Changes in the Yield and in the Fatty Acid Composition of Whole Carcass and Selected Meat Portions of Broiler Chickens Fed Full-Fat Oil Seeds

Abstract

Broiler chicks were fed eight experimental diets containing two levels (10 and 20%) of either full-fat flax seed (FFS) or full-fat canola seed (FCS), and two levels (3.5 and 7.0%) of canola oil (CO) in combination with either flax meal (FM) or canola meal (CM) at 6.5 or 13%. A corn and soybean meal diet was included as a control. Carcass cut-up yields, total lipids, cholesterol, and fatty acid composition of whole chicken carcasses and white and dark chicken meats were evaluated at the end of a 6-wk feeding period. The 20% FFS diet produced significantly lower live weight and smaller carcass, breast, leg, and neck weights. Feeding 20% FFS, 20% CO + CM, and 10% FCS depressed breast yield. Except for 20% FCS, the rest of the full-fat oil seed treatments increased leg yield significantly. Source (flax, canola) and levels of full-fat oil seeds and CO significantly modulated tissue fatty acid composition. The FFS, 20% FCS, and 20% CO + FM diets resulted in a substantial tissue and carcass enrichment of n-3 fatty acids, linolenic acid, eicosapentaenoic acid, docosapentaenoic acid, and docosahexaenoic acid. Tissue cholesterol and lipid contents were lower in white than in dark meat for all the experimental diets. Generally, birds fed flax products contained less fat in white and dark meat than the birds fed canola. Addition of either FFS or 13% FM to the diet resulted in significantly reduced carcass fat. These trends suggest that dietary FFS could affect total carcass fat and elevate tissue and carcass levels of nutritionally desirable n-3 fatty acids.