Residues of polychlorinated phenols and anisoles in broilers raised on contaminated woodshaving litter

Broilers were raised for 8 weeks on litter made up of woodshavings containing high (700 micrograms/g) levels of contamination with polychlorinated phenols (PCP). The PCP levels declined in the litter over the test period while polychlorinated anisoles (PCA) increased in the highly contaminated litter. Final weights of the birds was only slightly different; however, feed conversion was slightly higher for those birds raised in the highly contaminated pens. Panelists rated the cooked samples from the birds raised on highly contaminated litter significantly lower for flavor and overall acceptability than either of the lower PCP level treatments. Residues of the odiferous pentechloroanisole were present in muscle and fat of the birds raised on the highly contaminated litter; however, residues in muscles of the birds on low level contaminated litter could not be detected. Polychlorinated anisoles were present in the fat of birds raised on normal litter but adjacent to the contaminated pens.