Nutritive Value of Mulberry Leaf Meal and its Effect on the Performance of 35-70-Day-Old Geese

Abstract

Availability of feed crops for animal production is decreasing, creating a need to identify alternative food sources. With their high protein content, mulberry leaves are a likely candidate for feed supplementation and have been trialed on pigs and chickens, but little is known about their effect as a feed supplement on geese. Here, we determine the nutritive value of mulberry leaf meal (MLM), measure the digestibility of energy and amino acid of MLM in male Sichuan white geese, and evaluate the performance of these geese fed an MLM-supplemented diet. The composition of MLM was as follows: gross energy 4.94 Mcal/kg, crude protein 18.81%, ether extract 11.65%, crude fiber 12.45%, calcium 2.46%, phosphorous 0.24% and amino acids 0.26-1.92% (all % on a dry matter basis). Using the emptying then force-feeding method on 24 geese aged 194 days, we measured the apparent metabolizable energy of MLM as 1.58 Mcal/kg (on a dry matter basis), and the true total tract digestibility of the amino acids in MLM as 50.54-79.98%. We then randomly allocated a further 210 geese aged 35 days to one of five dietary treatments (control diet alone or supplemented with 4%, 8%, 12% or 16% MLM). Each treatment contained six replicate pens of seven birds per pen, and birds were maintained on their treatment until 70 days of age. Geese fed diets containing MLM exhibited lower weight gains, elevated feed consumption and an increased feed to gain ratio (P＜0.05) compared with geese fed the control diet. Moreover, geese fed diets supplemented with MLM all experienced diarrhea, reduced amounts of subcutaneous fat and lower percentages of skin and abdominal fat (P＜0.05) compared with control geese. In conclusion, MLM should be used with caution as a feed supplement for geese.

Historical flaws in bioassays used to generate metabolizable energy values for poultry feed formulation: a critical review

“…Henceforth, we suggest that the AME values reported in many studies calculated with such flawed assumptions need to be recalculated (Adeola et al, 2010 , 2018 ; Bolarinwa and Adeola, 2012 ; Adebiyi and Olukosi, 2015 ; Pekel et al, 2015 ; Olukosi et al, 2017 ). Furthermore, Wang et al ( 2017a , b ) calculated AME of dry citrus pulp and mulberry leaf meal by using energy metabolizability coefficient of test diets (C td , calculated in their equation as [GEdiet − GEexcreta]/GEdiet) rather than that of test ingredients (C ti ). Apparently, dry citrus pulp and mulberry leaf meal have lower metabolizability than the test diets; thus, their energy content can be overestimated significantly.…”

1-Deoxynojirimycin from mulberry leaves changes gut digestion and microbiota composition in geese

“…(2010) reported that, with an increase of mulberry flour in diet, a linear decrease in the body-weight of broilers was observed, together with a quadratic effect in feed intake and conversion. In the study by Wang et al. (2016) , geese fed mulberry leaf meal exhibited low weight gains, elevated feed consumption, and increased feed to gain ratio compared with geese without mulberry in their diet.…”

“…Mulberry leaves do not significantly increase the production of poultry meat and eggs, nor do they accelerate the growth rate of poultry ( Saenthaweesuk, 2009 ; Olteanu et al., 2015 ). Researchers have suggested that diets containing ≥4% mulberry leaf powder would inhibit feed intake and body-weight gain of poultry ( ItzáOrtiz et al., 2010 ; Wang et al., 2016 ). However, it is not known why nutrient-rich mulberry leaves are unsuitable for poultry.…”

Performance of Hybrid Chickens as Influenced by Phytogenic Extracted Meal-Supplemented Diet as Antibiotic Alternatives During Summer

“…Total body weight gain was more in supplemented treatment, this increase in body weight may be because of its properties like increase protein utilization, rich protein source and have immunomodulatory properties (Khan et al, 2005). Additionally the positive effect on LBW, BWG, FCR due to feeding mulberry supplemented diet a good source of protein for animals (Wang et al, 2017). But improvement of FCR might be stimulating digestive enzymes followed by better digestion and utilization of feed.…”