Phytate degradation and pre-cecal phosphorus digestibility of raw vs. crimped-ensiled faba beans (Vicia faba L.) fed to broiler chickens

TL;DR

This study found that crimping and ensiling faba beans improves phosphorus digestibility and bird performance in broiler chickens compared to raw beans.

Contribution

The study demonstrates that crimping and ensiling faba beans enhances phosphorus digestibility and bird performance in broiler chickens.

Findings

Crimping and ensiling faba beans increased pre-cecal phosphorus digestibility by 72.1% compared to 61.3% for raw beans.

Crimped-ensiled faba beans improved broiler performance compared to raw seeds.

Higher faba bean inclusion in diets linearly decreased pre-cecal disappearance of InsP6.

Abstract

The current study was conducted to determine the effects of crimping and ensiling process on the pre-cecal disappearance of myo-inositol hexakisphosphate (InsP6) and the pre-cecal digestibility (pcd) of total phosphorus (P) of faba bean seeds (cv. Vire) fed to broiler chickens. On d 21 post-hatch, 360 male Ross308® broiler chicks were randomly assigned to one of six treatments, each with six replicates of 10 chicks, for a 7-day assay. The experimental treatments consisted of six diets (mash) containing either raw [5.5 g P/kg dry matter (DM); 9.37 g InsP6/kg DM] or crimped-ensiled (5.7 g P/kg DM; 8.45 g InsP6/kg DM) faba bean seeds (dried and milled prior to feeding) at inclusion levels of 260, 403, and 546 g/kg. Analyzed P content ranged from 2.37 to 4.09 g/kg DM in raw faba bean feeds and 2.64 to 4.41 g/kg DM in crimped-ensiled faba bean feeds. Dietary InsP6 content increased from 2.51 to 5.02 and 5.08 g/kg DM in raw and crimped-ensiled faba bean feeds, respectively. On d 28 post-hatch, all birds were sacrificed, and digesta samples were collected from the distal ileum. Increasing faba bean seed inclusion in feeds linearly decreased the pre-cecal disappearance of InsP6 in broiler chickens (p < 0.01) and values were lower in birds fed crimped-ensiled faba bean seeds (36.8 vs. 46.0 %). Irrespective of the processing method, faba bean inclusion linearly decreased the apparent pcd of P of feeds (p < 0.01), but birds fed crimped-ensiled beans showed higher pcd of P (p < 0.01) compared to those fed raw seeds (72.1 vs. 61.3 %). The pcd coefficients of P for raw and dried crimped-ensiled faba bean seeds (cv. Vire) were 42 % and 49 %, respectively. Increasing faba bean inclusion and dietary P concentration improved performance responses (p < 0.01), and broilers fed crimped-ensiled faba beans exhibited better performance compared to birds fed raw seeds (p < 0.01). The crimping-ensiling process increased the pre-cecal disappearance of InsP6 and the pcd of P in faba bean seeds when fed to broiler chickens.

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