LABORATORY of

Nutritional Physiology & Feeding

Home > Nutritional Physiology & Feeding

About

The Laboratory is directed by Professor Mountzouris Konstantinos and deals with teaching and research related to Feedstuffs and Feedstuffs Technology, Pasture Management, Nutritional Physiology, Applied Nutrition, applications of Biotechnology, Nutrition and Circular Economy, and Chemistry of natural and synthetic bioactive products in the nutrition of mainly productive animals.

The Lab hosts 9 members of Teaching & Research Staff, 2 members of Laboratory Teaching staff and 1 Laboratory Technician.

Laboratory History

The founding law of the Higher Agricultural School of Athens-HASA (1920) provided, among other things, for a regular Chair of General and Special Animal Science (Professor Ioannis Dimakopoulos 1921-1965), which according to the French and German academic standards of that era, also included Mendelian Genetics, Dairying and Aromatology in the teaching and research work. The latter corresponded to the Animal Nutrition course, and derived its title from the fact that the main subject of the teaching material was the description and properties of animal feed.

Since 1950, the separation of studies at HASA in “Specialties”, one of which was that of Animal Science, the possibility of access to foreign literature and the rapid development of systematic poultry farming followed by the establishment of compound feed industries, created the need for serious changes in the teaching of the Animal Nutrition course, which included in the curriculum the dietary importance and evaluation of proteins, vitamins and minerals and many other topics.

The conditions of the time necessitated the separation of Nutrition from Animal Husbandry and the establishment of an independent regular Department and Laboratory of Animal Nutrition (1964). The filling of this Chair (Professor Periklis Kalaisakis 1965-1986) was followed by a complete reformation of the teaching material which was divided into 3 major areas, Physiology of Nutrition, Aromatology and Applied Nutrition of productive animals.

The rapid development and work of the Laboratory was facilitated by its installation (1980) in the newly built “I. DIMAKOPOULOS” building. The main research project of the Laboratory, until then, was the study of domestically sourced animal feed, the study of the fermentability of protein in the ruminants’ stomachs and the fattening of dairy-type lamb hybrids, while a first attempt was made to prepare tables for the chemical composition and the nutritional value of the animal feed used in our country.

Subsequently, with the supply of modern analytical devices (Professor George Papadopoulos, 1986-1999) such as atomic absorption and fluorescence spectrophotometers, gas chromatographs (GC), amino acid analyzer, Elisa photometer, near infrared spectrophotometry (NIRS ), high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) etc., the research activity of the Laboratory extended to the deeper study of fermentation phenomena within the ruminants’ stomachs, to the determination of the bioavailability of various inorganic elements and salts in ruminants and omnivores, to the study of the effects of various additives (vitamins, trace elements, growth factors, enzymes, fatty acids, amino acids, etc.) on the metabolism, productivity and reproductive capacity of animals, the immune system, the exploitation of the ration and the quality of livestock products . Finally, with the creation and organization of a computer room, which has 18 modern PCs with a suitable software for diet formulation, students are given the opportunity to train in the preparation and investigation of balanced and economic diets for all types of animals using the linear programming method .

LABORATORY OBJECTIVES

The main purpose of the Laboratory is the promotion of scientific knowledge in matters of nutrition of animal organisms, which is implemented by:

  • Producing basic scientific knowledge through research,
  • Applying knowledge and transferring feed processing technology into practice at every level,
  • Providing advice on nutrition or nutrition policy related to the chemical composition, quality of livestock products (milk, meat, eggs) and ensuring the health of the consumer.
  • Promoting and disseminating applied scientific knowledge in the topics of nutrition of farmed terrestrial and aquatic organisms such as ruminants (cows, sheep, goats), monogastric herbivores (equines rabbits), omnivorous monogastrics (pigs, birds) and others, with the aim of optimizing the production of food suitable for promoting human nutrition and health,
  • Training people (involved, directly or indirectly, with nutrition) in theoretical and applied matters (general or specific)
  • Teaching the subjects related to nutrition to the students of AUA at the undergraduate and graduate level

