Evaluation of Nutritional Quality of Dried Cashew Nut Testa Using Laboratory Rat as a Model for Pigs

Dried cashew nut testa (DCNT) was characterized with respect to proximate, mineral, and energy profile. The crude protein, crude fibre, and fat and ash contents were, in g kg−1 DM, 190.0, 103.0, 20.1, and 20.2, respectively, with metabolizable energy of 7.12 MJ kg−1 DM. In a feeding trial, isoproteic diets containing DCNT (O, 50, 100, and 150 g kg−1) were fed ad libitum to 4 groups of Sprague-Dawley male rats (110 g body weight, n = 20) for a period of 4 weeks. The rats, used as model for pigs, had free access to water. As the dietary DCNT content was increased from 0 to 150 g kg−1, there was a significant (P < 0.01) decrease in feed intake (r = −0.99), water intake (r = −0.87), and a reduction in body weight gain (r = −0.93) and efficiency of feed utilization (r = 0.78). However, no deaths or health-related problems were recorded during the study. Dietary treatments had no impact on liver, heart, lungs, kidneys, and intestinal weights. Cost per gram feed and feed cost per gram live weight gain were reduced when DCNT was used. The experimental diet containing 50 g DCNT kg−1 supported the best growth performance with the lowest feed cost per gram live weight gain of GHȼ0.18. Seasonal increases in the prices of conventional feedstuffs like maize and fishmeal would make the use of agroindustrial by-products such as DCNT in pig diets even more attractive

Effect of pesticides applied in cowpea production on rumen microbial fermentation of cowpea haulms as reflected in in vitro gas production

The present study assessed the effect of lambda cyhalothrin, cypermethrin and dimethoate residues in cowpea haulm on microbial fermentation using gas syringes as incubators. The lambda cyhalothrin, cypermethrin and dimethoate were applied at the vegetative, flowering and podding stages of the cowpea at the rate of 2.66 mg/L, 5.14 mg/L and 6.68 mg/L of water, respectively. Dimethoate was detected in the cowpea haulm at the highest concentration of 1.38 mg/kg. The haulm with no pesticide treatment was incubated with media containing rumen fluid, and pesticides were added at concentrations of 40 mg/kg, 80 mg/kg and 120 mg/kg. In vitro gas production was measured at 3 h, 6 h, 12 h, 24 h, 48 h, 72 h and 96 h to estimate the rate of gas evolution. Gas production in general was influenced by pesticide application. In general, gas evolution was reduced by increasing levels of lambda cyhalothrin up to 80 mg/kg. However, an increase in gas accumulation was observed with increasing levels of dimethoate, while the application of cypermethrin yielded no noticeable change in gas production. The study indicates that pesticide residues may function as toxins at concentrations greater than those encountered in the field or lethal dose (LD50) and may inhibit the growth of rumen microbes

Alternative Feed Resource for Growing African Palm Weevil (Rhynchophorus phoenicis) Larvae in Commercial Production

A six (6)-week long experiment was undertaken to develop an alternative feed resource for the production of African palm weevil (Rhynchophorus phoenicis) larvae and to evaluate the performance of the larvae raised on the different diets. After two weeks, four-hundred (400) young larvae (hatchlings) which weighed between 0.6 – 1.6 g were selected and randomly grouped into 40 sets, each group comprising ten (10) larvae of similar weights and then randomly allocated to four (4) dietary treatments, using a completely randomized design (CRD) with ten (10) replications of 10 larvae. The four treatments designated as T1, T2, T3 and T4 had varying inclusion levels of oil palm yolk at 100%, 50%, 50% and 25% respectively with various combinations of agro-waste materials including fruit waste of banana and pineapple and millet waste. Three (3) kilograms of each diet was formulated and fed every two weeks of the four weeks feeding trial period; with feed being provided ad libitum. Results of the feeding trial revealed that parameters such as total feed intake and mean total feed intake per larva, feed conversion efficiency, pH of larvae and feed cost per kilogram showed significant (p&lt;0.05) differences among treatments. Results of the proximate analysis of diets used revealed significant (p&lt;0.05) differences among the various treatment diets. In conclusion, the study demonstrated that diets did not have any adverse effects on growth performance of larvae, whiles a relatively improved performance was observed at the least inclusion level of oil palm yolk, OPY (25 %). The agro-waste materials exploited actually proved to be potential alternative feed resources for raising the larvae and the diets used served as nutritionally suitable growth media for production of palm weevil larvae

