Growth response and nutrient digestibility of growing pigs fed varying levels of maize offal in diets containing chicken offal meal

摘要

The feed deficit situation is more serious with protein deficiency when compared to the availability of calories and microelements. Poultry and pigs represent the fastest means of correcting the shortage of animal protein in Africa (Adesehinwa, 2004).The cost of feed conversion by these species of livestock may be very high. This is as a result of the increased costs of the ingredients required to formulate their concentrate feeds, hence, the use of agro-industrial byproducts (AIBPs). These AIBPs ornon conventional feed sources of plant origin are mostly fibrous in nature. The ability of pigs to utilize fibrous feed resources for growth is confined in the lower part of the GIT (Adesehinwa, 2008) and can to contribute significantly (5-30%) to the net energy requirement of pigs (Rerat et al 1987). The influence of crude fibre on organic matter digestibility varies from feed to feed, depending on the special characteristics of the crude fibre in individual feeds (Kidder and Manners, 1978). It was therefore the aim of this study to evaluate the growth response and nutrient digestibility of growing pigs fed varying levels of maize offal (MO) in diets containing chicken offal meal (COM) as animal protein source formulated to contain approximately 18%crude protein.