Department of Agriculture and Animal Health, College of Agriculture and Environmental Sciences, University of South Africa, Pretoria, South Africa.
Department of Agricultural Economics and Animal Production, University of Limpopo, Sovenga, South Africa.
PLoS One. 2022 Aug 9;17(8):e0271903. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0271903. eCollection 2022.
This study aimed to determine the effect of amaranth leaf meal (ALM) inclusion levels on the productivity of Ross 308 broiler chickens. A total of 200, day-old, Ross 308 broiler chicks were randomly allocated to five dietary treatments in a complete randomized design, with each group having four replicates with ten chicks each. Amaranth leaf meal inclusion levels used in this study were 0, 5, 10, 15, and 20%. Bodyweight and feed intake were measured weekly to calculate the feed conversion ratio. Meat and bone traits of broiler chickens fed amaranth leaf meal at varying levels were also measured whereas the general linear model of statistical analysis software was used to analyze collected data. Amaranth leaf meal inclusion level had no effect (p > 0.05) on initial weight, final weight, average daily gain, and average daily feed intake of Ross 308 broiler chickens aged one to 42 days. Ross 308 broiler chickens which were given diets with 0 and 10% ALM inclusion levels, had higher (p < 0.05) cooking loss than those on diets with 5, 15, and 20% of ALM inclusion levels. Chickens fed with a diet having a 15% ALM inclusion level, had a greater (p < 0.05) tibia diameter than those on 0, 5, 10, and 20% ALM inclusion levels. Ross 308 broiler chickens which were fed with 5 and 15% ALM inclusion levels, had larger (p < 0.05) femur diameters than those on 0, 10, and 20% ALM inclusion levels. Ross 308 broiler chickens fed with diets having a 15% ALM inclusion level, had longer (p < 0.05) tibia lengths than those fed with diets having 0, 5, and 10% ALM inclusion levels. It can be concluded that amaranth leaf meal can be included in the diets of Ross 308 broiler chickens aged one to 42 days at 5, 10, and 15% levels without adverse effects on productivity, meat quality, and the bone characteristics of the chickens. This augurs well for poultry farmers in many parts of Africa where the production of vegetable amaranth is in abundance.
本研究旨在确定苋木叶粉（ALM）添加水平对罗斯 308 肉鸡生产性能的影响。将 200 只 1 日龄罗斯 308 肉鸡随机分为 5 个日粮处理组，每个处理组设 4 个重复，每个重复 10 只鸡。本研究中使用的苋木叶粉添加水平分别为 0、5、10、15 和 20%。每周测量体重和采食量，计算饲料转化率。还测量了饲喂不同水平苋木叶粉的肉鸡的肉骨特性，使用统计分析软件的一般线性模型分析收集的数据。结果表明，0 至 42 日龄的罗斯 308 肉鸡的初始体重、最终体重、平均日增重和平均日采食量不受 ALM 添加水平的影响（p>0.05）。0 和 10% ALM 组肉鸡的失水率显著高于 5、15 和 20% ALM 组（p<0.05）。15% ALM 组肉鸡的胫骨直径显著大于 0、5、10 和 20% ALM 组（p<0.05）。5 和 15% ALM 组肉鸡的股骨直径显著大于 0、10 和 20% ALM 组（p<0.05）。15% ALM 组肉鸡的胫骨长度显著长于 0、5 和 10% ALM 组（p<0.05）。综上所述，在 1 至 42 日龄的罗斯 308 肉鸡日粮中添加 5、10 和 15%的苋木叶粉，不会对生产性能、肉质和鸡骨骼特性产生不良影响。这对于非洲许多地区的家禽养殖户来说是个好消息，因为那里的蔬菜苋菜产量丰富。