Nutritional Potential and Microbial Status of African Palm Weevil (Rhynchophorus phoenicis) Larvae Raised on Alternative Feed Resources

A six (6)-week long experiment was carried out to explore some feed resources for the production of African palm weevil (Rhynchophorus phoenicis) larvae and to ascertain the nutritional potential and microbial status of larvae raised on different diets. Four-hundred (400) two (2)-weeks old young larvae with weights ranging from 0.6 to 1.6 g were harvested and randomly grouped into 40 sets, each group comprising ten (10) larvae of similar weights and then randomly allocated to four (4) dietary treatments, using a completely randomized design (CRD) with ten (10) replications of 10 larvae in each treatment. The four diets which were administered were labeled as T1, T2, T3 and T4 containing varying levels of oil palm yolk at 100%, 50%, 50% and 25% respectively with various combinations of agro-waste materials including fruit waste of banana and pineapple and millet waste. Three (3) kilograms of each diet was fed ad libitum every two weeks for six weeks. After the feeding trial, it was revealed that the various diets fed did not have any significant effect on the nutrient composition except Nitrogen free extract of different groups of larvae produced indicated significant (p&lt;0.05) differences among larvae. Microbial status of crushed samples of larvae also revealed the presence of bacteria species including Klebsiella and Salmonella. It was concluded that R. phoenicis larvae possessed great potentials for use as food and feed for humans and animals respectively and the diets used served as nutritionally suitable growth media for production of palm weevil larvae

Amino acid digestibility in meat and bone meal for the growing pig : the development of a digestibility assay based on the laboratory rat : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Animal Science at Massey University, Palmerston North, New Zealand

The study involved developing and applying a routine ileal amino acid digestibility assay, based on the sampling of digesta from the euthanased laboratory rat, with specific application to the digestion of meat and bone meal (MBM) protein by the growing pig. The work was conducted in six separate experiments. 1. The first experiment aimed to evaluate the slaughter method as a technique for sampling ileal digesta in the pig under defined sampling conditions. In a preliminary investigation, the influence of time after feeding (3, 4, 5, 7, 9 and 11 hours) on the amount of digesta obtained from the terminal 20 cm of ileum and apparent ileal nitrogen (N) digestibility was determined. Thirty-six 30 kg liveweight entire male pigs were given a semi-synthetic diet containing meat and bone meal (MBM) as the sole protein source and chromic oxide as an indigestible marker. The animals were given the MBM diet for 14 days and were killed by intracardial injection of a barbiturate on the 14th day. Digesta were flushed from the terminal ileum using deionised water. Secondly, the effect of site in the ileum for sampling digesta at 9 hours post-feeding was determined using 12 entire male pigs. The animals were equally and randomly allocated to two sampling sites (the terminal 0-20 cm or 0-40 cm of ileum). Further samples of ileal digesta were taken at regular 20 cm intervals up the final 140 cm of ileum of each pig. Sampling at 9 hours after the start of feeding resulted in the greatest and least variable sample size as well as the highest N digestibility. Sampling site within the terminal ileum had no significant (P > 0.05) influence on the apparent digestibility of nitrogen. In the same study, comparison of apparent ileal amino acid digestibility in MBM, under the defined sampling conditions, was made between 8 pigs whose digesta were sampled from the terminal 20 cm of ileum at death 9 hours after the commencement of feeding, and 8 pigs with simple T-cannulas and with hourly collection of digesta over 10 hours on the final 2 days of the 14-day study. The simple T-cannulated animals were accepted as the control. There was no significant (P > 0.05) effect of digesta collection procedure on the apparent ileal N and amino acid digestibility coefficients. Faecal N and amino acid digestibility coefficients in intact pigs were identical to those in pigs fitted with a simple T-piece cannula in the distal ileum. Faecal digestibility values in both intact and cannulated pigs were, however, considerably (P 0.05) effect on the true ileal digestibility of N and amino acids. The mean apparent ileal digestibility of N in MBM ranged from 65.6 to 75.3%. The corresponding range of true ileal digestibility of N was 76.9 to 78.2% 6. The final experiment generated data on the nutrient compositions of meat and bone meals collected from eight processing plants throughout New Zealand. The true ileal digestibility of the amino acids in the meat and bone meals were also determined using the rat assay developed in the previous studies. Endogenous amino acid excretion, used for the correction of apparent digestibility values to true estimates, was determined for rats given a protein-free or an enzymically hydrolysed casein diet. The meat and bone meals were variable in their nutrient composition and in the true ileal digestibility of protein and amino acids. The true nitrogen and amino acid digestibility coefficients based on endogenous flows determined by the EHC method were markedly higher than with the protein-free diet. The true ileal N and lysine digestibility coefficients based on the respective endogenous flows for rats fed the EHC diet ranged from 62.7 to 88.9% and 66.4 to 92.3%, respectively. Values determined with endogenous flows for rats fed the protein free diet ranged from 59.0 to 85.2% for N, and 63.2 to 88.9 for lysine. The variable ileal digestible N and amino acid contents of meat and bone meals emphasise the limitation of tabulated analytical values and the need for a routine relatively inexpensive digestibility assay

