ORIGINAL RESEARCH article
Front. Anim. Sci.
Sec. Animal Nutrition
This article is part of the Research TopicBioactive-Enriched Foods: A Present, and Future Perspective on Sustainability and NutritionView all 7 articles
Bioactive-Enriched Feed with Agave Fructans and Turmeric Powder as an Alternative to Antibiotics in Early-Laying Hens
Provisionally accepted
Cristina D. Balcón-Pacheco1Carlos A. García-Munguía2Román Cardona-Herrera3
César Ozuna4Alberto M. García-Munguía5
Elena Franco Robles6*- 1Interinstitucional Master’s Program in Livestock Production, Graduate Studies, University of Guanajuato, Guanajuato, Mexico
- 2Department of Veterinary and Animal Science, University of Guanajuato, Guanajuato, Mexico
- 3Graduate Program in Biosciences. Division of Life Sciences, Irapuato-Salamanca Campus, University of Guanajuato, Guanajuato, Mexico
- 4Department of Food Science. Division of Life Sciences, Irapuato-Salamanca Campus, University of Guanajuato, Guanajuato, Mexico
- 5Department of Agronomic Sciences. Center for Agricultural Sciences, Autonomous University of Aguascalientes, Aguascalientes, Mexico
- 6Department of Veterinary and Animal Science, Division of Life Sciences, Irapuato-Salamanca Campus, University of Guanajuato, Guanajuato, Mexico
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The increasing restrictions on antibiotic use in poultry production have encouraged the search for natural alternatives that improve health and productivity in laying hens. This study evaluated the effects of dietary supplementation with agave fructans (PRE) and turmeric powder (AOX), and their combination (PA) on productive performance, egg quality, hematological status, and gastrointestinal traits in early-laying hens. One hundred and twenty Lohman White hens (20 weeks old) were randomly distributed into five dietary diets: basal control (CON), antibiotics (ATB), agave fructans (PRE), turmeric powder (AOX), and the combination of both additives (PA). The inclusion of agave fructans improved internal egg quality, increasing albumen and yolk height and egg weight without altering feed intake or conversion. PRE and AOX also enhanced immune status, evidenced by a reduced the heterophil-to-lymphocyte (H:L) ratio and modulation of leukocyte populations. Gastrointestinal characteristics were minimally affected, with isolated changes in crop and cecal pH and duodenal organ weight. Overall, PRE supplementation demonstrated the most consistent physiological benefits, supporting its use as a sustainable strategy to improve egg quality and welfare in laying hens while reducing reliance on antibiotics.
Keywords: Bioactive-enriched feed1, Agave fructans2, Turmeric3, keyword4, Egg quality5, Poultry nutrition6, Antibiotic alternatives7, Sustainable livestock production8
Received: 19 Aug 2025; Accepted: 30 Oct 2025.
Copyright: © 2025 Balcón-Pacheco, García-Munguía, Cardona-Herrera, Ozuna, García-Munguía and Franco Robles. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence: Elena Franco Robles, e.franco@ugto.mx
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