Progress 09/01/23 to 08/31/24
Outputs
Target Audience:Students, farmers, and researchers in mushroom production, organic agricultural farmers, and animal and poultry science-related people are targeted at this time. Next year, we will present the results from these studies to agriculture and poultry farmers during Agriculture Field Days at the respective universities, as well as scientists and researchers at academic conferences. Changes/Problems:No problems or changes are necessary. None. What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?One research assistant professor at UH, and one graduate student each at UH, PVAMU, and UGA are recruited for this project, and several UG students have learned mushroom collection, handling, and processing. In addition,one postdoctoral associate at PVAMU was involved in washing, cleaning, andprocessingmushroom stems and will conduct research on poultry as planned in this project. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?At this time, no data has been disseminated.However, one MS student presented an oral presentation on the mushroom supplementation in chickens to other animal science students, scientists, and researchers at the Association of Research Directors (ARD, 2024) Symposium in Nashville, TN on April 07, 2024. Two workshops were conducted (one at Poultry Center, PVAMU and one at Tyler, Texas) for farmers to learn how to grow mushrooms,collect and prepare mushroom stems, and use them in poultry feed. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?1. Begin formulating poultry feed incorporating DMS, considering the nutritional composition of the samples to ensure balanced nutrition. 2. Fine-tune and finalize the design and begin the development of the cleaning and sanitizing machine. 3. Use DMS powder in the poultry studies at Prairie View A&M University and the University of Georgia for feeding trials. 4. Continue exploring partnerships with mushroom companies to scale-up the production of DMS and make it more widely available to organic poultry producers. 5. Plans are underway to organize training sessions for local farmers using extension agents on these projects from PVAMU and UGA, focusing on sustainable mushroom cultivation practices and the potential use of mushroom stems in poultry feed. These sessions will provide students with opportunities to engage with industry professionals and gain practical knowledge of agricultural practices. 6. We are exploring possibilities for students to participate in farm visits and workshops, allowing them to gain hands-on experience in the agriculture and animal industry sectors. We plan to work with all team members on this project in terms of interpreting the analytical results generated and preparing manuscripts for publication.A review article on mushroom feeding in chickens is in the developing stage, and we hope to get it published before the next reporting period.
Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals?
For major goal 1: Develop a process to produce dried mushroom stems (DMS) as a feed ingredient. Progress: Milestone 1.1 Develop a process to collect and prepare mushroom stems for further processing. The process of upcycling mushroom stems is developed effectively, involving cleaning the mushrooms and cutting the stems from the roots. The process begins by feeding the mushroom stems into a vibrational bowl feeder, which directs them to a custom-designed cutting machine that meets specific requirements. Following the cutting stage, the mushrooms are washed to ensure cleanliness. While commercially available vibrational bowl feeders and washing machines are utilized, the cutting machine is tailored to precise specifications for optimal performance in the upcycling process. The mushroom root trimming machine is designed to trim the roots of mushrooms. The stems are trimmed from the root and can be utilized as chicken feed. The mushroom stems are placed into a vibrational bowl feeder, which aligns and feeds them into the cutting machine developed at University of Houston (UH). The main function of the bowl feeder is to ensure that the mushroom is delivered into the cutting machine in a single line. After exiting the bowl feeder, a linear actuator was employed to move each mushroom forward through the stem cutting machine. Computer vision algorithms will determine whether the mushroom needs adjustment to reorient the stems. After alignment and rotation, if necessary, the blade cuts the mushroom stem, extracting the usable portion for chicken feed while discarding the waste root. This separation is facilitated by swinging arms that turn and place the mushrooms into their respective sorted piles. Milestone 1.2 Develop methods to freeze dry and pulverize DMS into a fine powder for use in chicken feed formulation. We have successfully doubled our freeze-drying capacity by purchasing freeze dryers (two at UH and (1 at PVAMU). This enhancement will allow us to process larger quantities of mushroom stems, supporting the scaling up of our DMS production. We visited mushroom farms to become familiar with the mushroom cultivation process and to educate workers on properly harvesting button mushrooms and caps. The students gained valuable hands-on experience and insights into the mushroom industry. Two sets of samples were prepared to investigate the effect of different cleaning methods on the mushroom stems' composition: Method 1: The freshly harvested mushroom stems without the dirt were cleaned using soft nylon brushes to remove surface dirt and freeze dried. Method 2: The harvested mushroom stems with the dirt were washed with water to produce dirt-free stems. This method was used to check how many soluble minerals, vitamins, and other compounds get lost during the water washing process. For each cleaning method, both brown and white varieties of button mushrooms were used. The cleaned and washed mushroom stem samples were freeze-dried until the moisture content was reduced to below 5 wt.