Contact

LABORATORY
Nutritional Physiology & Feeding
PHONE
+30 210 529 4412
LOCATION
75 Iera Odos, 118 55, Dimakopoulos Hall, 1st floor

Personnel

The Lab hosts 9 members of Teaching & Research Staff, 2 members of Laboratory Teaching staff and 1 Laboratory Technician

PROFESSOR, Laboratory Head
Mountzouris Konstantinos
EMAIL
kmountzouris@aua.gr
PHONE NUMBER
+30 210 529 4422
LOCATION
Dimakopoulos Hall, 1st Floor
LABORATORY
Nutritional Physiology & Feeding
PROFESSOR
Haroutounian Serko
EMAIL
sehar@aua.gr
PHONE NUMBER
+30 210 529 4247
LOCATION
Old Animal Science Hall
LABORATORY
Nutritional Physiology & Feeding
PROFESSOR
Tsiplakou Eleni
EMAIL
eltsiplakou@aua.gr
PHONE NUMBER
+30 210 529 4435
LOCATION
Dimakopoulos Hall, 1st Floor
LABORATORY
Nutritional Physiology & Feeding
PROFESSOR, Chair of DAS
Papadomichelakis George
EMAIL
gpapad@aua.gr
PHONE NUMBER
+30 210 529 4434
LOCATION
Dimakopoulos Hall, 1st Floor
LABORATORY
Nutritional Physiology & Feeding
ASSOCIATE PROFESSOR
Zoidis Evangelos
EMAIL
ezoidis@aua.gr
PHONE NUMBER
+30 210 529 4415
LOCATION
Dimakopoulos Hall, 1st Floor
LABORATORY
Nutritional Physiology & Feeding
ASSOCIATE PROFESSOR
Pappas C. Athanasios
EMAIL
apappas@aua.gr
PHONE NUMBER
+30 210 529 4437
LOCATION
Dimakopoulos Hall, 1st Floor
LABORATORY
Nutritional Physiology & Feeding
ASSISTANT PROFESSOR
Paraskeuas Vasileios
EMAIL
v.paraskeuas@aua.gr
PHONE NUMBER
+30 210 529 4460
LOCATION
Dimakopoulos Hall, 1st Floor
LABORATORY
Nutritional Physiology & Feeding
ASSISTANT PROFESSOR
Mavrommatis Alexandros
EMAIL
mavrommatis@aua.gr
PHONE NUMBER
+30 210 529 4423
LOCATION
Dimakopoulos Hall, 1st Floor
LABORATORY
Nutritional Physiology & Feeding
ASSISTANT PROFESSOR
Poulopoulou Ioanna
EMAIL
ioanna.poulopoulou@aua.gr
PHONE NUMBER
+30 210 529 4416
LOCATION
Dimakopoulos Hall, 1st Floor
LABORATORY
Nutritional Physiology & Feeding
LABORATORY TEACHING PERSONNEL
Koulocheri Sofia
EMAIL
skoul@aua.gr
PHONE NUMBER
+30 210 529 4246
LOCATION
Old Animal Science Hall
LABORATORY
Nutritional Physiology & Feeding
LABORATORY TEACHING PERSONNEL
Katsarou Eirini
EMAIL
ekatsarou@aua.gr
PHONE NUMBER
+30 210 529 4412
LOCATION
Dimakopoulos Hall, 1st Floor
LABORATORY
Nutritional Physiology & Feeding
LABORATORY TECHNICIAN
Georgiadou Maria
EMAIL
mgeo@aua.gr
PHONE NUMBER
+30 210 529 4423
LOCATION
Dimakopoulos Hall
LABORATORY
Nutritional Physiology & Feeding

Courses Offered

The Lab offers 10 required and 7 elective courses, independently or in collaboration with other Laboratories of DAS

Research

Learn more about the research activities of the Laboratory

RESEARCH FOCUS

The Research Activity of the Laboratory of Nutritional Physiology & Feeding is focused on:

