Influence of dietary crude protein on peanut skin digestibility and utilization by feedlot steers

Peanut skins were fed at 15% of steer diets in metabolism and feedlot trials. Elevation of dietary protein using soybean meal or soybean meal plus urea and ammoniation of skins were evaluated as methods of overcoming detrimental performance and digestibility effects of tannins in peanut skins. Digestibility of dry matter, crude protein and energy were not different (P greater than .05) for steers fed a control diet with 11.4% crude protein with no skins compared with high-protein 15% peanut skin diets with soybean meal (15.5% crude protein) or soybean meal plus urea (16% crude protein). Dry matter, crude protein and energy digestibilities of control and of high-protein peanut skin diets were higher (P less than .05) compared with an 11.4% crude protein peanut skin diet and a 12.2% crude protein diet with ammoniated peanut skins. Ether extract digestibility was higher (P less than .05) for all peanut skin diets compared with the control. Nitrogen retention (g/d) was not different (P greater than .05) for control and high-protein peanut skin diets, and nitrogen retention on these diets was higher (P less than .05) compared with the lower protein and ammoniated peanut skin diets. Diets fed in the metabolism trial, except for the ammoniated peanut skin diet, were fed to 96 steers (345 kg initial wt) in a 109-d feedlot trial. Performance was lower (P less than .05) for steers fed the lower-protein peanut skin diet compared with other treatments through d 56; this diet was discontinued as a treatment on d 62.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)