Growth Performance of Finisher Broiler Chickens Fed Diets Containing Graded Levels of Brewers Dried Grains and Palm Kernel Cake as a Replacement for Maize

Abstract

A 28-day feeding trial was conducted to evaluate the performance of finisher broiler chickens fed mixtures of brewers dried grains (BDG) and palm kernel cake (PKC) as a complete replacement for maize. Four diets containing 0, 40, 80 and 100% levels of BDG+PKC mixture coded T1, T2, T3 and T4, respectively, were fed to 120 Anak strain broiler birds. The finisher broiler chickens were divided into 4 groups of 30 birds per treatment replicated 3 times with 10 birds per replicate. The treatment diets were randomly assigned to the experimental birds in a completely randomized design (CRD). At the end of the 4-week feeding trial, data were collected on performance parameters notably daily feed intake, daily weight gain, feed conversion ratio and cost benefit analysis. The result of this study indicated that BDG+PKC at a dietary level of 40% fully supports the productive performance of finisher broiler birds and hence recommended to poultry farmers so as to make animal protein available at a reduced cost and maximize profit.