Oregano

Origanum vulgare

Other Names:

Common Turkish Oregano, European Oregano, Oregano, Pot Marjoram, Wild Marjoram, Wild Oregano

Benefits

Antiseptic
Anticoccidial
Antihelmintic
Antibacterial
Antifungal
Antioxidant
Anti-inflammatory
Antiviral
Immunity

Oregano (Origanum vulgare) is a widely cultivated, perennial herb, aromatic plant and spice belonging to the Labiatae family. The primary bioactive components in oregano are carvacrol, thymol, beta-terpinene and p-cymene, are known to aid in inhibiting pathogenic bacterial growth, stimulation of the digestive system, and improvement of growth performance in birds. Oregano leaves are the most commonly used part of the plant, but strangely, the aroma and flavor of the leaves is far greater when the herb is dried than when the leaves are fresh. Specific applications relating to poultry:

Immune enhancing and Antibacterial: Oregano can help boost chickens immune systems and helps fight off E.coli and Salmonella.
Antiaflatoxins: Oregano has shown potential for a natural method of control of aflatoxins in corn and soybeans.
Anticoccidial: Adding oregano leaves to chickens diet at a rate of 500 ppm of diet showed it provided them some protection against Eimeria spp, which cause Coccidiosis.
Ascites syndrome: When oregano leaves were fed to broilers in a research study, a 59% mortality rate reduction from ascites syndrome-related deaths was observed.

Poultry Specific Studies

Type	Plant Part	Dosage	Specific use	Results	Ref
Chickens	EO	150-300 mg/kg	antioxidant	Enhanced growth performance, alleviated local oxidative stress in intestine, improved production of natural antibodies, and favorably modulated intestinal microbiota composition.	D Ruan et al., 2021
Hens		80-150 ppm diet	egg quality	improved the percentage egg production and egg mass, as well as the external and internal quality of the egg compared with the other treatments. Also improved the yolk color, shell thickness, and shell color, as well as parameters related to the intestinal morphometry.	S Ramirez et al., 2021
Quail		400 mg/kg of diet	antioxidant	Showed antioxidant and ameliorating effects to AFs immunosuppression.	A Shalaby et al., 2016
Broilers		300 to 600 mg/kg diet	GI health	exhibited a significantly positive effect on the growth performance, carcass traits and intestinal health of broilers	Q Peng et al., 2016
Chickens	EO	500 ppm of diet	anticoccidial	Beneficial effects on coccidiosis prevention and displayed lower coccidiosis lesions scores.	M Mohiti-Asli et al., 2015
Ducks	powder	0.5 to 1% of diet	immunity	Significantly increased serum enzyme activity of superoxide dismutase (SOD)	J Park et al., 2015
Chickens	EO	0.005 and 0.01% of diet	immunity	Beneficial effects on bird performance as well as humoral and innate immune responses.	A Gaiai et al., 2016
Broilers	EO	2 g/kg of diet	GI health	Improved body weight, positively increased serum igG, number of lactobacilli in the ileum and cecum, and reduced Staphylococcus spp in intestinal tract. Showed promise for improvement of broiler performance, immune function, and contribute to a balanced gut microflora, Essential for the digestion process and protection against enteropathogenic organisms.	M Pia Franciosini et al., 2016
Hens	EO	24 mg/kg of diet	antioxidant	Significantly improved egg production and FCR in forced molted Laying hens. Improved liver antioxidant status and mitigated the significant increase in cecal pathogenic bacteria after molt.	M Bozkurt et al., 2016
Chickens	extract	2 g/kg of diet	antibacterial, Escherichia coli	seemed to elicit the best response among treatments, enabling better growth performance, enhancing both the quantity and quality of glycoconjugates involved in indirect defence actions and significantly reducing both the coliform and E. coli counts.	P Scocco et al., 2016
Chickens			antibacterial	efficiently controlled Salmonella shedding and reduced cecal persistence.	P Junior et al., 2014