CHAPTER ONE 1.

0 INTRODUCTION The role of the poultry industry in improving the nutritional and economic status of Ghanaians cannot be overemphasized. The industry has played greater roles in improving employment opportunity and the provision of quality animal protein (Dazala et al., 2010). Despite these potentials the industry is unable to provide adequate protein for the rapidly increasing population due to the high cost of conventional feed resources. There is, therefore, the need to seek out for locally available and cheaper feed ingredients that can be utilized by poultry in Ghana. An under-exploited plant with nutritional potentials as feedstuff is Albizia julibrissin leaves. Albizia julibrissin is a small deciduous tree growing to 512 m tall, with a broad crown of level or arching branches (Wang et al., 2006). The seeds are a source of oil and furthermore used as a food for livestock and by wildlife, and the sweet-scented flowers are a good nectar source for honeybees and butterflies (Wang et al., 2006; Lee et al., 2007). According to Luginbuhl et al.(2001), the leaves of the plant gave a good result when fed to goats and had potentials as protein and/or energy source for meat goats during the summer. Report by Dei et al., (2012) also indicated the usefulness of the leaves as egg yolk colourant for layer chicken. According to the report, the leaf meal of the plant has a proximate composition of 22.74% crude protein, 5.59% ether extract and 9.85% crude fibre. There is lack of information on the nutritive value of the leaves for broiler chicken; hence the need to determine the effect of the leaf meal on growth performance of broilers.

1.1 SPECIFIC OBJECTIVES 1. To evaluate the effects of diets containing Albizia julibrissin leaf meal (AJLM) on growth performance of broiler chicken at substitution levels of 0%, 5%, 7.5% and 10%.

2. To determine the effect on carcass characteristics of broiler chicken.

3. To assess the economics of feeding of Albizia julibrissin leaf meal to broilers.

CHAPTER TWO 2.0 LITERATURE REVIEW 2.1 Definition and examples of poultry Poultry is defined as variety of domesticated birds which are raised for their meat and eggs (Chiba, 2009). According to him, Poultry includes; Domestic chicken (Gallus domesticus), Turkey (Meleagris gallopavo), Rock pigeons (Columba livea), Red wattle guinea fowls (Numida meleagris), Muscovy duck (Cairina moschata), Wild mallard (Anas boches), Turtle dove

(Streptopelia turtus), Greyleg goose (Anser anser), White footed goose(Anser albiformis), Ring neck pheasant (Phasianus colchicus), North African ostrich (Struthio comelus) and South African ostrich (Truthio australis) (Smith, 1990). Among these species chicken and guinea fowl are reared in Ghana (Chiba, 2009). Chickens are an important domestic fowl worldwide, especially for nutritious flesh as a source of food (Taylor and Field, 1998). According to Tweneboah (2002), they are collectively the most economic converters of locally available feed such as grains and grain by-products into high quality sources of animal protein in the form of meat and table eggs .

2.2 Varieties of World poultry meat Report by FAO (2010) indicated that poultry meat represents about 33% of global meat production: in 2007, some 269 million tons of meat were produced globally, of which 88 million tons were poultry meat. FAO (2010) added that chickens and turkeys are the most common sources of poultry meat (87% and 6.7% of total poultry production, respectively). However, other commercially available poultry meats include meat from ducks (4% of total poultry production) and from geese, pigeons, quails, pheasants, ostriches and emus (combined about 2.7% of total poultry production) (FAO, 2010). 3

In the United States and Canada, turkey meat is the second most important poultry meat consumed after chicken; however, in countries like Ghana, guinea fowl meat is second to chicken. Chicken accounts for about 86% of all poultry raised worldwide. In the European Union (EU), chicken meat accounted for only 79% of all poultry meat produced in 2007, while turkey, duck, pigeon, geese, guinea fowl and quail meat accounted for 15%.

