Patent Application
20100074873
1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a live bacteria product and more particularly to a live bacteria product wherein live bacteria, that are in a dormant state, are suspended in a clear liquid fluid carrier or medium that can be easily pumped and will stay in suspension for the life of the product. More particularly, the carrier, while being in a liquid state, is sufficiently devoid of moisture to prevent the bacteria from becoming activated until the product is applied to feeds, forages, or directly onto animals such as livestock or the like. Hereinafter, feeds, forages, animals, livestock or the like will be referred to as “the target host”. Hereinafter, livestock will refer to cattle, horses, chickens, turkeys, hogs or the like.
2. Description of the Related Art
Live bacteria formulations are frequently applied to forage products, feed, etc., to enhance fermentation and/or digestion. The prior art products fall generally into two categories which are either a dry soluble powder form or a dry granular non-soluble form. The dry granular products are directly applied to its target host through a metering device such as a Gandy box, usually at a rate of 4 to 16 ounces per ton of forage treated. The dry soluble products must first be hydrated with water, then applied to its target host within a 48-hour time period post-hydration with application made through a liquid pump system at the rate of 37 grams to 1 gallon per ton of forage.
The dry granular products of the prior art, even if packaged in plastic pails, will sometimes come into direct contact with ambient air during manufacturing and processing or upon simply opening the product lid with the ambient air containing moisture or humidity. The moisture or humidity will activate the dormant bacteria upon contact which in turn causes the bacteria to inadvertently live and die before it can be applied to the forage. The value of the product will then be a total loss. The limestone carriers of the prior art products will carry minute traces of moisture, and such moisture severely reduces the product's ability to sustain an adequate shelf life. If the prior art product is a soluble powder product, it will also need to be hydrated before application. The hydration immediately activates all of the dormant bacteria and the producer has to apply the entire mixture within a 48-hour time frame or before since the bacteria will naturally deplete its food source and die, creating a total loss of the product value.
Further, the prior art products on the market today must be either removed from their original shipping container or physically poured into a dry applicator prior to application, or they must be contaminated with water, reducing their shelf life to less than 48 hours, post-contamination. Additionally, the prior art dry granular products have a tendency of sorting during shipment. This shakes any fines to the bottom of the shipping container leaving the either larger or lighter material to work its way to the top. Since the bacteria attach themselves to these particles, they may also migrate with these particles. Other dry soluble powder products may settle to the bottom of the applicator tank upon hydration. This will depend greatly on the product's rate of dilution. As application rates decrease to meet the producer's ongoing needs of hauling less product to the field, the manufacturers must in turn make their products more condensed to meet these needs. Such limits the solubility of the product.
The dry granular products of the prior art require a significant percentage of the product to be applied to the material which results in uniform coverage becoming difficult. Dry soluble powders mixed with water carriers have attempted to achieve low inclusion rates for some time. However, such products result in droplets which are very large in their molecular size and weight resulting in that there are actually few droplets being delivered per treatment, an example being one ton of forage treated with only ten large droplets so uniform coverage is poor.
One prior art reference is U.S. Pat. No. 4,161,397 issued Jul. 17, 1979 to Bellet et al. In the Bellet et al. composition, it appears that 99% of the bacteria die within one day and the other 1% of the bacteria die within 20 days. Further, in Bellet et al., the composition is applied to seeds which have fungicide thereon thereby making the treated seeds inappropriate for feeding to livestock or the like. As will be pointed out hereinafter, Applicant's product is sufficiently devoid of moisture so that substantially all the bacteria remain alive but in a dormant state for several months.
A live bacteria product is disclosed wherein the live bacteria are in a dormant state and are suspended in a clear liquid fluid carrier or medium that may easily be pumped and will stay in suspension for the life of the product. More particularly, the carrier or medium for the live bacteria is comprised of a substantially moisture-free liquid which is comprised of oil such as mineral oil or processed oil obtained from animal, vegetable or petroleum origins. The oil medium has a moisture content of less than one percent and preferably has a moisture content of less than one-tenth of one percent. In some cases, the carrier will also have a hydrophilic molecular sieve adsorbent (moisture scavenger) included therein.
