in accordance with one of the formulations F1-F20, as set forth below. At the end of mixing, a powder or granular mixture was obtained and then subjected to a pelletting step to yield a pellet of dimensions known to the person skilled in the art.

(2) List of the Formulations Tested (F):

(3) Ethoxylated Castor Oil (F1-F4) F1: Ethoxylated castor oil E484 with 10 moles of ethylene oxide. F2: Ethoxylated castor oil E484 with 20 moles of ethylene oxide. F3: Ethoxylated castor oil E484 with 40 moles of ethylene oxide. F4: Ethoxylated castor oil E484 with 50 moles of ethylene oxide.

(4) Vegetable Oleins (F5-F6) F5: Oleic acid. F6: Oleic acid 80%+Linoleic acid 20%.

(5) Polyethylene Glycol Esters of Fatty Acids Obtained from Soybean Oil E487 (F7-F8) F7: Polyethylene glycol esters of fatty acids obtained from soybean oil E487, in a 1:1 ratio by weight. The polyethylene glycol has a molecular weight of approximately 300 and the soybean fatty acids are: palmitic acid, approximately 10%; stearic acid, approximately 5%; oleic acid, approximately 20%; linoleic acid, approximately 55% and alpha-linolenic acid, approximately 10%. F8: Polyethylene glycol esters of fatty acids obtained from soybean oil E487, in a 1:1 ratio by weight. The polyethylene glycol has a molecular weight of approximately 800 and the soybean fatty acids are: palmitic acid, approximately 10%; stearic acid, approximately 5%; oleic acid, approximately 20%; linoleic acid, approximately 55% and alpha-linolenic acid, approximately 10%.

(6) The Applicant tested the formulations specified in Table 1 in the preparation of an animal feed in pellets for chickens, turkeys, ruminants (dairy cows) and pigs.

(7) TABLE-US-00001 TABLE 1 FORMULATIONS Chickens Turkeys Pigs Dairy cows F2 100% 100% 100% 100% F2 + F5 50%-50% 50%-50% 50%-50% 50%-50% F2 + F6 50%-50% 50%-50% 50%-50% 50%-50% F4 100% 100% 100% 100% F4 + F5 50%-50% 50%-50% 50%-50% 50%-50% F4 + F6 50%-50% 50%-50% 50%-50% 50%-50% F2 + F7 50%-50% 50%-50% 50%-50% 50%-50% F2 + F8 50%-50% 50%-50% 50%-50% 50%-50% F4 + F7 50%-50% 50%-50% 50%-50% 50%-50% F4 + F8 50%-50% 50%-50% 50%-50% 50%-50%

(8) An example (A) of a feed for dairy cows is shown here:

(9) TABLE-US-00002 INGREDIENTS KG % CORN MEAL 50.00 50.00% SOYBEAN 15.00 15.00% SUNFLOWER 15.00 15.00% BARLEY 10.00 10.00% SUGAR CANE MOLASSES 4.00 4.00% CALCIUM CARBONATE 2.00 2.90% SODIUM BICARBONATE 1.50 1.50% SODIUM CHLORIDE 0.75 0.75% DICALCIUM PHOSPHATE 0.75 0.75% VITAMINS 0.50 0.50% MAGNESIUM OXIDE 0.50 0.50% Totals 100.00 100.00% 88.00 SS (Humidity 12.00%)

(10) An example (B) of a feed for pigs is shown here:

(11) TABLE-US-00003 INGREDIENTS KG % SOFT WHEAT 30.00 30.00% COOKED WHEAT 20.00 20.00% FLAKED BARLEY 16.00 16.00% WHEY 9.00 9.00% FLAKED CORN 9.00 9.00% HERRINGS 7.00 7.00% SOYBEAN OIL 3.90 3.90% POTATO 2.50 2.50% DICALCIUM PHOSPHATE 0.50 0.50% ACIDIFIER 0.50 0.50% CALCIUM CARBONATE 0.50 0.50% L-LYSINE HCL 0.50 0.50% L-THREONINE 0.30 0.30% SODIUM CHLORIDE 0.20 0.20% DL-METHIONINE 0.06 0.06% L-TRYPTOPHAN 0.04 0.04% Totals 100.00 100.00% 89.50 DM (Humidity 10.5%)

