Chitin utilisation by broilers and its effect on body composition and blood metabolites

Area of Science:

• Animal Nutrition
• Poultry Science
• Biochemistry

Background:

• Limited knowledge exists on farmed poultry's ability to digest chitin and gain nutrients from insects.
• Chitin, sourced from crustacean shells, is a potential feed ingredient with measurable protein, minerals, and energy content.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the nutritional value and digestibility of chitin for broiler chickens.
• To assess the impact of dietary chitin on growth performance, carcass yield, and blood lipid profiles in poultry.

Main Methods:

• Chitin was incorporated into broiler diets at varying inclusion levels (0-75 g/kg) for 21 days.
• Apparent and true digestibility of chitin protein, as well as apparent metabolizable energy (AME, AMEN, TME, TMEN) were determined.
• Effects on weight gain, feed efficiency, carcass yield, liver and breast meat triglyceride, and serum cholesterol/triglycerol were analyzed.

Main Results:

• No significant effects on weight gain or feed efficiency were observed with chitin inclusion.
• Apparent protein digestibility ranged from 0.45-0.50, with true digestibility at 0.87.
• Dietary chitin significantly reduced liver, breast meat, serum triglyceride, and cholesterol levels, particularly at 50 g/kg inclusion.

Conclusions:

• Modern poultry possess the ability to digest chitin.
• While chitin is digestible, its contribution as a nutrient source from insect exoskeletons appears minimal.
• Dietary chitin shows potential for modulating lipid metabolism in poultry.