Impacts of dried whole eggs on productive performance, quality of fresh and stored eggs, reproductive organs and lipid metabolism of laying hens.

1. Rejected eggs were processed by freezing, freezing and boiling, or autoclaving, dried at 55°C, and the chemical and amino-acid analysis and microbiological properties of the dried whole eggs (DWE) determined. The processed DWE was included in a laying-hen mash diet at 50 or 100 g/kg, mainly to replace soybean meal and maize, in a factorial design of 3×2 and fed to hens between 25 and 41 weeks of age. In addition, a control diet without DWE was used to create a total of 7 treatments; each having 5 replicates of 5 hens. 2. Hens fed the diet containing 50-g/kg frozen and boiled DWE and 100-g/kg frozen DWE laid the largest egg size, while hens fed the 50-g/kg frozen and boiled or autoclaved DWE diets yielded the highest egg mass and best feed conversion efficiency. 3. Hens fed the 50-g/kg frozen DWE laid eggs with a higher yolk indices, Haugh unit scores, and eggshell thickness and maintained higher Haugh unit scores during egg storage. 4. Yolk cholesterol significantly decreased in eggs from groups fed either the 50-g/kg frozen or autoclaved DWE diet, with freezing having the stronger effect. 6. In conclusion, 50-g/kg autoclaved DWE diets fed to laying hens between 25 and 41 weeks of age had no adverse effects on production, egg quality or reproductive organs, but decreased yolk cholesterol, and thus could be beneficially included in laying-hen diets.

Whole inedible date in the grower-finisher broiler diets and the impact on productive performance, nutrient digestibility and meat quality.

The growth performance, carcass characteristics and meat quality measurements were evaluated on broiler chicks fed different dietary levels of whole inedible dates (WID). WID used in this study were consisted of date fruits (∼850 g/kg) and date pits (∼150 g/kg). Three hundred unsexed Lohman broiler chicks were randomly and equally distributed into six groups. Each was formed of 50 chicks (five replicates, 10 chicks per replicate), and was assigned to a dietary treatment. Six dietary treatments of WID (0, 30, 60, 90, 120 and 150 g/kg feed) were included in the formation of isocaloric (metabolizable energy of ∼3060 kcal/kg feed) and isonitrogenous (CP of ∼192 g/kg feed) broiler rations. The treated rations were fed to the group chicks between 15 and 42 days of age (the experimental period). A straight-run design was considered. At 42 days of age, five males from each treatment were randomly chosen and slaughtered to determine carcass characteristics, internal organs and meat quality measurements. Digestibility of nutrients was measured at the end of the experimental period using five caged-individual males per treatment. The inclusion of broiler rations on WID for up to 150 g/kg feed, over the experimental period, did not significantly influence body weight gain (1452 to 1521 g/chick), feed intake (3268 to 3621 g/chick), feed conversion ratio (2.26 to 2.36 kg/kg) and dressed carcass (63.4% to 67.3%). In addition, levels of WID for up to 150 g/kg feed did not significantly influence the digestibility of nutrients and meat quality measurements. Such results suggest the possible inclusion of broiler rations on WID for up to 150 g/kg feed, during the period of 15 to 42 days of age without adverse effects on growth performance and meat quality.

Effect of different dietary levels of mangrove (Laguncularia racemosa) leaves and spice supplementation on productive performance, egg quality, lipid metabolism and metabolic profiles in laying hens.

In order to study the influence of white mangrove (Laguncularia racemosa) leaves on productive performance, egg quality, lipids metabolism and metabolic profiles, 180 Hy-line laying hens were randomly distributed to 6 dietary treatments each contained 6 replicates of 5 individually caged hens during the period from 50 to 60 weeks of age. 2. Three isoenergetic and isonitrogenous diets were formulated to contain 0, 50 and 100 g/kg of sun-dried mangrove leaves. Each diet was fed with or without supplementation of 2 g of cardamom, cumin, hot and black pepper mixture (1:1:1:1)/kg diet. 3. Mangrove leaves at either 50 or 100 g/kg adversely affect laying rate, egg mass and FCR, whilst increasing water intake and water to feed ratio. Mangrove leaves had no significant effect on dry matter, protein, lipid, cholesterol and ash content of liver, or on dry matter, protein and ash of yolk. 4. Plasma total protein, total lipids; liver enzymes AST and ALT and mortality rate were not significantly affected by mangrove leaves. On the other hand, yolk lipid, yolk cholesterol and plasma cholesterol significantly decreased, while yolk colour significantly increased with inclusion of 50 or 100 g/kg mangrove leaves, and Haugh unit score significantly increased with 100 g/kg mangrove leaves. 5. Spice mixture significantly increased egg weight by 2.2%. Yolk lipid content significantly decreased by 2.6%, while yolk colour and Haugh unit significantly increased with inclusion of spice mixtures. 6. In conclusion, mangrove leaves at 50 g/kg may be included in the laying hen diets as a means of decreasing lipid and cholesterol in yolk and plasma cholesterol and increasing yolk colour. Spice mixture at 2 g of cardamom, cumin, hot and black pepper mixture (1:1:1:1)/kg diet increased laying rate, egg mass, Haugh unit score and yolk colour while decreasing yolk lipids.