Performance and economic effects of partially replacing soybean meal with palm kernel cake in broiler production

Abstract

The performance and economic effects of replacing soybean meal with palm kernel cake (PKC) in broiler diet was investigated in other to determine the optimal level of inclusion for maximum production in broilers. A total of 120 broiler chicks were randomly distributed into four treatment groups of 30 birds each. Each treatment was subdivided into three replicates of ten birds each. Palm Kernel Cake (PKC) was used as a protein source to partially replace soybean meal at 10, 20 and 30% in treatment II, III and IV respectively, while no PKC was used in treatment I, which also served as the control. Yellow maize was used as the major source of energy in all the dietary treatments. All the treatment groups were fed ad libitum. Daily feed intake and weekly weight gain were determined over a period of 8 weeks. There were significant differences in feed intake, feed cost/Kg, feed cost/bird and feed cost/Kg weight gain but not in body weight gain and feed conversion ratio. No mortality was recorded. The present study demonstrated that PKC can partially
replace soybean meal up to 30% in the diets of broiler birds without adversely affecting growth performance and feed utilization efficiency.

Keywords: Palm kernel cake, soybean meal, broilers poultry feeds