Journal of Advances in Biology & Biotechnology

Antibiotic growth promoters such as virginiamycin have been widely used in poultry nutrition to enhance growth performance and feed efficiency. However, concerns regarding antimicrobial resistance have increased interest in herbal alternatives. Phytogenic feed additives such as amla, turmeric, and neem possess antimicrobial, antioxidant, and immunomodulatory properties and are considered potential substitutes for antibiotics. The present study evaluated the effects of antibiotic (Stafac-20) and herbal supplementation on growth performance, immunocompetence traits, blood biochemical parameters, digestive organ development, and carcass characteristics in broilers. A total of 180-day-old broiler chicks were randomly allocated to three groups: a basal diet supplemented with Stafac-20 @ 50 g/quintal (T1), a basal diet supplemented with a herbal mixture comprising 0.5% amla pulp powder, 0.25% turmeric powder, and 0.25% neem leaf powder (T2), and a basal diet without supplementation as the control (T3). Each group comprised six replicates of ten birds, which were reared for 6 weeks under standard management conditions. Growth performance parameters, viz. body weight, body weight gain, and FCR, were not significantly affected (P > 0.05) during the experiment. Serum ALP and SGPT activities were significantly higher (P < 0.01) in the antibiotic and phytobiotic groups than in the control group. Humoral immunity was significantly enhanced (P < 0.001) in both the antibiotic and herbal groups, whereas cell-mediated immunity was significantly higher (P < 0.001) in the antibiotic group than in the control group. Carcass traits were not significantly affected (P > 0.05), except for drumstick yield. In conclusion, phytobiotic supplementation improved immune responses without adversely affecting growth performance or carcass quality, indicating its potential as a natural alternative to antibiotics in broiler production.