Metabolizable energy content of wheat distillers’ dried grains with solubles supplemented with or without a mixture of carbohydrases and protease for broilers and turkeys

Abstract

In this study, 2 experiments were conducted to determine the AME and AMEn of wheat distillers’ dried grains with solubles (DDGS) without or with supplementation of an enzyme mixture containing xylanase, amylase, and protease (XAP) in broilers and turkeys. One hundred twenty-six male Ross 308 broilers (Experiment 1) or 126 male BUT 10 turkeys (Experiment 2) were offered a nutrient-adequate diet from d 1 to 14. On d 14, birds in each experiment were allocated to 6 treatments consisting of 3 levels of wheat-DDGS (0, 300, or 600 g/kg) and 2 levels of XAP (0 or 250 mg/kg diet) in a randomized complete block design. The AME or AMEn content of wheat-DDGS was determined from the slope of regression of wheat-DDGS-associated energy intake (kilocalories) against wheat-DDGS intake (kilograms). In Experiment 1, wheat-DDGS inclusion in the diets linearly decreased (P < 0.05) DM retention, AME, and AMEn, irrespective of XAP supplementation. The AME of wheat-DDGS without or with XAP for broilers was 3,587 or 3,700 kcal/kg DM, respectively, and AMEn was 3,356 and 3,459 kcal/kg DM for wheat-DDGS without and with XAP, respectively. In Experiment 2, wheat-DDGS inclusion in the diet linearly decreased (P < 0.05) DM retention irrespective of XAP supplementation. Diet AME and AMEn linearly decreased (P < 0.05) as the level of wheat-DDGS increased in the diets without added XAP, whereas there was no effect of increasing wheat-DDGS level on dietary AME or AMEn in the XAP-supplemented diets. The AME of wheat-DDGS without and with supplemental XAP for turkeys were 3,355 and 3,558 kcal/kg DM, respectively, and AMEn was 3,109 and 3,294 kcal/kg DM, respectively, for wheat-DDGS without and with XAP. Supplemental XAP increased (P > 0.05) the AME and AMEn of wheat-DDGS for broilers and turkeys by up to 6%. It was concluded that wheat-DDGS is a valuable source of AME for broilers and turkeys.