Semina: Ciências Agrárias (Oct 2021)

Metabolizable energy levels in diets with a fixed nutrient:calorie ratio for free-range broilers

  • Thiago Rodrigues da Silva,
  • Karina Márcia Ribeiro de Souza Nascimento,
  • Charles Kiefer,
  • Luanna Lopes Paiva Copat,
  • Henrique Barbosa de Freitas,
  • Natália Ramos Batista Chaves,
  • Larissa Albuquerque Rosa Silva,
  • Jeovania Vilhalba Leite,
  • Arnaldo Vitorino Ofiço

DOI
https://doi.org/10.5433/1679-0359.2021v42n6SUPL2p4009
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 42, no. 6SUPL2

Abstract

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The present study proposes to examine the effect of dietary levels of metabolizable energy, under a fixed nutrient:calorie ratio, on the production performance; body fat and protein deposition; and carcass characteristics of free-range broilers from 1 to 84 days of age. Nine hundred unsexed chicks were allocated to six treatments in a completely randomized design with six replicates of 25 birds each. Treatments consisted of diets with varying levels of metabolizable energy (2700, 2800, 2900, 3000, 3100 and 3200 Kcal ME/kg of diet) and a fixed proportion of nutrients relative to the energy level according to the nutritional requirements for each rearing phase. Body weight, weight gain, feed intake, feed conversion, production viability, metabolizable energy intake, protein intake, lysine intake, body fat deposition, body protein deposition and carcass characteristics were evaluated. Data were subjected to analysis of variance and, later, to regression analysis. Increasing levels of metabolizable energy, coupled with a fixed nutrient:calorie ratio, reduced feed intake, increased body weight and weight gain, improved feed conversion and did not affect carcass characteristics. In conclusion, adjusting the nutrient supply according to the dietary energy level improves production performance by improving feed conversion, ensuring adequate nutrient intake and preserving fat and protein deposition in the carcass when the metabolizable energy level is raised up to 3200 Kcal/kg in all rearing stages.

Keywords