Effect of feeding fermented rapeseed meal on nutrients digestibility and digestive enzymes activity in broiler chickens

Abstract

To investigate the effect of feeding fermented rapeseed meal (FRM) or raw rapeseed meal (RRM) on apparent ileal digestibility of nutrients and digestive enzymes activity in broilers, a total of 300, one-day-old, male Cobb broiler chickens were divided into 5 groups, with 4 replicate pens of 15 birds each. The experimental diets included a corn-soybean meal (SBM)-basal diet as well as four diets where 50 and 100% of SBM was replaced by either RRM or FRM. The results demonstrated that birds fed FRM diet had a better growth performance compared to the RRM diet (P<0.05). Broiler chickens on the FRM diet had greater protease and amylase activities in ileum compared to other experimental diets (P<0.05). The apparent ileal digestibilities of energy, crude protein, and crude fat were greater in diets containing FRM than those containing RRM (P<0.05). In conclusion, the results of the present experiment indicated that incorporating FRM in broiler chicken diets could increase apparent ileal digestibility of key nutrients and digestive enzymes activity and improve growth performance of broiler chickens.