  • The systematic investigation of nutritional physiology of farm animals, such as ruminants (cattle, sheep, goats), monogastric herbivores (ungulates, rabbits), monogastric omnivores (pigs, poultry) and others, in combination with the development of Biotechnology and Molecular Biology
  • The study of the properties, chemistry and technology of various feedstuffs
  • The detailed study of the effects of nutrients on metabolism and various physiological functions of the animal body, so as to protect animal health and optimize their performance
  • Improving product quality through supplementing diets with bioactive compounds (omega-3 fatty acids, conjugated linoleic acid-CLA, antioxidants, etc.) that promote human health
  • Reducing the environmental pollution caused by animal farming (organic farming, grassland management, reduced methane emissions and excretion of minerals, such as N, P, etc.)
  • The study of the interactions between genes and nutrients
  • Promotion, dissemination and application of scientific knowledge to optimize the effectiveness of nutrition in practice (through counselling and education of people, involved directly or indirectly to animal nutrition)
  • Understanding gut function and health interactions with animal performance

To achieve the above, the Laboratory attends closely the ongoing international developments in science and technology on Animal Nutrition. In order to ensure the quality of the research, the Department constantly updates all kinds of teaching and research material and equipment (books, journals, magazines, computers, software, analytical techniques, analytical devices, scientific instruments, etc.).

Finally, the Laboratory is working closely with public and private institutions (Ministry of Rural Development and Food, Research Institutions, prefectural and local administration, industries, businesses, corporations, private producers, etc.), so as to address and solve various theoretical and practical problems, thus maintaining an essentially creative and fruitful relationship between University and productive society.

RESEARCH PROJECTS

The Laboratory of Nutritional Physiology & Feeding of the Department of Animal Science of the Agricultural University of Athens participates with its member (E. Zoidis) in the research team of the project entitled «PROVATO: PRecisiOn liVestock monitoring with AI and IoT tOols», which is funded by HORIZON EUROPE.


The Laboratory of Nutritional Physiology & Feeding of the Department of Animal Science of the Agricultural University of Athens participates in the project entitled “YOgurt of Greece produced with a novel Algae Ration Technology” and Project Code T2EDK-02990/MIS 5069986. This research has been co-financed by the European Regional Development Fund of the European Union and Greek national funds through the Operational Program Competitiveness, Entrepreneurship and Innovation, under the call RESEARCH—CREATE—INNOVATE.


The Laboratory of Nutritional Physiology & Feeding of the Department of Animal Science of the Agricultural University of Athens participates in the project entitled “Development and comparison of methods for the detection and quantification of phytoestrogens in fish feed raw materials, fish feed and farmed Mediterranean species of fish – EstroFish” and Project Code T6YBP-00536/MIS 5052097 which is part of the Special Actions “AQUACULTURE” – “INDUSTRIAL MATERIALS” – “OPEN INNOVATION IN CULTURE” and is carried out with the co-financing of Greece and the European Union, within the framework of the Operational Program EPANEK 2014-2020, NSRF 2014-2020.


European research projects:

  • Development of a Competitive Exclusion Product for Poultry Meeting the Regulatory Requirements in the European Union, duration 24 months (2/2003-2/2004)
  • LIFE 2006. Development of a financial viable procedure LIFE 03 ENV/GR/000223 (02/05/06 – 31/09/06). Funding source: European Union
  • EU Research Programme FP6 007081 (2009-2010) entitled “Pathogen Combat for Safe Food”
  • Studies on the regulation of the Phex gene (2005-2010) Funding source: Swiss National Science Foundation (Member of the main research team).
  • Production of functional foods: effect of antioxidant’s dietary supplementation on the quality of the produced meat”. Programme “Innovation and Entrepreneurship – Exploitation of Research at the Agricultural University of Athens (2014-2015), co-financed by the European Union (European Regional Development Fund) and the Greek State, grant number: 770001
  • LIFE 2016. Food for Feed: An Innovative process for transforming hotels food wastes into animal feed. (LIFE15ENU/GR/000257)
  • LIFE 2016. Forage systems for less green house gas emission and more soil carbon sink in continental and Mediterranean agricultural areas. (LIFE15CCM/IT/000039).
  • EU2018. Upgrading and implementing mathematical models to increase nitrogen use efficiency of lactating dairy cows. Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA), Research and Innovation Staff Exchange (RISE), H2020-MSCA-RISE-2017, Project 777974-CowficieNcy
  • Horizon 2020. Disseminating Innovative Solutions for Antibiotic Resistance Management. Project817591-DISARM
  • CONOPS (LIFE12ENV/GR/000466): Development & demonstration of management plans against -the climate change enhanced- invasive mosquitoes in S. Europe, conops.gr
  • CLIMATREE (LIFE14CCM/GR/000635): A novel approach for accounting & monitoring carbon sequestration of tree crops and their potential as carbon sink areas, lifeclimatree.eu
  • Next destination Balkans: Αgricultural landscapes development (LANDS), funded by European Commission- EACEA-Erasmus+
  • Evaluation of the EU exceptional measures in the poultry and egg sector, 8 months duration (3/2011 – 10/2011), overseas funding
  • UPDATEST: Training students and professionals in the food sector on new testing technologies (2018). Co-funded by the Erasmus+ Programme of the European Union (Participating Member)