The product of this invention is preferably applied to the target host at a micro-treatment rate of 2 to 28 grams per ton of target host being treated. In some cases, more or less percentages may be utilized. The live bacteria, by being suspended in the substantially moisture-free carrier, will remain dormant until coming into contact with the target host at which time the moisture in the target host will cause the bacteria to be activated. The product of this invention is packaged in controlled shipping vessels such as polyurethane bags that reduce the risk of moisture contamination of any kind. The product is sold and shipped directly to the producer who will then take the collapsible bag of product and hook it directly to an applicator which applies the product to the target host. The target host may be forage, feed or the like. In some cases, the product may be sprayed directly onto animals such as chicks who will ingest the product while grooming themselves.
It is therefore a principal object of the invention to provide an improved live bacteria product.
Yet another object of the invention is to provide a live bacteria product wherein live bacteria, that are in a dormant state, are suspended in a clear liquid fluid carrier or medium that can be easily pumped and will stay in suspension for the life of the product.
Still another object of the invention is to provide a live bacteria product which is substantially free of moisture to prevent the bacteria from becoming activated for several months or until the product is applied to the target host.
Still another object of the invention is to provide a live bacteria product which may be applied to a target host at an extremely small rate.
Still another object of the invention is to provide a live bacteria product wherein the carrier or medium therefore is comprised of a substantially moisture-free liquid comprised of mineral oil and polymers other than the bacteria.
Still another object of the invention is to provide a live bacteria product wherein the carrier or medium therefore has a moisture content of less than one percent and preferably less than one-tenth of one percent.
Still another object of the invention is to provide a live bacteria product which will not be activated until coming into contact with moisture associated with the target host.
Yet another object of the invention is to provide a live bacteria product which may be applied to livestock forage or feed at a preferred micro-treatment rate.
A further object of the invention is to provide a live bacteria product which is packaged in such a way to limit its exposure to possible contamination from outside sources, such as moisture-laden air or fluid water of any kind.
These and other objects will be apparent to those skilled in the art.
In this invention, conventional dormant viable harmless bacteria are mixed with a substantially moisture-free liquid carrier or medium. The liquid carrier has a moisture content of less than one percent and preferably has a moisture content of less than one-tenth of one percent. In general, the live bacteria used in the product of this invention will be any lactic acid producing bacteria that is permissible for use in animal related products. The United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and The American Association of Feed Control Officials (AAFCO) have published a list of the microorganism species which are “generally recognized as safe” (GRAS) for use in direct-fed microbial products. Table I hereinbelow lists presently approved bacteria for use with animal related products.
Aspergillus niger
Lactobacillus curvatus
Aspergillus oryzae
Lactobacillus delbruekii
Bacillus coagulans
Lactobacillus fermentum
Bacillus lentus
Lactobacillus helveticus
Bacillus licheniformis
Lactobacillus lactis
Bacillus pumilus
Lactobacillus plantarum
Bacillus subtilis
Lactobacillus euterii
Bacteroides amylophilus
Leuconostoc mesenteroides
Bacteroides capillosus
Pediococcus acidilacticii
Bacteroides ruminocola
Pediococcus cervisiae
Bacteroides suis
Pediococcus pentosaceus
Bifidobacterium adolescentis
Propionibacterium freudenreichii
Bifidobacterium animalis
Propionibacterium shermanii
Bifidobacterium bifidum
Saccharomyces cerevisiae
Bifidobacterium infantis
Entercococcus cremoris
Bifidobacterium longum
Entercococcus diacetylactis
Bifidobacterium thermophilum
Entercococcus faecium
Lactobacillus acidolphilus
Entercococcus intermedius
Lactobacillus brevis
Entercococcus lactis
Lactobacillus buchneri
Entercococcus thermophilius
Lactobacillus bulgaricus
Lactobacillus cellobiosus
Lactobacillus casei
Preferably, the moisture-free liquid carrier is comprised of a product marketed under the trademark “SYNERGEL®” manufactured by Penreco of 138 Petrolia Street, Karns City, Pa. 16041-9799. The product is generally referred to as a gelled mineral oil, reference number 1004-100, having a Brookfield viscosity of 1242 cPs. The carrier product is clear, odorless and is insoluble in water. Other types of oils such as processed oils obtained from animal, vegetable or petroleum origins may be utilized provided they have a moisture content of less than one percent and preferably a moisture content of less than one-tenth of one percent. The carrier also includes a suspension agent such as synthetic polymers. Other suspension agents such as COBISAL™ (polymer fiber) may also be used from time to time to aid or reduce the possibility of the settling of the bacteria therein. The product of this invention is designed to only activate the bacteria at the physical point of contact with the target host. Upon contact, the target host ambient moisture content will activate (i.e., initiate the life cycle thereof) the dormant bacteria found within the liquid microbial medium or carrier. The preferred liquid microbial medium or carrier of this invention has undergone a special production process developed by Penreco. The process consists of first passing the mineral oil through an advanced filtration system which specifically targets and absorbs any ambient moisture. Secondly, the mineral oil is heated and polymers are added to increase the oil viscosity and suspension qualities. Thirdly, the oil is packaged into controlled shipping vessels that reduce the risk of moisture contamination of any kind.
