Environmentally-friendly coccidiosis control for UK Poultry Farmers

For the very first time, a new environmentally-friendly disinfectant, approved for use against coccidiosis, can be used by UK poultry farmers, without major restrictions, for both layers and broilers.

Intersteril, launched by specialist disinfection company, Hysolv Ltd, is effective against single-celled parasites, including coccidial oocysts and campylobacter. An important feature is that, as a peracetic disinfectant, it breaks down into oxygen, water and biodegradable acetic acid, so there are no issues with it leaking into watercourses.

“I believe that this is a real game-changer for poultry farmers as, previously, there have been many constraints with conventional phenol-based disinfectants that could only be used between batches,” said Jim Bigmore, of Hysolv. “Not only is Intersteril highly effective, due to its high dilution rate, it can be more than per cent cheaper than other anti-coccidial disinfectants. In addition, because it is not affected by low temperatures, it can be used all-year-round.”

Manufactured in Germany, Intersteril has already been approved by the InfoXgen, the German equivalent of the Soil Association. It has also been passed by the German Veterinary Industry (DVG) which means automatic Defra clearance in the UK.

Due to its eco-credentials, Mr Bigmore believes this disinfectant will also be of great interest to organic producers as well as the large poultry companies. Until now the organic farmer didn’t have an organic way of disinfecting against coccidial oocysts, he points out.

When disinfecting against coccidial oocysts at 2 per cent, the disinfectant kills micro-organisms, such as viruses, bacteria, mycobacteria, fungi and yeasts. It also kills the bacterial spores of Clostridium perfringens C, responsible for necrotic enteritis which used to be controlled by chemical coccidiostats.

“Today, necrotic enteritis (NE) is a resurgent problem among broilers. Following the withdrawal of antimicrobial growth promoters and ionophore coccidiostats, vaccination has been used as a method of control. However, this only provides partial protection. Until more effective vaccines are available, removing the NE spores during the end-of cycle cleaning and disinfection can help control this problem,” says Mr Bigmore. “Intersteril not only kills coccidial oocysts, if also deals with Clostridium perfringens, the cause of NE.

“There are now only six ionophore types and five synthetic coccidiostats on sale in the EU. The major problem with using coccidiostats was the development of resistance by coccidia to the chemical compounds. This meant periodically changing coccidiostats to a new chemical group, known as the shuttle system,” pointed out Mr Bigmore.

“One way of combating the build-up of resistance is to use a disinfectant with the ability to kill the coccidial oocysts found in the poultry house. Generally, anticoccidial disinfectants have been based upon the chlorocresol – phenol type – of compound and these are certainly-not eco-friendly, but Intersteril can be used throughout the cycle with few constraints,” he added.