DOI: 10.36347/sjavs.2020.v07i08.004

Pages: 198-201

Antibiotic growth promoters (AGP) are widely used in animal feed for feed efficiency, spur growth, and productivity of livestock in a short time and minimize mortality by preventing infection. Now, its use has been officially banned worldwide. As a result of this ban, many breeders or animal feed producers are looking for solutions in various ways such as the addition of herbs, probiotics, and/or a combination of both, but there are still few scientific studies on the role of herbs, probiotics, and/or a combination of both as alternatives to AGP. This study aimed to determine the role of herbs in the growth of probiotics. The herbs used were ginger (Zingiber officinale), turmeric (Curcuma longa), kencur (Kaempferia galanga), temulawak (Curcuma zanthorrhiza), and temu ireng (Curcuma aeruginosa), while the probiotics used were Bifidobacterium longum, B. bifidum, Bacillus sp., and Saccharomyces cereviciae. The Kierby-bauer disc diffusion method was used in this study to determine the effect of herbs on probiotic growth. Chloramphenicol disc was used as a positive control, then the culture media was incubated in the microaerophilic condition, temperature 37oC for 24h. Observation and measurement of the diameter of the growth zone and the inhibition zone of probiotics were carried out after incubation. The results of this study prove that herbs do not inhibit the growth of probiotics. Herbal can be prebiotic candidates that can support probiotic growth. The herbal-probiotic combination can potentially replace AGP in animal feed.