Table 1: World poultry meat production by region (million metric tones) Region Asia-Pacific North America Latin America Europe Africa World (Source: USDA 2011) From table 1, it could be realized that the highest poultry producing region was Asia-Pacific. According to table 1 Asia-Pacifics poultry production increased from 23.3tonnes to 36.5tonnes from the year 2000 to 2011. Africa was the lowest producing region whose production was raised from 3 tonnes to 4 tonnes from year 2000 to 2010 and maintained a standstill of 4 tonnes in year 2011. 2000 23.3 17.5 12.5 11.9 3 68.2 2005 27.3 19.8 16.1 13.1 3.6 79.9 2008 31 21.1 20 14.3 3.8 90.3 2009 32.3 20.2 20 15.6 3.9 94 2010 35.7 20.8 21.1 16.4 4 98 2011 36.5 21.1 21.7 16.9 4 100.2

2.3 Benefits derived from the poultry sector Poultry product provides food with high quality protein and low level of fat with desirable fatty acid profiles (Costa, 2009; FAO, 2010). According to Pisulewski (2005), consumers of poultry and fish products have no risk of cancers. Also, poultry products are highly nutritious, cheaper and have no taboos forbidden their consumption (Farrell, 2010; Mengasha, 2011). Report by FAO (2010) also indicated that they are good feed converters into poultry products. According to FAO (2010), the poultry industry also is a means of foreign exchange for commercial producing countries and higher incomes are also generated from the sales of poultry products.

2.4 Characteristics of poultry meat Poultry or domestic birds are raised for their meat and eggs and are an important source of edible animal protein. Poultry meat accounts for 30% of global meat consumption (FAO, 2009). The worldwide average per capita consumption of poultry meat has nearly quadrupled since the 1960s (11 kg in 2003 compared with 3 kg in 1963). Poultry meat and eggs are highly nutritious. The meat is rich in proteins and is a good source of phosphorus and other minerals, and of Bcomplex vitamins (FAO, 2009). According to FAO (2009), poultry meat contains less fat than most cuts of beef and pork. Poultry liver is especially rich in vitamin A (FAO, 2009). Report from FAOSTAT (2009) also shows that poultry meat has a higher proportion of unsaturated fatty acids than saturated fatty acids. This fatty acid ratio suggests that poultry may be a more healthful alternative to red meat.

2.5 Challenges affecting the poultry sector The main challenges facing the sector are partitioned into three categories which are unfavourable environment, inadequate nutrition and diseased health conditions (Ross, 2009). 5

Among these pressing challenges affecting the poultry production sector, feed availability remains an important challenge in most developing countries such that there is a continued scarcity and consequently high prices of the conventional protein and energy sources for livestock in the tropics (Girma et al., 2011). This has stimulated a lot of interest in the search for alternative sources of feeds called non-conventional feedstuff, particularly for non-ruminants like poultry (Udedibie and Opara, 1998). 20 05 2008 2 2.4 Non-conventional feed resources (NCFRS) in poultry Non-conventional feed resources are those feeds that have not been traditionally used in animal feeding and/or are not normally used in commercially produced rations for animals (Devendra, 1987). A large number of agro-industrial by-products, forest waste, aquatic herbages and animal wastes which have been identified, processed and used for feeding of farm animals are designated as a group of unconventional or non-conventional feeds. Examples include discarded biscuits, bakery waste, rice bran, blood meal, corn cob, maize bran, cassava peel, cassava chips and copra cake. Others are cocoa pod husk, coffee pulp, oil palm slurry, groundnut skins, pitomash, brewers spent grains, bone meal, molasses, sugar beet pulp, citrus pulp, yeast, wheat bran and distillers solubles. Shrub leaves (Leaucaena spp, Caltiandra spp, Sesbinia spp, Albizia julibrissin, etc), aquatic plants, fruits (palm oil fruit, papaya, guava, etc) and small animals (snails, earthworms), etc can also be used in poultry feed formulations (Sonaiya, 1990). Table 2 shows chemical composition of some of the non-conventional feedstuffs.

Table 2: Composition of some non-conventional feedstuffs Feed stuff CP % EE % CF % Calculated Metabolizable Energy (Kcal/kg dry matter)

Neem leaves Amarath seeds Soybean testa Cowpea testa Melon pulp Cassava fermented chaff Cassava peal meal Cassava meal sieving Maize cob and bloodmeal Yam meal sieving Yam peel meal Plantain pulp Rice bran and blood meal Fish by-products Albizia julibrissin leaf meal*

