EFFECT OF FERMENTED COTTONSEED MEAL ON GROWTH PERFORMANCE, GUT MICROFLORA AND CARCASS TRAITS IN BROILERS
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Date
2023-03-23
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COLLEGE OF VETERINARY AND ANIMAL SCIENCES MANNUTHY, THRISSUR, KERALA VETERINARY AND ANIMAL SCIENCES UNIVERSITY
Abstract
An experiment was conducted at the Department of Poultry Science, College of Veterinary and Animal Sciences, Mannuthy to study the effect of dietary inclusion of fermented cottonseed meal (FCSM) on growth performance,
intestinal microflora and carcass traits in broiler chicken up to 42 days of age. A total of 160, day-old chicks were randomly allotted into five dietary treatment groups, viz. T1, T2, T3, T4 and T5 with four replicates having eight bird each, in a
completely randomised design. The birds in the control group (T1) were fed with standard broiler ration formulated as per BIS (2007). The diet groups T2 to T5 were formulated by inclusion of five per cent CSM (T2), five per cent FCSM
(T3), 10 per cent FCSM (T4) and 15 per cent FCSM (T5), respectively. All the experimental diet were isocaloric and isonitrogenous. Microbial fermentation of CSM significantly (p<0.05) increased its moisture, crude protein and total ash content and also improved the lactobacillus count (LAB). The dry matter, crude fibre, free gossypol, aflatoxin B1 level and pH were significantly (p<0.05) lower in FCSM compared to non-fermented CSM. The mean body weight and body weight gain of broilers at the sixth week of age in different treatment groups did not differ significantly. The mean cumulative feed consumption of broilers at sixth week of age did not show any significant difference between the treatment groups. The cumulative mean feed conversion ratio from first to sixth week of age was not significantly affected by the dietary treatments. The carcass traits like pre slaughter live weight, eviscerated weight, abdominal fat, per cent weight of heart, liver and gizzard, yield of thigh, drumstick and wings (per cent) did not differ significantly among different treatment groups. The mean ready to cook yield (per cent) was significantly (p<0.05) higher in all FCSM groups (T3, T4 and T5) than the other two groups.The mean count of harmful bacterial organisms like Escherichia coli, coliform, and Enterococcus faecalis count of ileal content in broilers was significantly (p<0.01) lower in FCSM groups (T3, T4 and T5) as compared to control diet (T1) and five per cent CSM diet (T2). The mean ileal pH was also significantly (p<0.01) lower in FCSM groups (T3, T4 and T5) than the other two groups. The mean villi height, villi height to crypt depth ratio (VH:CD) in duodenum and jejunum was significantly (p<0.01) higher in FCSM groups. The mean villi height of ileum was significantly (p<0.01) higher and crypt depth of duodenum and jejunum was significantly (p<0.05) lower in FCSM groups
compared to control and CSM group (T2).The serum total cholesterol, low-density lipoprotein and very low-density lipoprotein levels of birds at sixth week of age was significantly (p<0.01) lower in T3, T4 and T5 groups compared to control (T1) and CSM group (T2). The mean livability per cent in T1, T2, T3, T4 and T5 was in range of 90.62 to 100. The highest net profit per kilogram body weight was obtained in 10 per cent FCSM group (T4 group), followed by T3, T5, T2 and T1.
Based on the overall findings of this study, it can be concluded that the dietary inclusion of fermented cottonseed meal at different levels by replacing soybean meal resulted in similar growth performance as that of the control group with the soybean meal diet. Therefore, FCSM in broiler diet up to 15 per cent inclusion can be recommended as an alternative protein to soybean meal without affecting the performance of the birds and with beneficial effect on the gut health.
Among the different levels of inclusion studied, 10 per cent level was found to be more beneficial with respect to net profit per kilogram body weight.