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www.benisonmedia.com INTERVIEW Think Grain Think Feed - Volume 11 | Issue 12 | Oct 2025 diet formulation and bird formulations, which increases digestibility is already very www.benisonmedia.com

Think Grain Think Feed - Volume 11 | Issue 12 | Oct 2025

performance?
high—often close to
feed costs and reduces the
100%—¬so while it is
economic advantage of
Evaluating the nutritional
using alternative ingredients.
important to measure, it
value of alternative feed
ingredients is difficult due to
analytical imprecision limit
for further improvement
their high variability in
confidence and consistency,
through enzyme use. The
composition and quality. In short, variability and provides limited opportunity
Factors such as raw material making it harder to realize real focus should be on non-
origin, processing methods, the full value and starch polysaccharides (NSP)
and storage conditions sustainability potential of and fiber fractions, which
create wide nutrient alternative feed sources. have a much greater impact
fluctuations that affect Your review emphasizes on gut health and nutrient
digestibility and bird the importance of digestibility.
performance. accurately characterizing Soluble NSP can increase
Moreover, NIR calibrations fiber fractions and non- intestinal viscosity, impairing
for these ingredients can be starch polysaccharides. nutrient absorption, while
less precise, leading to How do these components insoluble fiber can help
outliers and inaccurate influence gut health, maintain gut motility and
nutrient estimates. This nutrient digestibility, and microbiota balance. By
accurately characterizing
the strategic application of
uncertainty forces
Poultry Nutrition Demystified nutritionists to apply larger enzymes? these fractions, nutritionists
can strategically apply NSP-
safety margins in
In poultry nutrition, starch
degrading enzymes (such as
In this interview with Think Grain Think will exist to some extent for any raw
Feed, Dr. Hugo Romero, Ph.D., ingredient. There's no magic cure to
Executive Manager and Global Poultry these challenges; it's about finding
Technology Lead at NOVUS, shares his ways to operate within them. Impact
expert insights on the future of can be minimized through careful
poultry nutrition amidst rising feed supply chain planning, identifying
costs, ingredient variability, and multiple sources of ingredients, and
sustainability challenges. Drawing on reducing environmental impacts on
over a decade of global experience in our own farms.
broiler and layer nutrition, Dr. Romero Consistent quality and availability
discusses the potential of alternative of alternative ingredients remain a
feed ingredients, the importance of major challenge for the industry.
fiber and fat quality, precision enzyme Which countries are leading in
strategies, and practical approaches to adopting and integrating these
optimizing bird performance while alternatives effectively?
supporting sustainable poultry
Dr. Hugo Romero Sanchez Due to its strong environmental and
production. welfare policies, Europe seems to lead
Dr. Hugo Romero Sanchez is a poultry nutrition
Hugo Romero, NOVUS the way. The aquaculture market in
specialist with deep expertise in broiler and layer
With fluctuating costs, inconsistent Southeast Asia is also an early adopter
physiology, trace mineral nutrition, and feed
formulation. At NOVUS International, he works with availability, and growing of alternative feeds. As for production,
the Research and Development team to develop
environmental concerns while China may lead in insect meal,
practical, science-based nutritional solutions that
surrounding traditional feedstuffs markets globally produce protein, fat
enhance animal performance and support
sustainable poultry production. like corn and soybean meal, which and carbohydrate alternatives from
Before joining NOVUS, Dr. Romero held senior potential alternative ingredients do their own produce, meal and grain
technical roles at Hybro BV, Cobb of Brazil, and
you see shaping the future of harvests.
Trouw Nutrition, focusing on nutrition management
poultry nutrition?
and performance improvement. He holds degrees in What are the primary challenges in
Zootechnics (La Salle University, Colombia), Animal In our global, integrated production evaluating the nutritional value of
Health and Production (National University of
system, challenges with cost, alternative feed ingredients, and
Colombia), and a Ph.D. in Poultry Science (North
availability, and environmental impact how does their variability impact
Carolina State University, U.S.).
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