Heat stress is one of the most critical environmental challenges in modern poultry production, directly affecting feed intake, gut integrity, nutrient utilisation and overall performance.

The production impact is measurable and economically significant

When birds are exposed to temperatures beyond the thermoneutral zone, they increase energy use to dissipate heat while simultaneously reducing nutrient intake. This creates a double penalty on productivity.

Under heat stress conditions, feed intake can decline by up to 30%, with associated reductions of around 10–15% in egg production, alongside decreases in egg weight, shell quality and growth performance.

Why Heat Stress Impacts Poultry Performance and Gut Health

Heat stress does not only reduce feed intake. It disrupts gut function at a structural level, increasing gut permeability and inflammation, impairing nutrient absorption and compromising digestive efficiency.

As a consequence, more energy and nutrients are diverted toward maintenance, immune response and stress adaptation, leaving fewer resources available for productive output such as growth or egg production.

Even with well-formulated diets, birds eat less and utilise less — creating a compounded negative effect on productivity.

Nutritional Strategies to Reduce Heat Stress in Poultry

Managing heat stress requires more than increasing nutrient density. While formulation adjustments can help, they do not fully address the inefficiencies caused by stress.

The focus must shift toward improving nutrient utilisation — enhancing how nutrients are released from the diet, absorbed within the gut and converted into productive output.

Supporting digestive stability is critical under heat stress conditions, allowing birds to better maintain performance even when environmental conditions are working against them.

How OceanFeed™ Poultry Supports Heat Stress in Poultry

OceanFeed™ Poultry is designed to stabilise the biology that drives performance. Developed by Ocean Harvest Technology, this multi-seaweed solution works at the level of the digestive ecosystem to improve how nutrients are processed and utilised.

Rather than increasing feed intake, OceanFeed™ improves efficiency by supporting increased availability of absorbable nutrients, more efficient nutrient absorption and better allocation of nutrients toward growth or egg production.

Its mode of action targets key inefficiencies under stress, enhancing nutrient availability, supporting microbial balance and reducing biological losses associated with pathogens and toxins in the gut.