17.5 16.0 16.6 17.0 8.6 1.4 2.2 0.8 28.9 3.5 6.4 4.1 25.6 44.3 22.74

4.2 0.2 4.0 2.6 43 1.1 1.1 1.5 ----1.0 5.0 0.6

12.3 5.5 25.4 20.3 31.1 10.2 4.3 9.0 19.5 5.0 7.3 0.1 21.3

752 922 2096 1005 1148 3436 2460 1787 -----2115 136 1004 -----5055

29.1 5.59 9.85

-------

Source: Sonaiya (1990); *Dei et al.,(2012)

2.5. LIMITATIONS OF NON-CONVENSIONAL FEED RESOURCES 2.5.1 Anti-nutritional factors (ANFs) These are substances generated in natural feedstuffs by the normal metabolism of species and by different mechanisms which exert effect contrary to optimum nutrition (Cheeke and Shull, 1985). Being an anti-nutritional factor is not an intrinsic characteristic of a compound but depends upon the digestive process of the ingesting animal (Kumar, 1992). According to Cheeke and Shull (1988), trypsin inhibitors are ANFs for monogastric animals but do not exert adverse effects in ruminants because they are degraded in the rumen. ANFs limit the utility of leaves, pods and edible twigs of shrubs. Report by Harborne(1989) clarifies that ANFs seems to be a way of storing nutrients or means of defending their structure and reproductive elements. ANFs which have been implicated in limiting the utilization of shrubs and tree forages include non-protein amino acids, glycosides, phytohemagglutinins, polyphenolics, alkaloids, triterpenoids and oxalic acids. Effects of some common anti-nutritional factors in feeds are shown in table 3. Table 3: Anti-nutritional factors in non-conventional feed materials and their effect. Antinutritional factor Mimosine Effect Poor growth, Alopaecia, Eye cataracts and reproductive problems Cyanogens Stops ATP formation, damage tissue and causes death Plant species Mimosa(Albizia julibrissin), Leucena spp., etc. Acacia spp, Manihot esculenta, Bambusa bambos, etc. Saponins Growth retardation, reduce feed intake, listlessness aneroxia, weight Albizia stipulata, Albizia julibrissin, Bassia lattifolia,

loss, gastroenteritis Phytohemagglutinins Anorexia, lassitude and weakness

etc. Ricinus communis, Robinia pseudoacacia, bauhinia purpurea, etc.

Tannins

Inhibits digestion, Poor nitrogen retention, low apparent metabolisable energy value

All vascular plants

Source: Kumar (1992); DMello and Acamovic (1989)

2.6

Albizia julibrissin

Plate 1: Albizia jullibrissin leaves

Albizia julibrissin (Persian silk tree, pink silk tree, mimosa) is a species of tree in the family Fabaceae, native to southwestern and eastern Asia. The tree is also widely distributed in Africa including Ghana, tropical and subtropical America (Lee et al., 2007).These researchers received literature on the plant as follows. The genus is named after the Italian nobleman Filippo degli Albizzi, who introduced it to Europe in the mid-18th century, and it is sometimes incorrectly spelled Albizzia. The specific epithet julibrissin is a corruption of the Persian word gul-i abrisham which means "silk flower" a small deciduous tree growing to 512 m tall, with a broad crown of level or arching branches. The bark is dark greenish grey in colour and striped vertically as it gets older. The leaves are bipinnate, 2045 cm long and 1225 cm broad, divided into 612 pairs of pinnae, each with 2030 pairs of leaflets; the leaflets are oblong, 11.5 cm long and 24 mm broad. The flowers are produced throughout the summer in dense inflorescences, the individual flowers with no petals but a tight cluster of stamens 23 cm long, white or pink with a white base, looking like silky threads. They have been observed to be attractive to bees, butterflies and hummingbirds. The fruit is a flat brown pod 1020 cm long and 22.5 cm broad, containing several seeds inside (Lee et al., 2007; Kim et al., 2007). Report by Wang et al. (2006), indicated that the seeds are a source of oil and furthermore they are used as food for livestock and wildlife. Similarly, the seeds of the tree Albizia julibrissin have been shown to possess proteolytic enzymes which clotted milk readily, without developing any bitterness in cheese after 3 months of ripening (Otani et al., 1991).

