COMPARATIVE EVALUATION OF NUTRIENT AND ANTI-NUTRIENT CONTENTS OF Persea americana (AVOCADO) LEAVES AS FEED SUPPLEMENT FOR RUNIMANTS IN THE TROPICS

Abstract

An evaluation of nutrient and anti-nutrient contents of different forms of Persea americana (PA) leaves was investigated. Experiment 1 involved the determination of the chemical composition of green, yellow and brown leaves of PA. Experiment 2 determined the tannin, saponin, phytate and oxalate contents of the different leaves of PA. Results revealed that the chemical composition of the leaves varied significantly (P<0.05). The dry matter ranged from 88.75-91.24% in green and brown leaves respectively, while the crude protein ranged from 16.31-18.41 % in brown and green leaves respectively. The neutral detergent fibre ranged from 49.21- 55.48% in green and brown leaves respectively. Tannin, saponin, phytate and oxalte content of the leaves did not differ significantly, but was within the tolerable limit for consumption. These result showed that the different forms of Persea americana leaves can be used as feed supplement for ruminant in the Tropics.