The Surprise of Herd Health and Management Symposium:

Phora

10/03/2025

Could you share your thoughts about the symposium?

“The point reached by this symposium, which started 8 years ago, must be a source of pride for those who started the organization. I congratulate the Organizing Committee and everyone who contributed. When we look at the results, we understand how right our decision to be the gold sponsor of this symposium was.

There was a great deal of interest in our stand throughout the symposium. We held hundreds of meetings with participants and provided information about our products and services. Visitors who wanted to get to know our company were particularly interested in the subject of ‘Antibiotic-Free Breeding’.”

Arm & Hammer’s regional director Dr. Ajeet Bisnoi was with us throughout the symposium. Dr. Bisnoi provided valuable contributions to our meetings by providing information about Arm & Hammer and its products’ experiences in other markets.

Can we get information about Phora’s activities?

“As Phora A.Ş., we operate in the field of Animal Health and Nutrition. We are one of the organizations operating in various countries under the roof of Opticon GmbH, headquartered in Switzerland. As companies under this roof, we cooperate in product development, production and export, while sharing knowledge and experience. Last year, we started collaborating with Arm & Hammer, one of the major animal health organizations in the USA. This was an important stage in the development of our company. Arm & Hammer is an organization with a 147-year history in the USA and is home to many globally recognized brands. It operates worldwide in ruminant and other livestock farming with its high-tech products and services.”

Could you tell us about Arm & Hammer’s ruminant products?

“Arm & Hammer offers various products and services to increase ruminant health and productivity. We aim to introduce these products and services as they become available in the future. Currently, our most focused product is Phoracell. Although Phoracell has various areas of use, its extraordinary success in controlling calf diarrhea encouraged us to focus on this area first. Phoracell is a patented product developed with the unique ‘RFC – Refined Functional Carbohydrate’ technology and is very effective in preventing and supporting the treatment of all types of diarrheal agents.”

Could you provide information about the use of your product in calf diarrhea?

“First of all, it would be useful to address the issue of calf diarrhea. One of the biggest problems of the cattle sector in our country is calf diarrhea and the devastating economic losses it causes. The calf period is the most critical and costly period in breeding. As follows;

In terms of farm management, a significant portion of labor and health expenses are spent during this period.

In terms of calf health, high expenses are made for antibiotics, vaccines and other health products for the prevention and treatment of diarrhea.

Despite all these high expenses, it may not be possible to avoid diarrhea.

It is difficult to obtain high-quality breeding from a calf with intense diarrhea. However, excessive use of antibiotics also disrupts the intestinal microflora and makes it difficult to obtain quality breeding. I think my colleagues working in the sector will agree with this. Phoracell is a natural product and, if applied until the weaning period, it prevents diarrhea and provides a live weight gain of 4 to 9 kg according to the data we received from the farms that use it.

According to us, “Healthy herd management starts with healthy calves”

Phoracell is a natural product that helps reduce antibiotic use. Can we get information about these types of natural products?

The resistance developed by pathogens against antibiotics, strict legislation on the licensing and use of chemicals in the world and in our country, consumer preferences, etc. are accelerating the development of alternative products to chemicals. There is a boom in this area. This trend started with the ban on the use of Growth Factor Antibiotics in animal husbandry in the EU countries in early 2006 and immediately afterwards in our country, and it still continues.”

However, being natural is hard work!

“First of all, the product must be obtained from natural sources. Its harmlessness to humans, animals and the environment must be proven.

• Its effectiveness must be supported by scientific studies.

• The product content must be standard, consistent and stable under all conditions.

Phoracell is a natural product that meets these requirements. Its effectiveness has been proven by hundreds of scientific studies and field studies conducted worldwide over the years. We invite our breeders to test our product and see the results.”

Can you tell us about your future plans?

“We are currently heavily focused on Phoracell. In addition, we offer A-Max, Arm & Hammer’s cattle performance product and one of the two Yeast Cultures available on the global market, to our growers. We plan to launch new products that we believe will benefit our growers in the near future within a certain timeframe.”