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dient in poultry diets. This information is particularly necessary because Malawi is
increasingly experiencing dry spells and severe droughts resulting in low production of maize, which is the staple food crop and is also used as a feed ingredient,
especially in monogastric animal diets. It is argued that in order to increase its adaptive capacity, Malawi requires to diversify and expand its feed ingredient resource
base. Alternative ingredients such as millet could also open retail and value adding
avenues for millet growers and feed compounders respectively.
This study therefore set out to evaluate the impact on the growth performance of
broilers if maize was replaced with pearl millet as an energy feed ingredient.
Specifically, this study aimed to evaluate the nutrient composition of pearl millet,
assess the effects of varying inclusion levels of pearl millet on broiler growth performance and carcass weights of broilers, and assess the effect on gross margins.
This study hypothesized that there are no significant differences in growth performance and carcass weights of broilers when fed a millet-based diet or a maizebased diet.
2 Materials and Methods
Location: The experiment was conducted at the Bunda College Campus Animal
Science Student’s Farm at the Lilongwe University of Agriculture and Natural
Resources.
2.1 Feed Ingredients and Chemical Analysis
All feed ingredients used in formulating the rations were purchased locally in
Lilongwe, with the exception of the local variety pearl millet grain which was purchased in the Lower Shire Valley District of Chikwawa. Soybean was roasted on
open fire before milling. All the three ingredients (maize, soybean, and millet) were
then ground in a hammer mill to enable them to pass through a 2-mm sieve. Mixing
of rations was done manually and repeated several times to ensure homogenous
mixing of ingredients. Samples from each feed ingredient and rations formulated
were collected and analyzed for dry matter, nitrogen, ether extracts, crude fiber, and
ash using AOAC (2012) procedures. Gross energy was measured using a bomb calorimeter (ibid.). Diets were formulated to be iso-nitrogenous and isocaloric.
2.2 Dietary Treatments
Dietary treatments were prepared to contain 22% CP in starter and 18% in finisher
rations. The treatments were as follows:
A. C. L. Safalaoh and E. Kavala
dient in poultry diets. This information is particularly necessary because Malawi is
increasingly experiencing dry spells and severe droughts resulting in low production of maize, which is the staple food crop and is also used as a feed ingredient,
especially in monogastric animal diets. It is argued that in order to increase its adaptive capacity, Malawi requires to diversify and expand its feed ingredient resource
base. Alternative ingredients such as millet could also open retail and value adding
avenues for millet growers and feed compounders respectively.
This study therefore set out to evaluate the impact on the growth performance of
broilers if maize was replaced with pearl millet as an energy feed ingredient.
Specifically, this study aimed to evaluate the nutrient composition of pearl millet,
assess the effects of varying inclusion levels of pearl millet on broiler growth performance and carcass weights of broilers, and assess the effect on gross margins.
This study hypothesized that there are no significant differences in growth performance and carcass weights of broilers when fed a millet-based diet or a maizebased diet.
2 Materials and Methods
Location: The experiment was conducted at the Bunda College Campus Animal
Science Student’s Farm at the Lilongwe University of Agriculture and Natural
Resources.
2.1 Feed Ingredients and Chemical Analysis
All feed ingredients used in formulating the rations were purchased locally in
Lilongwe, with the exception of the local variety pearl millet grain which was purchased in the Lower Shire Valley District of Chikwawa. Soybean was roasted on
open fire before milling. All the three ingredients (maize, soybean, and millet) were
then ground in a hammer mill to enable them to pass through a 2-mm sieve. Mixing
of rations was done manually and repeated several times to ensure homogenous
mixing of ingredients. Samples from each feed ingredient and rations formulated
were collected and analyzed for dry matter, nitrogen, ether extracts, crude fiber, and
ash using AOAC (2012) procedures. Gross energy was measured using a bomb calorimeter (ibid.). Diets were formulated to be iso-nitrogenous and isocaloric.
2.2 Dietary Treatments
Dietary treatments were prepared to contain 22% CP in starter and 18% in finisher
rations. The treatments were as follows:
A. C. L. Safalaoh and E. Kavala