DuPont Animal Nutrition, a business unit of DuPont Nutrition & Biosciences, announced Sept. 9 a partnership with Proteon Pharmaceuticals S.A. to bring the emerging bacteriophage technology to poultry producers in selected countries, strengthening DuPont’s gut health solutions for poultry and helping further mitigate antimicrobial resistance.

The threat of antimicrobial resistance sparked recent investment into bacteriophage technologies, DuPont said in the announcement. Modern analytics and "omics" technologies have enabled screening and identification of bacteriophage candidates for a specific bacterial challenge, with significant feed and food safety implications. This emerging technology is already used in the animal food industry.

Poultry farmers in selected markets are already benefiting from using Proteon’s technology to ensure biosecurity via the water line and to improve production efficiency, DuPont said.

“Proteon Pharmaceuticals is a pioneer in bacteriophage technology used in animal farming. They have been developing this technology for more than 10 years. It has been tested in Europe and Asia and proven in terms of efficacy and stability,” according to Aart Mateboer, DuPont Animal Nutrition business leader. “This technology fits with our nutribiotic approach. We are pleased to add it to our range of solutions for poultry producers.”

Proteon Pharmaceuticals chief executive officer Jarosław Dastych added, “We strongly believe that our technology might be considered as the future of animal health and nutrition and will help to reduce antibiotic use and antimicrobial resistance. We are excited to take this next step with DuPont to bring the benefits of bacteriophage technology as a feed additive to poultry producers globally.”

DuPont Animal Nutrition is a market leader in nutritional health solutions, with a comprehensive portfolio of feed enzymes, betaine, phytogenics and probiotics. Through the lens of nutribiosis, DuPont invests in science and innovation to help producers improve animal performance, increase livability and support welfare in the face of increasing pressure to reduce or remove antibiotics from production systems.

Proteon Pharmaceuticals is a leader in bacteriophage (phage) technology for livestock farming. Its products modulate the microbiome to enhance sustainability and improve performance on the farm.