2.6.1 Medicinal uses of Albizia julibrissin The bark and flowers of the Albizia julibrissin tree are used in China as medicine (Lau et al., 2007). Bark extract is a sedative drug and an anti-inflammatory for treating swelling and pain of the lungs, skin ulcers, wounds, bruises, abscesses, boils, hemorrhoids and fractures, and has 10

displayed cytotoxic activity (Higuchi et al., 1992; Ikeda et al., 1997; Pharmacopoeia, 2005). Asians administered Albizia julibrissin bark extract to patients to treat insomnia, diuresis, and confusion (Zhu, 1998). The flowers have been commonly used to treat anxiety, depression and insomnia (Kang et al., 2007). Report by ZOU et al.(2000) also indicated that a Cytotoxic Saponin with Two Monoterpenoids has been extracted from the dried powdered stem bark of the plant.

2.6.2 Chemical composition of Albizia julibrissin leaf meal Dei et al.(2012) reported that the leaf meal of Albizia Julibrissin contain high gross energy and crude protein. According to them the leaves contain high fibre and high carotenoids as shown in table 4.

Table 4: Proximate composition of Albizia julibrissin leaf meal Components Moisture Crude protein Ether extract Crude fibre Ash Total carotenoids Gross energy (MJ/kg ME Source: Dei et al., (2012) Amounts (%) 10.40 22.74 5.59 9.85 7.50 0.09 18.6

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2.7

Effects of leaf meals on performance of poultry

2.7.1 Cassava (CLM) and leucena(LLM) leaf meals Onibi et al.(1999) in their report showed that 30% soybean meal when replaced by cassava leaf meal (CLM) in the diet of broiler chicken at the finisher stage resulted in higher final live weight, average weight gain, average feed intake and lower feed conversion efficiency than birds fed LLM-based diets. According to him birds fed control (SBM) performed better than both birds fed CLM and LLM based diets. The depressed performance of birds fed leaf meal based diets was as a result of adverse effect of amino acid imbalance in the LLM-based diets (Agbade and Olator, 2003). Depressed performance of bird fed leaf meal based diets could also be as a result of high fibre in the diet of leaf meal based diets (Nwokolo et al., 2000). Antinutrition factors in leaf meal based diets could also birth depressed performance in broiler chicken. According to Onibi et al.(1999), yellow pigmentation of skin, beak and shank was high for birds fed leaf meal based diet than those fed control diets. Agbede and Aletor (2003) reported increased yellow pigmentation (due to $-carotene, precursor of vitamin A) of shanks of broiler chicks by dietary incorporation of leaf meal protein concentrates. It is likely that meat from chickens fed the leaf meals would contain more vitamin A since chickens are able to incorporate dietary components into their muscles (Onibi et al., 1999).

2.7.2 Moringa oleifera leaf meal Report by Bello et al.(2010) indicated that it is economical to include moringa leaf meal (MLM) in the diets of indigenous chicken at the inclusion levels of 8 and 16% without causing any adverse condition to the birds. According to them, MLM had no negative impact on live body weight, average daily weight gain, feed conversion ratio, carcass and organ characteristics.

12

Moreover, they also reported that it is also economically profitable to use MLM at the inclusion levels of 8 and 16%.

2.8 Inference from literature review Many developing countries including Ghana are making conscious effort to reduce the importation of poultry feed ingredients due to their high cost and scarcity. The high cost and scarcity of poultry feed stuff has prompted the evaluation and use of some shrubs such as Albizia julibrissin leaf meal as broiler feed ingredient. Several writers have accepted the nutritional values of different non-conventional feed sources that are used in some developing countries including Ghana. Many of these leaves have been found to contain high protein (Odunsi et al.,1996). Leucena leaf meal has been used successfully at an inclusion level of up to 5% in poultry diets providing both protein and yellow colouration of the egg yolks as well as body fat but the antinutritional factor mimosine appears to be a potential restraining factor at the inclusion level higher than 5% (Togun et al.,2006). Report by Dei et al., (2012) indicated that 2% inclusion of Albizia julibrissin leaf meal in the diet of layers enhanced their yolk colour and layimg performance. The 4% inclusion level has been found to be detrimental to the laying performance of the birds (Dei et al., 2012). Albizia julibrissin is a small deciduous tree growing to 5-12m tall, with a broad crown of level of arching branches (Wang et al., 2000). Dei et al., (2012) reported that the leaf meal of the plant is made up of crude protein 24.74, ether extract of 5.59 and crude fibre of 9.85 on dry matter basis. The seeds of the plant are a source of oil and furthermore used as food for livestock and wild life (Lee et al., 2007). Wang et al., 2007 also reported that the sweet scented flowers are a good nectar source for honey bees and butter flies. A feeding trial conducted by Dei et al., (2012) indicates that it can be included in the diet of laying chicken. However, there is lack of 13

information on the use of Albizia julibrissin as feed for broiler chicken. Hence the need for this feeding trial.