Upon receipt of the packaged carrier, applicant then preferably adds a moisture scavenger product such as a hydrophilic molecular sieve adsorbent as an insurance program. The adsorbent may comprise a natural or synthetic zeolite consisting of crystalline metal aluminosilicate, alkali metal aluminosilicate or sodium aluminosilicate. Finally, whatever bacteria are needed for a particular purpose will then be added. The final blend is then packaged in moisture and ultraviolet retardant containers such as collapsible polyurethane bags, very similar to I.V. bags. The product is then sold and shipped directly to the retailer and/or end user. The end user will then take the collapsible bag of liquid microbial blend and hook it directly to an applicator so that extremely small droplets are created which are sprayed upon the target host.
The invention described herein provides the ability to inoculate other products with dormant live bacteria, by means of a light spraying application. Whereas the bacteria is protected with the oil/polymer blend allowing the host bacteria to survive longer in a non-favorable environment, the coating of the bacteria cell walls with the oil/polymer covering provides a physical chemical moisture barrier. The above provides the ability to permit the live bacteria to be introduced onto a pelleted feed without immediately inadvertently activating the oil/polymer/host bacteria through ambient moisture contamination from the feed itself.
The product of this invention permits it to be applied to its target host at a preferred micro-treatment rate of 2 to 28 grams per one ton (2,000 pounds) of forage or the material treated (with no additional water or carriers needed). In some cases, higher or lower ratios may be employed. Such micro-treatment is substantially less than prior art products that have treatment rates that range from 37.88 grams to 8.3453 pounds per one ton of forage treated.
The product of this invention and its packaging limits its exposure to possible contamination from outside sources, such as moisture-laden air or fluid water of any kind. The product of this invention is designed to only activate at the physical point of contact with the target host. Upon contact with the target host, the change in pH and moisture activates the dormant bacteria.
To remain 100% alive, freeze-dried bacteria must be kept free of water activity, kept out of direct ultra violet light, and maintained in temperatures less than 110° F. The best place to meet all of these criteria is to keep the bacteria in liquid nitrogen or a freezer. If kept frozen, the bacteria will remain alive and viable for many years. Unfortunately, if you want to apply these bacteria to agricultural needs, the bacteria must be taken out of the freezer and put into other types of carriers. In doing so, the bacteria are inadvertently exposed to ambient water activity.
Manufacturers have used oils for their residual effect and as a carrier for the freeze-dried bacteria under the assumption that oil would protect the bacteria from ambient moistures, thereby extending the life span of the bacteria. However, when the bacteria are placed in a feed grade mineral oil, the bacteria quickly die off in about 30 days. Another noted problem is that the bacteria in oil-based carriers quickly settle out, since the bacteria are non-soluble in oil.
In developing the product described in this application, Applicant realized the problems with putting freeze-dried bacteria in an oil-based carrier. Testing showed that the bacteria in a feed grade mineral oil had a very short life span as seen in
It can be seen from
The composition of this invention coats the bacteria with a protective coating. When the composition is applied to livestock feed, the protective coating protects the bacteria from hydration for a period of time which is at least 40 days. Once the treated livestock feed is ingested by the target host, it is immediately subjected to a low intestinal pH environment. The low pH environment breaks down the protective coating on the bacteria which then becomes hydrated by the ambient moisture within the digestion system, thus causing the bacteria to begin their life cycle.
Thus it can be seen that the invention accomplishes at least all of its stated objectives.
This is a continuation-in-part application of Applicant's earlier application Ser. No. 12/287,236, filed Oct. 7, 2008, entitled “LIVE BACTERIA PRODUCT,” which was a continuation-in-part application of Ser. No. 10/853,346, filed May 25, 2004, entitled “LIVE BACTERIA PRODUCT”.
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Parent | 12287236 | Oct 2008 | US |
| Child | 12592615 | US | |
| Parent | 10853346 | May 2004 | US |
| Child | 12287236 | US |
