GROWTH RESPONSE OF FINISHER BROILERS FED VARYING DIETARY LEVELS OF BAMBARA NUT (VIGNA SUBTERRANEA (L) VERDE) OFFAL AS PARTIAL REPLACEMENT FOR MAIZE
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.51791/njap.vi.6739Keywords:
Growth response, Finisher broilers, Bambara nut offal, Replacement value, Agro-industrial by-productsAbstract
Looking ahead towards the path to inclusive prosperity by enhancing the productivity of bambara nut production in Nigeria will be a step in the right direction towards fighting food insecurity and malnutrition in the country. Thus, this study was carried to assess growth response of finisher broilers fed varying dietary levels of bambara nut (Vigna subterranea (l) verde) offal as partial replacement for maize. A 28 day feeding trial was conducted for the evaluation. Four diets containing 0, 5, 10 and 15% levels of Bambara Nut Offal (BNO) coded T1, T2, T3 and T4 respectively were fed to 120 Ross 308 strain broiler birds. The broiler birds were divided into four groups of 30 birds per treatment replicated three times with 10 birds per replicate. The treatment diets were randomly assigned to experimental stocks in a completely randomized design (CRD). Performance data revealed that treatment significantly (P<0.05) affected the final body weight, body weight change and daily weight gain of finisher broiler birds. The highest final body weight of (2733.33g) was recorded in T2 (5% inclusion) while the least body weight of (2266.67g) was recorded by birds in T4 (15% inclusion). In view of the above result, BNO should be included in the ration of finisher broilers at 5% level for optimum performance to make animal protein available at a reduced cost and maximized profit.