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CHAPTER THREE 3.0. 3.1 MATERIALS AND METHODS Site and duration of Experiment

The experimental work of the current study was carried out at the Poultry Unit of the Animal Science Department of the University for Development Studies, Nyankpala campus. Nyankpala is within the Guinea Savanna zone and located on latitude 9.5N. The zone is characterized by a wide diurnal temperature variation during the dry season (November - April) (SARI, 2011). The annual mean temperature is 28.8C with average minimum and maximum temperatures of 15C and 35C respectively during the coolest months (December-January). The temperature rises to a minimum of 23C and a maximum of 42C in the hottest months (February-May). The average annual rainfall is about 1060 mm (SARI, 2001). The project began on the 24th December, 2012 and ended on the 28th January, 2013. The experiment lasted for five weeks (i.e. 3-8 weeks of age of broiler chickens).

3.2 Source and processing of Albizia julibrssin leaves for feeding Albizia julibrssin leaves were harvested with their branches from the environs of Nyankpala campus of the University for Development Studies. The branches with leaves were dried under shade for five days while the leaves still retained their green colour. The dried leaves were then separated from the branches by manual beating and the dried leaves were then milled into coarse powder by use of corn mill to obtain the leaf meal (AJLM).

3.3 Experimental diet formulation Table 5 and 6 shows the composition of the experimental diets. The Albizia julibrissin leaf meal was not analyzed at the time of diet formulation due to lack of facilities. Hence the experimental 15

diets were not formulated to be isocaloric or isonitrogenous. However the Albizia julibrissin leaf meal was substituted for the control diet on weight by weight basis that nutrient composition of the diet would vary greatly. The control(0%AJLM), 5%AJLM, 7.5%AJLM and 10%AJLM represent the diets containing 0%, 5%, 7.5% and 10% Albizia julibrissin leaf meal respectively. Table 5 Percentage composition of grower broiler diet (Control diet) Ingredients Maize Wheat bran Soybean meal Fish meal Oyster shell Dicalcium (PO4) Vitamin/Mineral premix* Salt Total Calculated nutrient composition Metabolisable energy (MJ/kg) Crude protein Calcium Phosphorus Composition (%) 60 10 15.9 11.4 1.3 0.8 0.4 0.2 100 -----12.4 21.0 1.2 0.8

*Composition of vitamin/trace mineral/kg: vitamin A 8000000 IU, vitamin D3 1500000 IU, vitamin E2500mg, vitamin K3 1000mg, vitamin B2 2000mg, vitamin B12 5mg, Folic acid 500mg, nicotinic acid 8000mg, Calcium pantholenate 2000mg, choline chloride 50000mg,

16

magnesium 50000mg, Zinc 40000mg, copper 4500mg, Cobalt 100mg, Iodine 1000mg and Selenium 100mg. Antioxidant: Butylated hydroxytoluene (BHT) 1000mg.

Table 6 Percentage composition of experimental diets Dietary treatments (0%AJLM) 100kg of control diet 5%AJLM 95kg of control diet + 5kg of AJLM 7.5%AJLM 92.5kg of control diet + 7.5kg of AJLM 10%AJLM 90kg of control diet + 10kg of AJLM

3.4 Experimental birds and housing Five hundred day-old chicks (Cobb broilers from Israel) were purchased through a hatchery in Kumasi. The chicks were brooded for three weeks before transferred to the experimental house where they spent five weeks. Chicks at the brooder house were fed on starter mash compounded using 25% concentrates, 55% maize (white maize), and 20% wheat bran all purchased from Agricare Ltd Tamale-Ghana. Feeding and watering was done ad-libitum. The starter diet had a crude protein (CP) level of 23.8kg and metabolisable energy ME of 12.6MJ/kg. The initial temperature was 33C and gradually reduced to 29C at the end of the brooding. At the end of the third week of brooding, one hundred and twenty birds were selected and randomly divided into twelve (12) groups of ten (10) birds with male to female ratio of 1:1 in each pen. The mean initial live weight of a bird per replicate was 420g. Anti-biotic(Doxycol) at 5g/10L of water (2-4 days old), Gumboro vaccine 5ml/500 birds (7 days old), Coccidiostats at 5d/10L of water (2-4 days and 18-20 days old) and HBI vaccine at 5ml/500 birds (14days old) were administered

17

orally during brooding. Four dietary treatments (0, 5, 7.5 and 10%AJLM) were tested and each treatment replicated three times in a completely randomized design with each replicate group assigned to one dietary treatment.

