What Is The Role of Tributyrin in Animal Feed?

Tributyrin is a stable butyrate prodrug. With its unique advantages of "passing entirely through the stomach, slow-release energy supply, and promoting gut health and growth," it can effectively reduce the dosage of antibiotics in livestock farming and improve feed utilization efficiency. Tributyrin is particularly beneficial for young and vulnerable animals. It provides an appropriate diet, improves health and animal productivity, and is gradually becoming a "new favorite" in the feed additive field.

This article will focus on the important role of tributyrin in regulating animal gut health, improving production performance, and enhancing immunity.

1. What is Tributyrin?

(1) Definition

Tributyrin is an ester compound formed by the esterification reaction of one molecule of glycerol and three molecules of butyrate. It belongs to the derivatives of short-chain fatty acids. Its molecular structure is stable and it can slowly release butyrate in the animal body.

Butyrate itself is an important short-chain fatty acid and a crucial metabolite produced by the fermentation of intestinal microorganisms in animals, playing a key role in maintaining intestinal health. However, free butyric acid has a strong, pungent odor and high volatility. Direct addition presents palatability and stability issues. Therefore, esterification to form 

tributyrin is a more ideal application method.

(2) Characteristics of Tributyrin

Appearance: Pure product is a 98% white, nearly oily liquid.

Odor: Milder than butyric acid, almost odorless.

Stability: Good heat resistance, suitable for granulation processing.

Bioavailability: The hydrolysis process takes approximately 2-4 hours, achieving continuous release of butyric acid, mainly in the mid-to-late small intestine, which is precisely the area most important for the physiological function of butyric acid. Free butyric acid rapidly enters intestinal epithelial cells through passive diffusion and the monocarboxylic acid transporter (MCT1), achieving efficient absorption.

Tissue Distribution and Excretion: Most of the absorbed butyric acid is oxidized and utilized in intestinal mucosal cells, providing 60-70% of the energy required by colon cells. A small portion enters the portal circulation and is rapidly metabolized into carbon dioxide and ketone bodies in the liver. Tributyrin hardly accumulates in the body, and excess amounts are mainly excreted through exhalation (carbon dioxide) and urine, resulting in a high safety margin.

2. The Core Role of Tributyrin in Feed Additives

In the field of animal nutrition, the main value of tributyrin lies in improving intestinal health and promoting intestinal development. It increases feed conversion rate and improves production performance. It also regulates intestinal flora, inhibits the growth of harmful bacteria, and enhances immune function and stress resistance.

(1) Improving Intestinal Health and Promoting Intestinal Development

Butyric acid is the main energy source for intestinal epithelial cells. After entering the animal's body, tributyrin is broken down by lipases, gradually releasing butyric acid to provide energy support for intestinal epithelial cells.

This is mainly manifested in:

Increasing villus height

Improving the ratio of villus to crypts

Increasing intestinal absorptive area

Enhancing intestinal barrier function

Intestinal development is particularly crucial in weaned piglets, chicks, and aquatic seedlings. Adding tributyrin can effectively reduce diarrhea rates and improve survival rates.

(2) Improve feed conversion ratio and growth performance. 

Numerous studies have shown that the addition of tributyrin can significantly improve animal production indicators, including: Increased daily weight gain (ADG) Decreased feed conversion ratio (FCR) Increased feed intake Improved body weight uniformity In the trend of antibiotic-free farming, tributyrin, as a functional additive to replace antibiotics, can improve production efficiency while ensuring animal health.

(3) Regulating Intestinal Microbiota and Inhibiting Harmful Bacteria

Butyric acid has a certain antibacterial effect, inhibiting the reproduction of harmful bacteria such as Salmonella and Escherichia coli. Simultaneously, it promotes the growth of beneficial bacteria such as lactic acid bacteria, maintaining the balance of intestinal microbiota.

Its mechanisms of action include:

Lowering intestinal pH

Improving the intestinal microecological environment

Enhancing the intestinal immune barrier

For broilers, laying hens, and piglets, a stable intestinal environment is a key factor in ensuring high-efficiency production.

(4) Enhancing Immune Function and Stress Resistance

Tributyrin enhances the body's immunity by improving intestinal integrity and increasing the activity of immune-related cells. It is particularly effective in the following situations:

Weaning stress

Relocation stress

High temperature stress

Vaccination period

In aquaculture, adding tributyrin can also improve the disease resistance of fish and shrimp and reduce the incidence of disease.

3. Differentiated Applications of Tributyrin in Different Animals

Tributyrin is generally fed to poultry, pigs, ruminants, and aquatic animals in animal feed. The following diagram mainly introduces the addition amount of Tributyrin ≥ 60% per ton of compound feed.

Note: The dosages above are recommended by Polifar industry experts and are for reference only. Adjustments should be made based on product concentration and the actual intestinal health status of the pigs on your farm. If you have any questions, please refer to the instruction manual or contact the Polifar team.

Application schemes and functions in poultry farming

The diagram clearly shows the specific effects of tributyrin on different animal types, facilitating comparison and reference.

4. Latest Market Trends for Tributyrin

Tributyrin is an important feed additive that helps animals maintain a healthy gut and growth performance. It is particularly beneficial for young and vulnerable animals. It provides an appropriate diet, improving health and animal productivity. Feed additives are diverse, often containing multiple nutrients added to a single animal's feed to enhance immunity, promote physical health, and accelerate growth. Feed additives are an important source of nutrition for the livestock sector. Rich in protein, carbohydrates, fiber, minerals, acidifiers, enzymes, antioxidants, and antibiotics, these feeds significantly improve the quality of animal-derived products such as meat, eggs, and dairy. Furthermore, they serve as an energy source to support robust activity and sustain life processes in animals.

In developing regions such as China and India, the surge in livestock activity is a key driver of demand for animal feed. Notably, China and India are major global feed producers. Rising disposable income and urbanization trends are further fueling market growth in these regions, fostering a positive market environment during the forecast period. Furthermore, population growth in these countries has driven increased consumption of meat, poultry products, fish, and dairy products, further fueling the growth of the tributyrin market.

5. Conclusion

In summary, tributyrin, as a new generation of functional feed additives, has significant advantages in improving gut health, enhancing production performance, boosting immunity, and replacing antibiotics. Its application value is increasingly prominent in pig, poultry, and aquaculture.

With the future trend of antibiotic-free and green farming, the tributyrin market has broad prospects. For farmers, a scientific understanding of tributyrin's characteristics and precise application tailored to their specific farming scenarios will enhance competitiveness and provide strong guarantees for farming efficiency and product quality.

For more information on tributyrin's technical parameters, application solutions, and market pricing, it is recommended to consult Polifar, a professional feed additive industry expert, for customized solutions.