Chemical composition and metabolizable energy value of some feed resources for poultry in the Central African Republic

Abstract

The adequate use of raw materials produced in African tropical countries is limited due to a shortage of accurate data on their nutritive value and technological processing. The present study was conducted to evaluate the nutritive value of tropical raw materials available for poultry in the Central African Republic. These were analyzed and their digestibility measured in adult cockerels. The following results were obtained for crude protein (% dry matter) and metabolizable energy (kcal/kg dry matter), respectively: maize 10.4 and 3943; millet 11.7 and 3803; white sorghum 11.6 and 3793; yellow sorghum 10.1 and 3790; red sorghum 9.7 and ND; sorghum (blend) 10.8 and 3797; fermented dried cassava 1.2 and 3341; cowpeas 24.9 and 3111; cottonseed meal (expeller) 41.3 and 3748; cottonseed meal (solvent) 45.3 and 252; dried blood meal 83.7 and 2355. Aside from a cottonseed meal with high residual fat content, cereals were undeniably the most energetic raw materials. Cottonseed meals showed protein and metabolizable energy contents similar to those reported by the international literature. High digestibility was observed for raw cowpea seeds, whereas dried fermented cassava and dried blood meal exhibited lower values than those published elsewhere. This can be explained by the use of different specific processing techniques, which are discussed.