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Bextral at FFCW Alimentando o Mundo 2025 – Fighting Salmonella in Animal Feed

6 september 2025

Bextral is participating in the 6th edition of FFCW – Alimentando o Mundo, a conference organized by Certifee in São Paulo that brings together key discussions on feed and food safety.

On this occasion, Angélica Olivier Bernardi, from Doses de Micro, is representing Bextral with a presentation in Portuguese focused on the control of Salmonella in the feed industry.

Whether you are following the conference live or accessing this page afterwards, here you will find the full presentation content, supporting materials, and references, as well as a direct channel to get in touch with us for any questions or further interest.

Animal feed as an entry point for pathogens

Animal feed is one of the main routes through which pathogens can enter the food chain. While not the only source of contamination, it represents a critical point of control with direct implications for livestock performance and consumer safety.

Why Salmonella is such a challenge

Among the microorganisms of concern, Salmonella stands out because of its dual impact on animal production and public health. Animals may carry and shed the bacteria without showing clinical symptoms, silently contaminating the environment and the production chain. This makes control particularly challenging, since infections often remain unnoticed until they reach processing plants or even final food products. In addition, Salmonella can survive for long periods, turning feed into a potential reservoir that reintroduces contamination later in the chain.

A multi-approach strategy

Because of this, controlling pathogens in feed requires a multi-approach strategy. Good manufacturing practices, strict hygiene throughout the production process, and targeted interventions are all necessary to reduce risks effectively. Heat treatments such as conditioning and pelleting can substantially lower microbial loads, but their effects are limited if recontamination occurs after processing, which is why complementary measures are essential.

The role of organic acids

In this context, organic acids have long played an important role. Far from being a recent innovation, they have been used for decades in feed for preservation and hygiene. What current research underscores more clearly is their value in pathogen control and their additional benefits for animal performance. Experimental data support this: pigs fed a diet supplemented with 2.8% lactic acid showed a reduction in both clinical and subclinical Salmonella Typhimurium infections, while the use of sodium butyrate or blends of formic and citric acids has proven to be a cost-effective intervention, reducing fecal shedding and improving average daily weight gain in infected herds.

Conclusion

Altogether, the evidence demonstrates that no single measure is sufficient. Thermal processing, hygiene practices, and nutritional strategies must work together to deliver consistent results. Organic acids stand out as a reliable and well-established tool that not only helps reduce pathogen pressure but also supports productivity, making them a key component of modern feed safety programs.

REFERENCES:

Abrego, A., Wiseman, B., & Gragg, S. E. (2025). Summarizing the current knowledge and existing knowledge gaps for pre-harvest and post-harvest Salmonella contamination in pork. Journal of Food Protection. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/40876777/

Alarcón, L. V., Allepuz, A., & Mateu, E. (2021). Biosecurity in pig farms: a review. Porcine Health Management, 7(5). https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/33397483/

Lynch, H., Leonard, F. C., Walia, K., Lawlor, P. G., Duffy, G., Fanning, S., … Argüello, H. (2017). Investigation of in-feed organic acids as a low cost strategy to combat Salmonella in grower pigs. Preventive Veterinary Medicine, 139, 50–57. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/28364832/

Tanaka, T., Imai, Y., Kumagae, N., & Sato, S. (2010). The effect of feeding lactic acid to Salmonella Typhimurium experimentally infected swine. Journal of Veterinary Medical Science, 72(7), 827–831. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/20145379/

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Regina EDO Arderiu | DVM - Technical Sales Support

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