KeywordsRapeseed oil, vitamin E, performance and meat quality, oxidative stability, omega-3 fatty acids.Submitted: November/2015 Approved: July/2016 ABSTRACTThe objective of this study was to investigate the effects of rapeseed oil substitution and vitamin E supplemantation on performance and meat quality. 4 replacement levels of rapeseed oil with sunflower oil ( 0, 33.3 , 66.7 and 100%) and 2 levels of vitamin E (0 (50 I.U. from vitamin premix) 300 mg/kg) in a 2 x 3 factorial arrangement for a total of 8 treatments with 4 replicates each, containing 10 day-old male Ross 308 broilers, were examined in the experiment. Dietary treatments had no significant effect on carcass parameters, feed conversion (FCR) and mortality (p>0.05). However, a significant interaction was observed between oil replacement and vitamin E: the negative effect of 100% sunflower oil on BWG (p<0.01) was alleviated by the addition of vitamin E. On the other hand, inclusion of rapeseed oil improved BWG (p<0.01). Rapeseed oil substitution significantly increased amount of total n-3 PUFA and decreased n-6:n-3 ratio in thigh and breast meat (p<0.01). Vitamin E supplemantation contributed to deposition of n-3 PUFA (p<0.01). Replacement of rapeseed oil without vitamin E tended to increase (p<0.01) malonaldehyde production. However, the dietary supplementation of vitamin E markedly (p<0.01) decreased the susceptibility of meat to peroxidation. Inclusion of rapeseed oil did not cause any negative perception on olfactory, texture, and taste of broiler meat. So, it can be concluded that rapeseed oil substitution significantly increased n-3 PUFA deposition without altering performance and sensory properties of broiler meat and, vitamin E had strong potential to prevent the meat lipids from oxidation.