Vitamin A

DSM ESSENTIAL PRODUCTS

Essential for vision, reproduction, immunity and growth

We all know vitamins are essential for the health of our farm animals, but do you also know that of all vitamins, vitamin A may well be the most challenging to produce?

To prevent the highly instable vitamin A from degrading when exposed to light, oxygen or heat, this vitamin needs to be protected by encapsulation and stabilizers. EMQ used to be the perfect antioxidant for this job, but since its banning by the feed industry in the EU and other large markets in 2018, alternative solutions have had to be found to protect vitamin A.

Vitamin manufacturing and product formulation start with the use of safe and traceable ingredients and processes and involve a delicate balance in product form development between optimum handling, mixability, stability and bio-availability. Very few producers have mastered these skills as DSM did, as proved by recent quality issues on the part of large vitamin A suppliers.

This does not mean that vitamin A forms do not lose activity. They do, as used to happen in EMQ times, but with the right product form (ROVIMIX® A1000), loss of activity under mild conditions is negligible and, under much more stressing conditions such as complete premix including choline chloride and trace minerals with a long storage time, potential losses are minimized, being much lower than with other vitamin A products. Premixers, feed mills, integrators and farmers need to be aware of this situation and also of the large variations between products, so that they can make the right choice. 

For more information on DSM Vitamin Supplementation Guidelines.

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DSM Product Content (min.) Formulation Technology Application
ROVIMIX® A 1000 1,000,000 IU/g Beadlet Mash, Pellet, Expansion, Extrusion
ROVIMIX® A 500 WS 500,000 IU/g Spray-dried powder, water dispersible Milk replacer/Water
ROVIMIX® A Palmitate 1.6 1,600,000 IU/g Oily liquid, may crystalize on storage Oily solution
ROVIMIX® AD3 1000/200 Vit. A: 1,000,000 IU/g
Vit. D3: 200,000 IU/g
Beadlet Mash, Pellet, Expansion, Extrusion

Selected species

Main functions:

Essential for growth, health (immunity), reproduction (steroid synthesis), vision, development and integrity of skin, epithelia and mucosa

Deficiency symptoms:

  • Blindness or night-blindness (xeropthalmia)
  • Loss of appetite, poor absorption of nutrients, impaired growth and, in severe cases, death
  • Decreased egg production and hatchability
  • Reduced immune response and increased risk of infections (respiratory and intestinal)
  • Keratinization of epithelial tissues

Main functions:

Essential for growth, health (immunity), reproduction (steroid synthesis), vision, development and integrity of skin, epithelia and mucosa

Deficiency symptoms:

  • Blindness or night-blindness (xeropthalmia)
  • Loss of appetite, poor absorption of nutrients, decreased growth and, in severe cases, death
  • Reduced immune response and increased risk of infections (respiratory and intestinal)
  • Reproduction defects such as failure of spermatogenesis in the male and fetal resorption or death in the female swine.
  • Dry and scaly skin
  • Keratinization of epithelial tissues

Main functions:

Essential for growth, health (immunity), reproduction (steroid synthesis), vision, development and integrity of skin, epithelia and mucosa

Deficiency symptoms:

  • Blindness or night-blindness (xeropthalmia)
  • Loss of appetite, poor absorption of nutrients, impaired growth and, in severe cases, death
  • Reproduction defects like failure of spermatogenesis and fetal resorption or death
  • Increased risk of infections (respiratory and intestinal)
  • Keratinization of epithelial tissues

Main functions:

  • Essential for growth, health (immunity), reproduction (steroid synthesis) and vision
  • Development and integrity of skin, epithelia and mucosa

Deficiency symptoms:

  • Abnormal swimming (ataxia)
  • Ascites
  • Deformities (spinal, jaws, twisted gill opercula)
  • Edema
  • Erosion
  • Eye pathology: cataract, degeneration of retina
  • Growth retardation
  • Hematological index changes
  • Hemorrhage
  • Lesions
  • Lethargy
  • Loss of appetite up to anorexia
  • Skin: depigmentation, dark skin coloration
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