%, to enhance the shelf-life of mushroom stem. Due to the low moisture content of the freeze-dried mushroom stems, a single milling method was sufficient to pulverize the stems into a fine powder in a few minutes, minimizing energy consumption. Dried mushroom stems were then finely ground into powder to be infused into chicken feed. Milestone 1.3 Determine the chemical composition and nutritional value of DMS. 1. Amino Acid Profile Analysis: We have completed a comprehensive amino acid profile analysis for both brown and white mushroom stems, comparing brush-cleaned and water-washed samples. All the essential amino acids required by poultry are present in all the samples. White mushroom stems generally showed higher amino acid content compared to brown mushroom stems. Water washing appeared to have a more significant impact on the amino acid content of white mushroom stems compared to brown mushroom stems. 2.Vitamin Analysis: We conducted a detailed vitamin analysis, focusing on B vitamins, vitamin E family, vitamin D family, and vitamin A family in DMS. Notable results include: Vitamin B2 (riboflavin) is present in relatively high concentrations (16.3 to 19.5 mg/kg) across all mushroom stem samples, with levels significantly higher than those found in common chicken feed ingredients such as corn, wheat, and soybean meal. Vitamin D2 levels were significantly higher than Vitamin D3 levels in all samples, potentially offering a valuable plant-based source of this essential nutrient for organic poultry diets. Interestingly, water-washed samples showed higher levels of vitamins across several families, including both water-soluble (B vitamins) and fat-soluble vitamins (E, D, and A), compared to brush-cleaned samples. 3. Heavy Metal Analysis: We performed heavy metal analysis to ensure the safety of DMS as a feed ingredient. Arsenic, cadmium, lead, and mercury were detected in low concentrations across all samples, ranging from 0.1-0.255 ppm, 0.02-0.021 ppm, 0.1 ppm, and 0.01 ppm respectively. These levels are well below the maximum allowable limits for animal feed (2 ppm for arsenic, 1 ppm for cadmium, 5 ppm for lead, and 0.1 ppm for mercury), indicating that the mushroom stems are safe for use in poultry feed. Interestingly, water-washed samples showed slightly higher levels of some heavy metals, particularly arsenic in white mushroom stems (0.125 ppm in brush-cleaned vs. 0.255 ppm in water-washed). Despite these variations, all values remained well within safe limits. For major goal 2, we are collecting enough dried mushroom stems for poultry studies at Prairie View A&M University. Once we have the required amount of DMS material, we will conduct studies on broilers and layers to measure the effects on performance and product quality. For major goal 3, we have sent brown and white dried mushroom stemproduct for rooster assay studies at the University of Georgia at Athens to evaluate the nutritional value of the DMS. After the rooster assay studies, we will send more DMS materials for chicken health and challenge studies at UGA. For major goal 4, Students from the University of Houston have been actively involved in sample preparation and data collection for mushroom stem processing studies. This includes participating in collecting, cleaning, and freeze-drying procedures. While the detailed analyses (amino acid, vitamin, and heavy metal studies) were conducted by external laboratories, students gained valuable experience in sample preparation, data interpretation, and understanding the importance of these analyses in feed development. Students are continuously involved in various aspects of the research project, including literature reviews, data analysis, and assisting in the optimization of processing methods. Along with the students and researchers at the University of Houston, researchers and students at Prairie View A&M University were involved in collection, washing, cleaning, freeze drying, and preparing the samples for poultry studies. The students from the Department of Engineering at UH were actively involved in designing and developing a machine for cutting, cleaning, and washing mushroom stems. DMS samples from brown and white mushrooms are sent to UGA to conduct rooster assay studies. Students are being involved in these animal studies too.
Publications
- Type:
Conference Papers and Presentations
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2024
Citation:
K. G. Stamps*, A. A. A. Abdel-Wareth, and J. Lohakare. 2024. The Use of Mushrooms in Poultry Nutrition: Current and Future Prospects. Association of Research Directors Symposium. Nashville, TN. April 06-09, 2024. Presented orally by Ms. Stamps. USDA-NIFA-OREI support was acknowledged.
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