Growth performance and economic evaluation of broiler Chicken fed with rain tree (Samanea saman) seed meal

An 8-week experiment was conducted to assess the growth performance of broiler chicken served with rain tree (Samanea saman) seed meal as alternative source of protein. The study was conducted at the Animal Science Department at the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology in Ghana. The chicks were divided into four treatments and each treatment was replicated thrice with 20 chicks per replicate in a completely randomised design. S. saman seed meal was included at 20, 40 and 60 g in the diets as replacement for fish meal and soybean meal from the 3rd to 8th week. The results of the analysis indicated that 20 g S. saman seed meal diet resulted in higher weight gain (1.02 kg) and feed intake (1.48) but lower feed conversion efficiency (69%). Control treatment containing 100% fish meal and soybean meal had the best feed conversion efficiency (92%). The result of this study shows that 100% fish meal and soybean meal diet (0 g of S. saman seed meal) was more expensive Gh¢ 46.65 per kg of feed than the S. saman seed meal at 60 g (Gh¢ 44.62 kg; 1$ = 3.92 Gh¢). The cost and return analysis shows that 20 g diet gave the highest return (Gh¢ 5,905.08), followed by 0 g of S. saman seed meal (Gh¢ 4,346.07) and Gh¢ 2,380.20 for 40 g S. saman seed meal diet. For improved growth rate and higher profit margin, it is advisable to include 20 g S. saman seed meal per 100 kg broiler chicken diet

Evaluation of Nutritional Quality of Dried Cashew Nut Testa Using Laboratory Rat as a Model for Pigs

Dried cashew nut testa (DCNT) was characterized with respect to proximate, mineral, and energy profile. The crude protein, crude fibre, and fat and ash contents were, in g kg −1 DM, 190.0, 103.0, 20.1

Alternative organic wastes as substrates and its impact on growth, proximate chemical and mineral composition of black soldier fly (Hermetia illucens) larvae for subsistent animal feed

ABSTRACTThis study explored the growth parameters and nutritional composition of Black soldier fly larvae (BSFL) reared on some selected alternative organic waste materials. The substrates comprised wheat bran (WB) as the control, millet waste (MW), restaurant leftovers (RL) and fruits waste (FW) and were replicated 8 times in a mini-insectary set-up. Proximate nutrient and mineral composition of the larvae were analyzed. RL had the highest (p < 0.0001) total weight of larvae, number of larvae, efficiency of conversion and substrate reduction index compared to the other substrates. Crude protein (%) content of the BSFL was superior (p < 0.000) in the WB and MW substrate groups at 41.1% and 41.4%, respectively. Crude protein and dry matter yield (g) of the BSFL was higher (p < 0.0001) in the RL than in the other substrates. Metabolizable energy and dry matter were superior (p < 0.0001) in MW and RL groups respectively to all the other substrate groups. RL recorded the lowest (p < 0.0001) phosphorus and calcium levels relative to the other substrates. Conclusively, the crude protein content of the BSFL irrespective of the substrates was adequate to be employed in the livestock feed industry