National research projects:

  • Use of some plants extracts in dairy ruminant diets for functional products (10/01/05 – 09/07/05). Funding source: Secretary of Research and Development
  • Evaluation of Ikaria Island grassland grazed by small ruminants (16/01/06 – 30/04/06). Funding source: Ministry of Rural Development and Food
  • Determination of grazing capacity of Rhodes Island grasslands (01/02/07 – 30/01/08). Funding source: Ministry of Rural Development and Food
  • Effect of nutrition on chemical and organoleptic characteristics of sheep and goat milk of organic farming systems (01/02/08 – 31/03/08). Funding source: Ministry of Rural Development and Food
  • Determination of additional cost, lost income and farmers cost from agroenviromental measures application (01/02/08 – 30/09/08). Funding source: Ministry of Rural Development and Food
  • The use of special diets for Octupus vulgaris under practical aquaqualture conditions (02/06/08 – 01/09/08). Funding source: Ministry of Rural Development and Food
  • Sheep and goat sector in Crete- current conditions and perspectives. Funding: Ministry of Rural Development and Food (2008)
  • Evaluation and proposed methods to improve the sheep productivity in Crete (01/12/2008 – 31/01/2009). Funding source: Ministry of Rural Development and Food
  • Reorganization of agricultural activities in Falesia Prefecture (03/03/09- 31/12/10). Funding source: Falesia Prefecture
  • Nutritive evaluation of crude glycerol in growing piglets, funded by the AUA – Research Committee, duration 24 months (2010-2011)
  • Improvement of the infrastructure of Agriculture in Armenia: Establishment a feed mill (01/05/2010 – 15/06/2010). Funding source: Hellenic Republic Ministry of Foreign Affairs
  • Management of wild rabbit population in the island of Lemnos: the investigation of using rabbit game meat in human nutrition (2014-2015). Funding source: Ministry of Rural Development and Food
  • Evaluation of cultivating and processing techniques in different alfalfa hay (Medicago sativa) genetic materials for high quality livestock products (2015). Funding source: NSRF 2007-2013
  • Innovation and Entrepreneurship in the AUA: Connecting scientific research with business ideas (2014-2015). Subproject title: Device for digestion and vacuum filtration in gravimetric analyses. Funding source: Municipality of Athens, NSRF 2007-2013.
  • Effect of artificial and natural rearing on qualitative characteristics of lamb meat “AgroETAK: Research and Technology Development Innovation projects” (01/02/15 – 30/11/15). Funding source: Ministry of Reconstruction of Production, Environment and Energy (YPAPEN)
  • Mapping the profile of molecular biomarkers relevant for the intestinal antioxidant status and integrity in an intestinal dysbiosis experimental model induced in broilers via nutrition and mycotoxins. Action code MIS 5048543 and duration 15 months (end date 16/12/2021) funded by the National Strategic Reference Framework 2014-2020
  • Innovative nano-materials in animal nutrition: evaluation of the effects of selenium nanoparticles‑loaded chitosan microspheres on meat quality. Action code MIS 5048474and duration 15 months (end date 19/06/2021) funded by the National Strategic Reference Framework 2014-2020
  • New agriculture for a new generation: recharging youth to revitalize the agriculture and food sector of the Greek economy (coordination by the Lab of Nutritional Physiology and Feeding. Activity: Livestock Farming and Dairy Technology. Funding: Stavros Niarchos Foundation.
  • Acid whey from yogurt: Turning an environmental burden into innovative added value end products, conducted under the Operational Program “Competitiveness, Entrepreneurship & Innovation” (EPAnEK). Funded by GSRT

