Chelated Minerals for Poultry

Organic minerals have been subject of an increasing number of investigations recently. These compounds can be considered the most significant event regarding commercial forms of minerals targeting animal supplementation in the last decades. Minerals, especially metals, are usually supplemented in poultry feeds using cheap saline sources and have never required a lot of attention in terms of quality. On the other hand, definitions of organic minerals are very broad and frequently lead to confusion when decision-making becomes necessary. Organic minerals include any mineral bound to organic compounds, regardless of the type of existing bond between mineral and organic molecules. Proteins and carbohydrates are the most frequent candidates in organic mineral combinations. Organic fraction size and bond type are not limitations in organic mineral definition; however, essential metals (Cu, Fe, Zn, and Mn) can form coordinated bonds, which are stable in intestinal lumen. Metals bound to organic ligands by coordinated bonds can dissociate within animal metabolism whereas real covalent bonds cannot. Chelated minerals are molecules that have a metal bound to an organic ligand through coordinated bonds; but many organic minerals are not chelates or are not even bound through coordinated bonds. Utilization of organic minerals is largely dependent on the ligand; therefore, amino acids and other small molecules with facilitated access to the enterocyte are supposed to be better utilized by animals. Organic minerals with ligands presenting long chains may require digestion prior to absorption. After absorption, organic minerals may present physiological effects, which improve specific metabolic responses, such as the immune response. Many studies have demonstrated the benefits of metal-amino acid chelates on animal metabolism, but the detection positive effects on live performance is less consistent.