Influence of Added Zinc From Zinc Sulfate on Weanling Pig Growth Performance and Plasma Zinc Concentration

Kansas State University Swine Research. A total of 288 weanling pigs (13.4 lb and 18 d of age) was used in a 27 d growth assay to determine the effects of adding Zn from ZnSO4 or ZnO on growth performance. Pigs were allotted to one of eight dietary treatments consisting of a control diet; diets containing one of six concentrations of Zn from ZnSO4 (500, 1,000, 1,500, 2,000, 2,500, or 3,000 ppm); and a diet containing 3,000 ppm of Zn from ZnO. Increasing Zn from ZnSO4 linearly improved ADG and F/G from d 9 to 19; however, adding ZnSO4 to the diet decreased ADG from d 19 to 33. Thus, pigs fed diets containing ZnSO4 or 3,000 ppm of Zn from ZnO had similar growth performance compared to pigs fed the control diet for the overall trial. In conclusion, no benefit was observed for the overall trial from adding increasing concentrations of Zn from ZnSO4 or 3,000 ppm of Zn from ZnO.