Industry projects

  • The effect of Sparta INNOLIVE (a by- product from olive oil production) inclusion on broilers diets on some biochemical and performances parameters (01/04/15 – 31/12/15)
  • Safety and tolerance of attapulgite in broilers, 11 months duration (9/2008 – 7/2009), funded by industry
  • Evaluation of mycotoxin binders for poultry, 23 months duration (2/2012 – 12/2013), funded by industry
  • Efficacy of LANCER© 500 (Rare Earth Elements) in pig feeding. Funding source: University of Munich (2009)
  • Efficacy of dietary 25-hydroxy-cholecalciferol (25-OH-D3) in growing pigs. Funding source: Industry (2006)
  • Microbiological analysis of feed, water and gut samples from broiler chickens fed a new nutritional competitive exclusion product, funded by industry and duration 12 months (7/2005-7/2006).
  • Effects of essential oils and benzoic acid administration in broiler performance and gut microflora composition”, funded by industry duration 9 months (8/2007 – 4/2008)
  • Optimisation of feed inclusion levels of probiotic and phytogenic feed additive products in broiler nutrition and investigation of their effects on broiler intestinal ecology and physiology, funded by industry and duration 36 months (4/2007-3/2010).
  • Investigation of critical biomarkers underpinning the mechanisms behind the beneficial effects of probiotic and phytogenic feed additives on broiler performance and gut health, funded by industry and duration 48 months (9/2011-8/2015)
  • Investigation of the efficacy of Saccharomyces cerevisiae in broilers under pathogenic challenge, funded by industry and duration 24 months (10/2012-10/2014)
  • Mg bioavailability of four MgO products in sheep, 9 months duration (6/2014 – 2/2015), funded by industry
  • Matrix value validations for selected feed enzymes in broilers, funded by industry and duration 16 months (9/2015-12/2016)
  • Evaluation of an alternative protein source in broilers nutrition, 8 months duration (10/2016 – 6/2017), funded by idustry
  • Mapping and validating energy and protein matrix values of phytogenics and probiotics for optimum performance efficiency in broilers, funded by industry and duration 31 months (12/2015-8/2018)
  • Evaluation of dietary phytogenic inclusion level on broiler growth performance and nutrient digestibility, funded by industry and duration 20 months (5/2016-4/2017)
  • Profiling broiler gut for critical indices relevant to gut function and health, funded by industry and duration 12 months (4/2017-4/2018)
  • Scientific support in research, development and application of feed additives in animal nutrition, funded by industry and duration 14 months (11/2017-12/2018)
  • Scientific support and evaluation of animal nutrition applications, funded by industry and duration 8 months (4/2019-12/2019)
  • Advancing knowledge regarding the energy and protein sparing potential of phytogenics and probiotics at gut and overall broiler level, funded by industry and duration 36 months (9/2019-9/2022)
  • Evaluation of feed – flavouring compounds formulations for their effects on broiler performance, gut and liver function biomarkers, funded by industry and duration 18 months (1/2020-6/2021)
  • Evaluation of vitamin D3 levels and its metabolites on performance, egg quality and physiological biomarkers in older laying hens, funded by industry and duration 18 months (1/2020-6/2021)
  • Evaluation of phytogenic premix inclusion level on hen laying performance, egg quality and critical gut, liver and ovaries function biomarkers, funded by industry and duration 18 months (7/2020-12/2021)
  • Bioavailability of Cr and Ni in pigs fed diets supplemented with palygorskite, funded by industry and duration 10 months (06/2020-04/2021)

PARTICIPATION IN ORGANIZATIONS

The laboratory staff participates in National and International Organizations such as:

