AN In vitro ASSESSMENT OF SUPPLEMENTARY EFFECT OF CONCENTRATES CONTAINING GRADED LEVELS OF GROUND LINSEED (Linum usitatissimum) TO HOUSEHOLD WASTES ON ORGANIC MATTER DEGRADABILITY, SHORT CHAIN FATTY ACIDS, MICROBIAL PROTEIN, METABOLIZABLE ENERGY AND RELATIVE FEED VALUES

With the objective to assess effect of level of linseed inclusion in feeds on nutritive value, an in vitro OM digestibility (IVOMD), total short chain fatty acids (SCFA:mMol l-1), microbial crude protein (MCP:g kg-1 DM), metabolizable energy (MEruminants:MJ kg-1 DM) and relative feed values (RFV) of household wastes=HW (Areke-Atela=AA, carrot peels=CaP, cabbage leaf=Cle, cabbage leftover=Clef, onion leaf=OL, onion peels=OP, potato peels=PP, Tela-Atela=TA) supplemented with linseed (LS) containing concentrates=LSC1…LSC5 (39.32, 37.32, 35.32, 33.32, 31.32% noug cake + 58.99% wheat bran + 1.69% salt + 0, 2, 4, 6, 8% LS, as fed basis) were estimated via an in vitro gas trial. HWs were mixed with LSC (LSC-HW) at 3:1 ratio. Samples were incubated in-vitro with rumen fluid in duplicate and readings recorded at 0, 3, 6, 12, 24, 48, 72 and 96 h of incubation. LSC-HW mixtures had higher CP, IVDMD, IVOMD, ME and SCFA, MCP and RFV than those of HWs alone. IVDMD and IVOMD of the LSC-HW improved with increasing LS levels, mostly at 2 and 4%LSC; but at higher concentrations they declined.  AA, TA had high IVOMD. However, IVDMD of AA (with the lowest IVDMD) was much more influenced than TA (with highest IVDMD) by LS levels. Clef had lowest and AA and TA highest ME. SCFA increased over incubation periods and with increasing levels of LS, in Clef improvement (from 0.25 to 0.61 mMol l-1) was significant but in AA (from 0.69 to 0.72 mMol l-1) moderate. Mixing HWs with LSC gave best results at 2%LSC