Lauric acid saponified with calcium ameliorates indices of intestinal function and gut health in weaned piglets

Abstract

Reducing the use of antibiotics is one of the largest challenges for pig production. The scientific community has investigated numerous alternative substances to antibiotics, including medium-chain fatty acids, due to their antimicrobial and protective effects on the gut health of piglets. The present study investigated the effect of lauric acid saponified with calcium (C12-Ca) on the growth performance and gut health parameters in post-weaning piglets. A total of 192 24-day-old piglets were assigned to one of three dietary treatments: CTR (basal diet alone), ANT (amoxicillin, 400 mg/kg) as a positive control diet, or C12-Ca (1 g/kg) for 28 days. C12-Ca did not affect performance, except for feed efficiency (FE), which increased (p