  • European Federation of Animal Science
  • Hellenic Society for Animal Science
  • Hellenic Poultry Association
  • Geotechnical Chamber of Greece
  • World Rabbit Science Association, Greek Branch
  • World Poultry Science Association, Greek Branch
  • Poultry Science Association (USA)
  • International Carotenoid Society
  • European Food Safety Authority (EFSA)

Extension Services

Information for services provided by the Laboratory upon request

The Laboratory can carry out:

  • Chemical analyses of simple and compound feedstuffs (determination of dry matter, organic matter, protein, fat and crude fibre, energy content, etc.) using modern high-precision analytical equipment.
  • Feed formulation for farm animals (ruminants, pigs, poultry, rabbits, etc.) and farmed fish using special software based on linear programming, upon request
  • Specific trials for a) the nutritive evaluation of different feedstuffs for various kinds of animals (ruminants, pigs, birds, rabbits, etc.) by carrying out specific experiments and b) the experimental validation of various additives for dietary supplementation in farm animals
  • Field studies and consulting related to animal feed industries, grassland management, applied animal nutrition and use of by-products of agriculture or biofuel industry in animal nutrition, etc.

Info:

Katsarou Eirini, +30 210 5294412, ekatsarou@aua.gr

Infrastructure

Explore the facilities and the equipment of the Laboratory used in research and teaching

STEREOSCOPY

  • 20 optical stereoscopes
  • Projection system connected to microscope
  • 1 PC and 1 projector

FEED CHEMICAL ANALYSES

  • Working benches with sinks
  • Laboratory glassware washer
  • 4 drying ovens
  • 8 fume cupboards, Class A.
  • 2 near infrared reflectance spectroscopy systems (NIRSystems Inc. and Foss)
  • 1 in-vitro digestibility instrument (DAISY II-220)
  • 2 instruments for the determination of crude fiber, NDF and ADF (ΑΝΚΟΜ 220)
  • 1 instrument for the determination of ether extracts (Soxhtec Avanti, Foss-Tecator)
  • 2 instruments for the determination of crude protein (2300 Kjeltec Analyzer Unit και 8400 Kjeltec AutoAnalyzer unit, Foss-Tecator)
  • 2 heat blocks (digestors) for crude protein determination (DIGESTION SYSTEM 20115 Digestor 20 positions and Tecator 2006 Digestor 6 positions, Foss-Tecator)
  • 2 Heraeus muffle furnaces, of 15 samples each
  • 1 safety cabinet for reagents
  • 2 digital balances (precision 0,0001 g)

CALORIMETRY

  • 1 fully equipped adiabatic calorimeter (Parr 1655, Parr Instruments, US)
  • 3 high pressure oxygen cylinders (200 bar) and pressure control systems
  • 1 analogue balance (precision 1 g)
  • 1 sample pellet press

Microbiological & Molecular Analyses

  • 1 fully equipped adiabatic calorimeter (Parr 1655, Parr Instruments, US)
  • 3 high pressure oxygen cylinders (200 bar) and pressure control systems
  • 1 analogue balance (precision 1 g)
  • 1 sample pellet press

Biochemical Analyses

  • 1 fume cupboard, Class A
  • 1 high performance liquid chromatograph (HPLC) with UV detector (Hewlett-Packard 1100)
  • 1 gas chromatograph with FID (Perkin-Elmer autosystem XL)
  • 1 gas chromatograph with FID and autosampler carousel (Agilent 6890Ν)
  • 1 vacuum centrifuge for Eppendorf vials (Concentrator plus)
  • 1 wet sterilization oven (Autester ST Dry PV23)
  • 2 spectophotometers (UV-VIS, Unicam Helios-a and Thermo Scientific Genesys180)
  • 1 Elisa Awareness instrument (StatFax 2100)
  • 1 centrifuge Thermo (Thermo Scientific SL16R)
  • 1 centrifuge Heraeus (Biofuge primo R)
  • 1 safety cabinet for reagents

Training Room

  • 2 fume cupboards, Class A
  • 1 safety cabinet for reagents
  • Working benches with sinks
  • 1 spectophotometer
  • 3 digital balances (precision 0,001 g)
  • Various laboratory glassware

