A Study on the Effects of Chelated vs. Inorganic Trace Elements on Growth Performance, Survival and Carcass Yield in Broiler Chickens

High-quality, well-balanced feeding strategies are essential for optimizing poultry growth performance and for ensuring the safety of poultry products. Here, we evaluated the effects of chelated vs. inorganic trace minerals on the growth, survival and carcass characteristics of Cobb 500 broiler chickens. A large-scale feeding trial involved four dietary treatments at 21–35 days of age, with Group 1 receiving a control diet with mineral supplements of zinc (Zn), copper (Cu) and manganese (Mn) in sulfate form, based on a standard formulation. A further three experimental diets contained chelated forms of Zn (Group 2), Cu (Group 3) and a mineral premix MINTREX® that provides Zn, Cu and Mn (Group 4). Broilers were raised to 42 days of age under commercial production conditions. Feeding chelated trace minerals resulted in significantly higher body weights during the rearing period, including a 10% increase in pre-slaughter weight compared to the controls (p < 0.01). Moreover, survival rates improved from 87% in the controls to 95–96% in the treatment groups (p < 0.001), and carcass evaluation revealed a 15–17% increase in eviscerated carcass weight in birds fed chelated supplements (p < 0.05). Greater yields of muscle, liver and skin with subcutaneous fat were observed, as was improved production of total edible carcass components. Among the treatments, MINTREX® provided the greatest enhancement effects in performance and slaughter traits. These findings demonstrate that dietary chelated minerals, whether single or combined, may have positive effects on the broiler carcass yield and support their inclusion in poultry production systems.