ANN 111: Principles of Animal Nutrition and Feed Technology (2+1)

SINGLE CELL PROTEIN (SCP)

Nowadays, single cell organisms like yeast and bacteria are exploited in various fields. They can grow very rapidly and double their cell mass in large-scale fermentors. A range of nutrient substrates can be used including cereal grains, sugar beet, sugar cane, and its byproducts, waste products from food manufacture to culture bacteria such as Pseudomonas sp are grown. SCP has high levels of nucleic acids of 5-12% DM in yeast and 8-16% DM in bacteria. Some of the purine and pyrimidine bases in these acids can be used for nucleic acid biosynthesis. Uric acid or allantoins, the end products of nucleic acid catabolism, are excreted in the urine of animals consuming SCP. Although SCP does contain a crude fibre fraction and lacks cellulose, hemicellulose and lignin, it contains glucans, mannans and chitin. Dietary SCP for broilers is 2-5% concentration and nearly 10% is recommended for laying hens.

Single cell organisms like yeast & bacteria grow rapidly and provide protein. Single cell protein can be included at 2-5% in broilers and 10% in layers.