Organic Chemistry Unit

Α. Laboratory scale equipment:

  • Analytical instruments: UPLC/MS-MS, MPLC, HPLC, GC/MS, GC/FID, Microarray reader, UV-vis, Microplate scanner
  • Laboratory devices: MARS (Microwave Digestion-Extraction System), PCR, freeze drier, supersonic baths, centrifuges, vacuum rotary evaporators

Β. Pilot scale equipment:

  • Essential oil production system: i) classic with 150 Kg capacity (316 steel) and ii) microwave essential oil extraction system with 5 Kg capacity (borosilicate glass)
  • Industrial supersonic extractor with 25 Kg capacity (316 steel).
  • Industrial vacuum rotary evaporator with 25 L capacity (borosilicate glass)
  • Industrial vacuum solvent evaporator (316 steel)
  • Composting systems: Α) 2 closed type (capacity 10 m3 each), and Β) 4 open type (capacity 10 m3 each)

Animal Facilities

Experimental Facilities

  • 1 fully equipped (automatic ventilation, cooling and lighting control) facility for 400 laying hens
  • 1 fully equipped (automatic ventilation, cooling and lighting control) facility for 400 broiler chickens
  • 1 fully equipped (automatic ventilation, cooling and lighting control) facility for 200 broiler chickens
  • 1 fully equipped (automatic ventilation, cooling and lighting control) facility for 192 growing-fattening rabbits
  • 1 fully equipped (automatic ventilation, cooling and lighting control) facility with 28 group pens for growing-fattening pigs (with additional 18 metabolic crates for piglets)
  • 3 small ruminant facilities

Auxilliary Facilities and Equipment

  • 1 storage room
  • 1 sampling room (blood, meat, digesta sampling) for small animals (poultry and rabbits)
  • 3 digital balances (precision 0,001 g)
  • 1 personnel room
  • 1 toilet with laundry room
  • 1 industrial scale incinerator for biological materials

Feed Manufacturing Units

Small Scale Unit

  • 1 feed storage room
  • 1 rotary mixer with a capacity of 50 kg/batch
  • 1 vertical mixer with a capacity of 150 kg/batch
  • 1 forage shredder
  • 1 hammer mill
  • 2 sampling small hammer mills
  • 1 pellet press with a capacity of 100 kg/h (LISTER, UK)

Large Scale Automatic Unit

  • 4 silos for raw materials with capacities of 27 (3 silos) and 20 m3 (1 silo)
  • 1 control room with PC equipment and specialized software (SCADA)
  • 1 extruder (ALMEX, The Netherlands) with a capacity of 500 kg/h combined with steam line, as well as water, liquids and oil tanks
  • 1 vertical combo weighing scale/premixer (Linos, Greece) with a capacity of 500 kg/batch
  • 1 hammer mill (Linos Solutions, Greece) with a capacity of 10 ton/h (with receiver bin of 500 kg), combined with air trap and filters
  • 1 batch horizontal mixer (Linos Solutions, Greece) with a capacity of 500 kg/batch (with receiver bin of 500 kg)
  • 1 batch horizontal mixer (Linos Solutions, Greece) with a capacity of 100 kg/batch
  • 1 pellet press (MABRIK, Spain) with a capacity of 1200 kg/h (with receiver bin of 500 kg)
  • 1 steam boiler for pelleting and extrusion, with a maximum pressure of 10 bars
  • 1 counterflow cooler for pellets (Linos Solutions, Greece) with a capacity of 1200 kg/h (with receiver bin of 500 kg), combined with air cyclone and air traps
  • 1 sieving unit (Linos Solutions, Greece) with various screen sizes
  • 1 silo for pellets (Linos Solutions, Greece) with a capacity of 6000 kg
  • 1 portable silo for pellet transportation (Linos Solutions, Greece) with capacities of 5 m3
  • 1 electric board with inverters, internet connection (for distant maintenance) and automations
  • Auger and vertical conveyors (Linos Solutions, Greece)
  • Fully pneumatic valve systems (Linos Solutions, Greece)

Education Resources