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Effect of Soybean Oil Supplementation to Low Metabolizable Energy Diets on Production Parameters of Broiler Chickens

G. W. Barbour^*, M. T. Farran^,1, N. N. Usayran, A. H. Darwish, M. G. Uwayjan and V. M. Ashkarian

^* Department of Poultry Science, Lebanese Agricultural Research Institute, Tel Amara, Beqa’a, Lebanon; Department of Animal Sciences, Faculty of Agricultural and Food Sciences, American University of Beirut, Beirut 1107-2020, Lebanon; and Department of Animal Production, Faculty of Agricultural Sciences, Lebanese University, Chourane, Beirut 1102-2040, Lebanon

¹ Corresponding author: mf02{at}aub.edu.lb

Two experiments were conducted to study the performance and carcass quality of broilers in response to varying composition of a diet low in ME, through the supplementation of graded levels of soybean oil. In an initial study, isocaloric (2,965 kcal/kg) and isonitrogenous (21.7%) corn-soybean diets were supplemented with 10, 20, or 30 g/kg of soybean oil. In a second experiment, diets containing ME levels of 2,940 and 3,040 kcal/kg were supplemented with soybean oil levels of 20 or 40 g/kg. In both experiments, supplementation of up to 30 or 40 g of oil/kg of diet resulted in increases of 175 and 120 g (P < 0.05) in BW gain and 97 and 91 g (P 0.06) in ready-to-cook (RTC) carcass weight at 49 d, respectively. There was a linear decrease (P < 0.05) in percentage deposition of abdominal fat pad only in diets containing 2,965 (Experiment 1) or 2,940 (Experiment 2) kcal of ME/kg with no significant changes in RTC carcass and whole breast or pectoralis major muscle yields and RTC carcass composition. Improvements in production parameters can be achieved in broiler chickens fed a low ME diet through the addition of moderate levels of soybean oil.

Key Words: soybean oil • low metabolizable energy diet • performance • broiler