(12) An example (C) of a feed for chickens (first period) is shown here:

(13) TABLE-US-00004 INGREDIENTS Kg % CORN 60.00 60.00 SOYBEAN 35.000 35.00 DICALCIUM PHOSPHATE 2.00 2.00 SOYBEAN OIL 1.20 1.20 CALCIUM CARBONATE 0.80 0.80 TRACE ELEMENTS 0.30 0.30 VITAMINS 0.30 0.30 SODIUM BICARBONATE 0.20 0.20 SODIUM CHLORIDE 0.20 0.20 Totals 100.00 Kg DM 87.30%

(14) An example (D) of a feed for chickens (third period) is shown here:

(15) TABLE-US-00005 INGREDIENTS Kg % CORN 66.00 66.00 SOYBEAN 25.00 25.00 SOYBEAN OIL 3.50 3.50 DICALCIUM PHOSPHATE 2.50 2.50 CALCIUM CARBONATE 1.20 1.20 TRACE ELEMENTS 0.80 0.80 VITAMINS 0.50 0.50 SODIUM BICARBONATE 0.20 0.20 SODIUM CHLORIDE 0.30 0.30 Totals 100.00 Kg DM 87.50

(16) An example (E) of a feed for turkeys (first period) is shown here:

(17) TABLE-US-00006 INGREDIENTS Kg % SOYBEAN 50.00 50.00 CORN 43.00 43.00 DICALCIUM PHOSPHATE 2.50 2.50 CALCIUM CARBONATE 1.50 1.50 SOYBEAN OIL 1.50 1.50 TRACE ELEMENTS 0.50 0.50 VITAMINS 0.50 0.50 SODIUM CHLORIDE 0.50 0.50 Totals 100.00 Kg DM 87.50

(18) During the production of the various animal feeds, the following parameters were monitored:

(19) i) the temperature (T ° C.) of the pellet leaving the extruder.

(20) ii) the consumption of energy (Amperes) per tons/hour of feed produced.

(21) iii) the hourly output expressed in tons/hour.

(22) iv) the final humidity value (% humidity) found in the pellet.

(23) v) the pellet durability index (P.D.I.), which expresses the hardness/consistency of the pellet. The P.D.I. depends on the type of feed that is prepared. The person skilled in the art is aware of the minimum and maximum PDI which characterizes a feed in pellets for chickens, turkeys, pigs and calves.

(24) Tests 1-4 illustrated in Table 2 show only part of the experimentation conducted by the Applicant.

(25) In particular, tests 1 and 3 and tests 2 and 4 were conducted separately under the same operating conditions in a plant for preparing a chicken feed having the ingredients specified above.

(26) Practically speaking, in an industrial plant for the production of a chicken feed (C) and (D), as described above, the parameters specified above in items (i)-(v) were recorded.

(27) The parameters in the “chicken feed” column shown for each of tests 1-4 (see second column from the left) were recorded without the use of any of the formulations of the present invention.

(28) The parameters in the “formulation F2” column shown for each of tests 1 and 3 (see third column from the left) were recorded with the use of the formulation F2 of the present invention. The formulation F2 was used at a concentration of 0.5 Kg/ton of feed.

(29) The parameters in the “formulation F2+F5” column shown for test 1 (see fourth column from the left) were recorded with the use of the formulation F2+F5 of the present invention. The formulation F2+F5 (1:1 ratio by weight) was used at a concentration of 0.5 Kg/ton of feed. The same applies for the “formulation F2+F7” in test 3.

(30) The parameters in the “formulation F2+F6” column shown for test 1 (see fifth column from the left) were recorded with the use of the formulation F2+F6 of the present invention. The formulation F2+F6 (1:1 ratio by weight) was used at a concentration of 0.5 Kg/ton of feed. The same applies for the “formulation F2±F8” in test 3.

