Clean drinking water, clear rules. Hygiene meets compliance in poultry farming

There are some interesting developments taking place in Europe regarding the cleaning of drinking water in poultry production, particularly when it comes to treating the drinking water while the animals are present in the house. The government is increasingly keeping a close watch on farmers when they use products at the farm such as cleaning and disinfection agents.

The government is very clear about which products may or may not be used at a poultry farm. This is regulated at the European level by ECHA (the European Chemicals Agency).
For the poultry sector, ECHA recognises two key types of registrations:

PT03:   Products that may be used for cleaning and disinfecting animal housing, equipment, and vehicles;

PT05:   Products that may be used to treat or disinfect drinking water for poultry.

This means that when a farmer uses a cleaning or disinfecting product, it should have an ECHA registration for the correct PT category. This ensures:

• The product is officially approved and tested for use around animals.
• The farmer is compliant with EU legislation and won’t face regulatory issues. No risk of a fine or a recall.
• There is traceability and safety assurance for food production and animal welfare.

Put simply, products registered under PT03 are only intended for use when poultry houses are empty.

Only products holding both PT03 and PT05 approvals can be safely and legally applied in empty houses and while birds are present.

Real hygiene happens during the cycle

People often say: “a chain is only as strong as its weakest link”. Interestingly, the same applies to your animals’ drinking water system. There can be a significant difference between the quality of the water coming from the first nipple and that from the last one. Contamination and microbial growth rarely originate from the water source itself — they develop within the system.

This means that while the water from the first nipple may still be of very high quality, the water further down the line can already be of poor quality.

There are several possible reasons why contamination occurs within the system. One common cause is the use of additives in the drinking water. Nutritional supplements such as organic acids, vitamins, and medications can leave behind a biofilm inside the drinking system. And no matter how small that biofilm is, it often serves as a breeding ground and hiding place for bacteria, fungi, and viruses. It’s also observed that the water temperature gradually increases as it moves through the drinking system. This too affects the growth of microorganisms, as they thrive particularly well at slightly higher temperatures. Therefore, this is another important factor contributing to the greater likelihood of microbial contamination towards the end of the drinking system.

It is therefore of great importance to regularly clean the entire drinking water system to remove all microorganisms — with particular emphasis on cleaning all the way to the last nipple.

Only PT05-approved products belong in the drinking line during the cycle

Intra Hydrocare was the first product in Europe to receive, in addition to PT02, PT03, and PT04 also a PT05 registration from the ECHA. This made Intracare the first company able to offer a product that can be used to clean and disinfect drinking water systems while animals are still present in the barn. This is a major advantage, especially for livestock farmers with long production cycles or those who regularly administer additives via the drinking water. Another major advantage of Intra Hydrocare is that it is extremely stable and it allows the use of an effective working concentration up to the very last nipple.