At dsm-firmenich we are continuously improving our knowledge on vitamin stability for animal premixes to stay at the top of our game. Analyzing vitamin stability allows us to provide accurate shelf life and storage condition recommendations for our premixes. It also allows us to provide our customers with the information they need to understand possible storage losses based on the environmental conditions in their own facilities and warehouses and to adjust premix order quantities or timing for optimal use.

Globally, recommended best use by dates for premixes range from 3 months to 1 year. The Best Use By dates are strongly influenced by local environmental conditions ranging from the frozen temperatures of the Canadian north to the hot humid conditions of southern USA. Throughout the years, there have been many stability studies with various vitamins and minerals, however, we have limited data on differing vitamin product forms or the stability of vitamins in the presence of choline, trace minerals, and supplemental antioxidants. Additionally, most historical stability studies represent time-points only up to 3 months.

Currently, Animal Nutrition and Health-North America Nutritional Services is working on a year-long Global Stability Project to answer some of these questions. For this study, we are analyzing different vitamin forms along with vitamin and trace mineral premixes with or without the presence of choline chloride or BHT. Vitamin A, as we know, is one of the most sensitive and most impacted by the conditions in which the premix is stored, and the composition of the overall blend and therefore is of special interest. These samples are stored at room temperature (25^oC (77°F), 60 % RH) for a year, or accelerated conditions (40^oC (104°F), 75 % RH) for 6 months, and analyzed by TMAS and a third-party lab every 3 months. Preliminary research results indicate, Vitamin A content of a vitamin and trace mineral premix with choline containing ROVIMIX® A 1000 product form, stays relatively consistent at 90 % at 3 months. The addition of BHT to the premix may provide some protection to Vitamin A (Figure 1). In comparison, the third-party Vitamin A 1000 shows a drop in potency close to 60% which shows that ROVIMIX® A 1000 has a higher recovery compared to other Vitamin A sources.

Information from this project will be pertinent to our premix formulation team and can help us make decisions if we are experiencing supply disruptions in certain vitamins. As our project progresses, we can fine tune our shelf-life recommendations and recommended storage conditions to ensure our customers remain confident in dsm-firmenich as the leaders in premix and vitamin knowledge and technology.

If you would like more information on vitamin stability in premixes, please contact your dsm-firmenich Account Manager.