(31) The parameters in the “oleins F5” and “oleins F6” column shown for each of tests 1-4 (see sixth and seventh columns from the left) were recorded with the use of the formulations F5 and F6. The oleins F5 and F6 were used at a concentration of 5 Kg/ton of feed.

(32) The parameters in the “formulation F4” column shown for each of tests 2 and 4 (see third column from the left) were recorded with the use of the formulation F4 of the present invention. The formulation F4 was used at a concentration of 0.5 Kg/ton of feed.

(33) The parameters in the “formulation F4+F5” shown for test 2 (see fourth column from the left) were recorded with the use of the formulation F4+F5 of the present invention. The formulation F4+F5 (1:1 ratio by weight) was used at a concentration of 0.5 Kg/ton of feed. The same applies for the “formulation F4+F7” in test 4.

(34) The parameters in the “formulation F4+F6” column shown for test 2 (see fifth column from the left) were recorded with the use of the formulation F4+F6 of the present invention. The formulation F4+F6 (1:1 ratio by weight) was used at a concentration of 0.5 Kg/ton of feed. The same applies for the “formulation F4+F8” in test 4.

(35) For example, considering test 1 carried out without the use of a formulation of the present invention (second column from the left) the hourly output in tons/hour (briefly, tons/hour) is approximately 22-23 tons/hour, whereas the PDI is approximately 90-91. With the use of a formulation F2 containing only ethoxylated castor oil, the hourly output rises to 23-24 tons/hour and the PDI to 91-92. Surprisingly, the formulation of the present invention F2+F5 brings the hourly output to 26-27 and the PDI to 93-94. Whereas the formulation F2+F6 provides an hourly output of 27-28 and a PDI of 93-94. The increase in the hourly output and PDI are considerable if compared with the values shown in the second and third columns from the left.

(36) The same applies for tests 2, 3 and 4. Therefore, all of the tests 1-4 carried out by the Applicant are in agreement in demonstrating that the formulations of the present invention are capable of:

(37) (i) increasing the output in tons per hour in plants that produce feeds in solid form, for example in the form of pellets,

(38) (ii) improving the pellet durability index (PDI),

(39) (iii) reducing the consumption of electricity expressed in amperes/hour,

(40) (iv) reducing the amount of dust that is produced and remains in the animal feed in solid form, for example in the form of pellets.

(41) (v) assuring less wear on equipment and the possibility of better controlling the production T ° C.

(42) The Applicant further verified the use of a formulation consisting only of oleins, for example the formulations F5 and F6 (without the presence of the ethoxylated castor oil or polyethylene glycol esters of fatty acids derived from soybean).

(43) In a first trial, the Applicant prepared a chicken feed using oleic acid in an amount of 0.05% (0.5 Kg/ton of feed), 0.10 and 0.15% by weight and, separately, a mixture of 80% oleic acid and 20% linoleic acid in an amount of 0.05 (0.5 Kg/ton of feed), 0.10 and 0.15% by weight, relative to the total weight of the mixture (4:1 ratio by weight). The results obtained, compared with those obtained in tests 1-4, did not show any effect on the parameters T° C., Amperes, tons/hour, % humidity or P.D.I. due to the presence of oleins and for this reason they have not been shown in Table 2 with tests 1-4.

(44) However, the Applicant conducted a second trial using oleic acid in an amount of 0.5% by weight of (5 Kg/ton of feed) and a mixture of 80% oleic acid and 20% linoleic acid in an amount of 0.5% by weight, relative to the total weight of the mixture (5 Kg/ton of feed). The data regarding the parameters measured are shown in Table 2 (sixth and seventh column from the left). The results obtained show that the values of the parameters are comparable only to those obtained without the use of any formulation of the present invention (see second and third column from the left), notwithstanding that the concentration of oleins used was 10 times greater than concentrations of the tested formulations of the present invention.