3.4. Design of experiment One hundred and twenty birds were selected and randomly divided into twelve (12) groups of ten (10) birds with male to female ratio of 5:5 in each pen One hundred and twenty broiler chickens (Cobb) at three (3) weeks of age were selected and randomly divided into twelve (12) groups with ten (10) birds with male to female ratio of 5:5 in each deep litter pen. The birds were given feed and water ad libitum. Light was also provided for 24 hours using the energy saving bulb of 18watt.

3.5 Data collection Parameters measured were feed intake, live weight gain, final live weight, gain/feed ratio, mortality, carcass dressed weight, dressing percentage and feed cost/kg gain.

3.5.1 Feed Intake There was a weekly measurement of feed consumption. A digital scale (JADEVER JSP-1050) was used in taking the weight of feed. Feed intake was estimated by subtracting the feed left in the feeding trough at the end of the week from the total feed provided for the week. The feed intake of birds in each pen was divided by the number of birds in a replicate and the number of days in a week to obtain the mean feed intake per bird per day.

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3.5.2 Weight gain With the assistance of JADEVER JSP-1050 weighing scale, the birds in the experimental pen were weighed at the beginning of the experiment and subsequently at the end of every week. Ten birds were weighed in a batch and the weight divided by the number of birds in each replicate to get the mean live weight per bird. The initial mean live weight per bird was subtracted from the mean live weight per bird at the end of the week and the weight divided by the number of days in the week to obtain the mean live weight per bird per day. 3.5.3 Feed conversion efficiency Feed conversion efficiency (quantity of feed required for one kilogram of gain) was calculated as weight gain in kilograms divided by the weight of feed consumed in kilograms during the experimental period. 3.5.4 Final live weight This is the weight of bird before slaughter. 3.5.5 Mortality This was done by recording deaths that occur in any of the replicates in the course of the experiment. 3.5.6 Carcass Characteristics This was done by choosing two birds (male and female) at random from each replicate for carcass evaluation. The parameter measured were live weight, dressed carcass weight and carcass dressing percentage (this were measured in kilogram (kg) using the top loading electronic digital Jadever scale. 3.5.6.1 Carcass dressed weight This was the weight of carcass after the head and viscera had been removed.

19

3.5.6.2 Carcass dressed percentage This was calculated as = Eviscerated carcass x 100 Live weight

3.5.7 Total feed cost The quantity of each ingredient used to formulate a 100kg diet was multiplied by their unit prices to give the cost of 100kg diet. The result was the divided 100 to get the unit cost of each ingredient. The feed cost per bird was also gotten by multiplying the unit cost of the diet by the total feed consumed per bird. 3.5.8 Statistical analysis Data collected were analyzed by means of analysis of variance (ANOVA) using Genstat (4 th edition).

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CHAPTER FOUR 4.0 RESULTS AND DISCUSSION 4.1. PERFORMANCE OF BROILER CHICKEN Table 7 shows the effects of AJLM on the growth performance of broiler chicken. Table 7: Effect of AJLM on growth performance of broiler chicken (3-8 weeks of age) Parameters Mean Feed intake(g/b/d) Mean Weight gain (g/b/d) Mean Gain/feed ratio Mean Final live weight (Kg/b) Mortality (%) 0.00 0.7 1.3 0.7 0.408 0.067 1.98a 1.85ab 1.62b 1.38b 0.156 0.021 0.38a 0.38a 0.33ab 0.27b 0.036 0.048 44.7a 40.7ab 34.2b 27.4b 4.43 0.021 Control 119.1a 5%AJLM 7.5%AJLM 10%AJLM 107.7b 103.8b 102.7b SED 3.97 P-Value 0.012

SED Standard Error of Difference

P- Probability

Means with different superscript letters are significantly different (P<0.05)

4.1.1 MEAN FEED INTAKE There was significant (P<0.05) difference in feed intake between birds fed control and those fed AJLM-based diets (Table 7). However, there was no significant (P<0.05) difference in feed intake among birds fed AJLM-based diets (Table 7). Result in table 7 showed that, feed intake generally decreased at increased inclusion level of AJLM in the diets.

