NUTRITIONAL VALUE OF CHICKEN OFFAL AS REPLACEMENT FOR LOCAL FISH MEAL IN GROWING SNAILS

• Main Authors: A OMOLE, O IJI, A SOETAN, B MAKANJUOLA
• Format: Article
• Language: Bulgarian
• Published: University of Zagreb, Faculty of Agriculture 2009-03-01
• Series: Journal of Central European Agriculture
• Subjects: snails; chicken offal; local fish meal; replacement
• Online Access: http://jcea.agr.hr/articles/565_NUTRITIONAL_VALUE_OF_CHICKEN_OFFAL_AS_REPLACEMENT_FOR_LOCAL_FISH_MEAL_IN_GROWING_SNAILS_en.pdf

A total of ninety six growing snails of mean weight 91.23±2.4g were used to determine the effects of partial or total replacement of local fish meal, a source of protein but expensive to a less expensive, alternative source, chicken offal in the diet of growing snails. Completely randomized design was used for the study. The feeding trial had four treatments, C1, C2, C3 and C4 in which fish meal fraction of the diets was replaced at 0, 50, 75 and 100% with chicken offal respectively. The parameters taken were weight gain, feed intake. Feed conversion ratio, total feed cost, and cost per weight gain were calculated. The trial lasted for twelve weeks. Significant differences were not observed in the mean weekly feed intake of the snails in all the treatments. The mean weight gain in all the treatments were not significantly influenced by the inclusion of chicken offal in the diet (P>0.005). Total feed cost and cost/weight gain reduced as the level of the chicken offal increased while the lowest cost/weight gain was observed in C4. The inclusion of Chicken offal in all the diets had no detrimental effect on the snails in all the treatments. Based on the present results chicken offal could replace local fish meal in the diet of growing snail up to 100% and hereby reduce feed cost