(45) Finally, the Applicant tested a mixture of organic acids comprising formic acid, calcium formate, sorbic acid and potassium sorbate (in a 1:1:1:1 ratio by weight and at a concentration of 0.5 Kg/ton and 5 Kg/ton of feed) in order to assess the effect of said mixture of organic acids and salts thereof, used at a concentration of 0.05 and 0.5% by weight, on hourly output, energy consumption and the parameter PDI during the preparation of an animal feed, preferably in pellets. Practically speaking, under the same operating conditions, the Applicant compared the parameters T° C., Amperes, tons/hour, % humidity and P.D.I. (see tests 1-4) obtained during the preparation of a chicken feed when a mixture of organic acids (and salts thereof) in an amount of 0.05% and 0.5% by weight is used in place of one of the formulations of the present invention. The results obtained with the mixture of organic acids, at the two concentrations used, were not satisfactory and not even comparable to those obtained thanks to the use of a formulation in accordance with the present invention.

(46) TABLE-US-00007 TABLE 2 Test 1 PARAMETERS CHICKEN FEED FORMULATION F2 FORMULATION F2 + F5 FORMULATIONF2 + F6 OLEINSF5 OLEINS F6 T ° C. 80 ± 1 81 ± 1 83 ± 1 83 ± 1 78 ± 1 78 ± 2 AMPERES 470 470 465 470 490 490 TONS/HOUR 22-23 23-24 26-27 27-28 22-23 22-23 % FINAL 11.40% 11.60% 11.90% 11.90% 11.30% 11.50% HUMIDITY P.D.I. 90-91 91-92 93-94 93-94 91-92 90-91 % FORMULATION / 0.05 0.05 0.05 / / % WATER 0.5 0.5 0.5 0.5 0.5 0.5 % OLEIN / / / / 0.5 0.5 Test 2 PARAMETERS CHICKEN FEED FORMULATION F4 FORMULATIONF4 + F5 FORMULATION F4 + F6 OLEINSF5 OLEINS F6 T ° C. 82 ± 1 82 ± 1 83 ± 1 83 ± 1 80 ± 1 81 ± 1 AMPERES 480 480 475 470 500 510 TONS/HOUR 21-22 22-23 27-28 26-27 21-22 21-22 % FINAL 11.50% 11.60% 12.00% 12.10% 11.60% 11.50% HUMIDITY P.D.I. 90-91 91-92 93-94 93-94 91-92 91-92 % FORMULATION / 0.05 0.05 0.05 / / % WATER 0.5 0.5 0.5 0.5 0.5 0.5 % OLEIN / / / / 0.5 0.5 Test 3 PARAMETERS CHICKEN FEED FORMULATION F2 FORMULATION F2 + F7 FORMULATION F2 + F8 OLEINS F5 OLEINS F6 T ° C. 80 ± 1 81 ± 1 82 ± 1 83 ± 1 78 ± 1 78 ± 1 AMPERES 470 470 470 470 490 490 TONS/HOUR 22-23 23-24 25-26 27-28 22-23 22-23 % FINAL 11.40% 11.60% 12.00% 11.90% 11.30% 11.50% HUMIDITY P.D.I. 90-91 91-92 94-95 93-94 91-92 90-91 % FORMULATION / 0.05 0.05 0.05 / / % WATER 0.5 0.5 0.5 0.5 0.5 0.5 % OLEIN / / / / 0.5 0.5 Test 4 PARAMETRI CHICKEN FEED FORMULATION F4 FORMULATION F4 + F7 FORMULATION F4 + F8 OLEINSF5 OLEINS F6 T ° C. 82 ± 1 82 ± 1 83 ± 1 83 ± 1 80 ± 1 81 ± 1 AMPERES 480 480 480 480 500 510 TONS/HOUR 21-22 22-23 27-28 28-29 21-22 21-22 % FINAL 11.50% 11.60% 11.90% 12.00% 11.60% 11.50% HUMIDITY P.D.I. 90-91 91-92 94-95 93-94 91-92 91-92 % FORMULATION / 0.05 0.05 0.05 / / % WATER 0.5 0.5 0.5 0.5 0.5 0.5 % OLEIN / / / / 0.5 0.5