Organic Minerals in Poultry

Poultry is one of the most important source of animal protein for humans and now a days poultry production system is highly advanced and in context of nutritional advances a number of feed additives are now used to improve the efficiency of birds e.g. prebiotics, probiotics, organic acids etc. But in addition to these, chelated minerals/organic minerals has gained very much popularity. The word chelate derives from the Greek “chele”, which means tweezers or claw. They are the result of electron sharing between a metal and a ligand. A ligand is usually an anion or a molecule, which has an atom or a pair of electrons with available valences. Common ligands contain oxygen, nitrogen, sulfur, halogens, or a combination of these due to their electronic structure. Chelated minerals have non-metallic ligands, and are therefore organic. Proteins and carbohydrates are the most frequent candidates in organic mineral combinations. After absorption, organic minerals may present physiological effects, which improve specific metabolic responses, such as the immune response.