Nutritive Value of Triticale as a Feed Ingredient for Broiler Chickens

Abstract

Five experiments involving 10,080 chickens were used to evaluate the effects of feeding diets containing 0, 15, 30 and 45% triticale. Diets were calculated to be isoenergic and isonitrogenous. The effect of using supplementary lysine in diets with escalating levels of triticale was included in these studies. Mortality rates were significantly different (P>.05) among dietary treatments. Dietary effects on feed conversion were inconsistent, with two experiments providing evidence of a significant depression in feed efficiency associated with feeding triticale up to 21 days of age, but results from the other three experiments showing no detrimental effects. Body weights tended to be depressed at the higher dietary levels of triticale; this was particularly evident at 21 days of age. Supplementing starter diets with lysine did not correct this problem. Evidence indicates that growth inhibition associated with triticale limits its practical use to not more than 15% in broiler chicken diets; furthermore, damp litter conditions were also associated with the 30 and 45% dietary levels of triticale.