Journal
JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT
Volume 172, Issue -, Pages 201-206Publisher
ACADEMIC PRESS LTD- ELSEVIER SCIENCE LTD
DOI: 10.1016/j.jenvman.2016.02.036
Keywords
Broiler; Meat chicken; Equilibrium relative humidity (ERH); Wet litter; Water absorption isotherms
Categories
Funding
- Australian Government's Cooperative Research Centres Programme
- Department of Agriculture and Fisheries (DAF), Queensland Government
- University of New South Wales (UNSW)
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Poultry grown on litter floors are in contact with their own waste products. The waste material needs to be carefully managed to reduce food safety risks and to provide conditions that are comfortable and safe for the birds. Water activity (A(w)) is an important thermodynamic property that has been shown to be more closely related to microbial, chemical and physical properties of natural products than moisture content. In poultry litter, A(w) is relevant for understanding microbial activity; litter handling and rheological properties; and relationships between in-shed relative humidity and litter moisture content. We measured the A(w) of poultry litter collected throughout a meat chicken grow-out (from fresh pine shavings bedding material to day 52) and over a range of litter moisture content (10-60%). The A(w) increased non-linearly from 0.71 to 1.0, and reached a value of 0.95 when litter moisture content was only 22-33%. Accumulation of manure during the grow-out reduced A(w) for the same moisture content. These results are relevant for making decisions regarding litter re-use in multiple grow-outs as well as setting targets for litter moisture content to minimise odour, microbial risks and to ensure necessary litter physical conditions are maintained during a grow-out. Methods to predict A(w) in poultry litter from moisture content are proposed. Crown Copyright (C) 2016 Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
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