Growth performance of 1-2 months old native chickens fed with various levels of mungbean and dried whole egg combination as protein source

Abstract

Poultry production is the fastest growing industry in animal sector. Currently, the main problem encountered is the cost of feeds. Thus, this study was conducted to determine the growth performance of 30-to 60-day old native chickens fed with various levels of mungbean (M) and dried whole egg (DWE) combination as substitute for soybean meal. The treatments were 100% M, 100% DWE, 75% M: 25%DWE, 50%M: 50% DWE, 25% M: 75 DWE, CPU feeds and commercial feeds with the last two treatment serving as basis for comparison. These were laid out in a randomized complete block design (RCBD) with 3 replications. A total of 210 one-month old native chickens were used in the whole study. Infertile eggs from CPU-CARES hatchery were used in the preparation of DWE while mungbean was purchased from the market. The experimental chickens were obtained from Neyo’s farm. Experimental diet, which was composed of corn, rice bran, egg shell, fish meal, feed premix, mungbean, DWE and soybean, was obtained, compounded and milled at CPU-CARES feedmill. Results revealed that chickens fed with the different levels of mungbean, DWE and their combinations gained almost the same liveweight but were significantly lower than those fed with pure CPU feed and commercial feeds. A similar trend is seen with feed efficiency where birds provided with CPU and commercial feeds are better feed converters than birds fed with any of the mungbean, DWE and their combination. On the other hand, no significant differences among treatment means were found on feed consumption and survival rate.