Keep Your Chickens Healthy with Hops

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Brewmasters have known about the preservative qualities of hops flowers for centuries and beer drinkers have learned to&nbsp;love the sometimes less than subtle bitter flavors. Now, scientists report that the antimicrobial bitter acids contained in hop flowers might prevent pathogenic bacteria from taking hold in your chickens&rsquo; stomachs.</p>
<p>According to a&nbsp;<a title=”recent ARS report” href=”http://www.ars.usda.gov/is/pr/2008/081029.htm” target=”_blank”>recent ARS report</a>, adding the bitter acid lupulone to the chickens&rsquo; drinking water appears to be a viable alternative to lo-level antibiotic doping of their feed. In one study, lupulone therapy was specifically associated with controlling <em>Clostridium</em> populations in the chickens&rsquo; intestinal tracts.</p>
<p>Why is this important? It turns out that chicken guts is one of the primary sources for meat contamination by pathogenic organisms &hellip; especially when mechanized evisceration methods are employed. Even if you raise chickens for eggs, or carefully dress your own, I suspect that you can keep your flock a bit healthier by adding some fresh or dried hops to their diet. Why not plant a vine or two this year and give it a try?</p>
<p>Check out the&nbsp;<a title=”USDA&rsquo;s ARS website” href=”http://www.ars.usda.gov/is/pr/2008/081029.htm” target=”_blank”>USDA&rsquo;s ARS website</a>&nbsp;for more information on the antimicrobial characteristics of hops.</p>