Impact of acidifiers on the intestinal microbiota and zootechnical indicators in growing fattening pigs

Abstract

Introduction. Currently, the search for technologies that can improve the survival, productivity, and immunity of livestock and prevent the development of antibiotic resistance in the microbiota is a priority. Antibiotics, which destroy normal flora and develop dysbiosis, contribute to the spread of resistance, and therefore pose a threat to human health, are the primary preventative measures. Acidifiers, which affect the intestinal microbiota, metabolism, and productive performance of animals, hold great promise for solving this problem.
Aim. To study the effect of acidifiers on the intestinal microbiota and zootechnical performance in fattening pigs.
Materials and methods. The study involved fattening pigs, whose diets were supplemented with acidifiers at 78 days of age. The experiment was conducted at the Priozerny Pig Complex (Leningrad Oblast, Russia). For the experiment, three groups of animals were formed: a control group fed a standard diet, experimental group 1 fed the new acidifier MetaBak, and experimental group 2 fed the acidifier Productiv Acid SE. The experiment lasted two weeks, after which intestinal contents were sampled for microbiota analysis using NGS sequencing. At the end of the fattening period, zootechnical parameters, including live weight, livability, and feed conversion, were assessed.
Results. A positive effect of both acidifiers on the parameters studied was established. The best results in livability and live weight gain were achieved with the use of the new acidifier MetaBak in the diets: the average daily gain was 953 g (+4.27%), and livability was 99.07%. The use of both products contributed to the normalization of the intestinal microbiota, increasing the content of microorganisms associated with metabolic properties. The lowest levels of opportunistic and undesirable bacteria were detected with the use of the new MetaBak acidifier, which resulted in a 2.25-fold reduction in the number of Burkholderiales, a 1.4-fold reduction in Campylobacterales, and a complete elimination of Mycoplasma from the intestinal microbial community.
Conclusions. Based on the experimental results, it can be concluded that the studied acidifiers in fattening pig diets normalize the intestinal microbiota and improve zootechnical performance.

To cite: Sklyarov S.P., Krylov R.A., Ilina L.A., Savenkov K.S., Ponomareva E.S., Zaikin V.A., Laptev G.Y. Impact of acidifiers on the intestinal microbiota and zootechnical indicators in growing fattening pigs. Agrarian Bulletin of the North Caucasus. 2026;16(1):27-40. (In Russ.) https://doi.org/10.31279/2949-4796-2026-16-1-27-40