Benzoic acid — a food preservative of interest to researchers for its antibacterial properties, could also reduce ammonia emissions from pig production, according to new research from North Carolina State University.
The study determined that a 1% inclusion of benzoic acid could reduce emissions of ammonia by 58% while also improving weight gain, feed efficiency and meat quality when compared with a control diet that used antibiotics instead of benzoic acid. While the use of benzoic acid at this level could prove cost-prohibitive for livestock producers, a lower rate of inclusion — approximately .6% — could also yield benefits at a lower cost, according to Sung Woo Kim, the William Neal Reynolds Distinguished Professor of animal science at North Carolina State University.
