Abstract
Comprehensive Meta-Analysis (CMA) software, using data from 64 global studies (288 dietary assessments, 194,356 broilers) evaluated the effects of substituting inorganic trace minerals (ITM) with proteinate trace minerals (PTM) in broiler diets at various inclusion levels. Replacing ITM with PTM at equivalent (100%) or reduced (11-80%) levels improved performance metrics, showing reduced total feed intake (FI) (-6 g/bird), lower average daily feed intake (ADFI) (-0.43 g/bird), higher average daily gain (ADG) (+0.36g), greater body weight gain (BWG) (+4.29 g/bird), higher final body weight (BW) (+7.50 g/bird), improved feed conversion ratio (FCR) (-1.26%), and lower mortality (-10.95%), all significant (p < 0.05). Median mineral inclusion reductions of 40% Cu, 59.82% Fe, 41.41% Mn, and 34.67% Zn had no adverse effects, instead enhancing outcomes. Across 17 studies (25,144 broilers, 85 dietary assessments), mineral excretion decreased significantly with PTM versus ITM by 16% Cu, 14% Fe, 21% Mn, and 15% Zn (p < 0.001). When PTM replaced ITM at 50-80% inclusion, further benefits were observed, including lower total FI (-7 g/bird), lower ADFI (-1.07 g/bird), higher ADG (+1.67), higher BWG (+2.65 g/bird), lower FCR (-4.50%) and lower mortality (-11.09%) with mineral inclusion reductions of 17% Cu, 42.16% Fe, 42.89% Mn, and 50% Zn. Meta-regression identified significant influences (p < 0.05) from study variables such as strain, study duration, and region. Life cycle assessment modelling demonstrated PTM inclusion lowered gross carbon emissions by 3.5% and lower emission intensities per unit live weight of both feed use and overall lifecycle by 4.5% and 4.1%, respectively on diets of high and low soybean meal inclusion. Overall, replacing ITM with PTM in broiler diets can promote production performance of broilers and lower mineral excretion levels while contributing to a lower CFP.