Effect of grain particle size and milling method on broiler performance and apparent metabolisable energy

Abstract

An experiment was conducted to determine the effect of sorghum particle size and milling type on broiler performance and feed apparent metabolisable energy (AME). Results show that AME was improved by feeding a pelleted diet containing whole sorghum, but the best performance (lowest FCR) was elicited by feeding a rolled sorghum diet at a common commercial grind size. Feed particle size may influence the rate of excretion of different fractions of the digesta and AME of a feed. AME may not be an accurate indicator of the nutritive value of grain as the same feed can have a different AME values based on physical structure.