21

Generally, there were no difference in feed intake at week four (4) and Five (5) between birds fed control diets and those fed AJLM-based diets (fig. 1). According to fig. 1, there were differences in feed intake between birds fed control diet and those fed AJLM-base diets. There were no differences in feed intake among bird fed AJLM-based diets. There were also no differences in feed intake between birds fed control and those fed 5%AJLM-based diets (fig.1). Report by fig. 1 also indicated that there were no differences between birds fed control and those fed AJLM-based diets at week 7 and 8. There were also no differences in feed intake among birds fed AJLM-based diets (fig.1). Based on table 7, the decreased in feed intake might be attributed to the odour of the AJLMbased diets. It could also be as a result of high fibre nature of AJLM-based diets. According to Teguia and Beynen (2005), high fibre levels in poultry diets leads to poor digestibility of the diets which also leads to decreased feed intake. Igwebuike et al.(2010) in a report confirms that anti-nutritional factors may inhibit utilization of certain essential nutrients and also decrease feed intake of the birds consequently affecting growth. According to Fleury(2004), anti-nutritional factors are known to bind to nutrients and enzymes of digestion thus reducing the release of nutrients and consequently reducing efficiency which intends results in decreased feed intake. This also agrees with the report by Ash et al. (1992) who observed that leaf meals from Sesbania sesban and Sesbania grandiflora depressed feed utilization efficiency in chickens.

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160

140

120

Mean Feed intake(g/b/d)

100

80

Control 5AJLM 7.5AJLM

60

10AJLM

40

20

0
Week4 Week5 Week6 Week7 Week8

Age(Week) Fig. 1 Effect of albizia julibrissin leaf meal on mean feed intake of broiler chicken (3-8 weeks of age)

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4.1.2 MEAN WEIGHT GAIN There was significant (P<0.05) difference in weight gain between birds fed control and those fed AJLM-based diets (table 7). There was also significant (P<0.05) difference in weight gain among birds fed AJLM-based diets. However, there was no significant (P>0.05) in weight gain between birds fed control and those fed 5%AJLM-based diets. Generally, there were differences in weight gain between birds fed control diets and those fed AJLM-based diets (fig.2). The decreased weight gain at higher inclusion levels of AJLM in the diets could be as a result of mimosine and high crude fibre in diets containing AJLM. Fleury (2004) reported that antinutritional factors are known to bind nutrients and enzymes of digestion thus reducing the release of nutrients which adversely affects weight gain. High fibre of the diets also leads to poor digestibility of the diets which adversely affects weight gain (Teguia and Beynen, 2005). Nwokolo et al. (1985) also reported that increased level of dietary fibres could impair dietary nutrient utilization and might adversely affect weight gain.

24

60

50

40 Mean weight gain(g/b/d)

30

Control 5.0% 7.5% 10%

20

10

0 W4 W5 W6 Age(weeks) W7 W8

Fig. 2 Effect of Albizia julibrissin leaf meal on mean weight gain of broiler chicken (3-8 weeks of age)

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4.1.3 GAIN/FEED RATIO There was significant (P<0.05) difference in gain/feed ratio between birds fed control and those fed AJLM-based diets (Table 7). There was no significant (P>0.05) difference in gain/feed ratio between birds fed control and those fed 5%AJLM based diets. However, there was significant (P<0.05) difference in gain/feed ratio among birds fed AJLM-based diets. There was no significant (P>0.05) difference between birds fed 7.5% and 10% AJLM-based diets. There were differences in gain/feed ratio between birds fed control and those fed AJLM-based diets at week 4, 6 and 8 (fig.3). There was no difference in gain/feed ratio between birds fed control diets and those fed AJLM-based diets at week 5 and 7. Gain/feed ratio generally decreased at higher inclusion levels of AJLM in the diets above 5%. The decreased in gain feed ratio at higher inclusion levels could be attributed to the presence of mimosime in the diets. According to Dazala et al.(2010), concentration of anti-nutritional factors like mimosine increased at higher levels of dietary inclusion of leaf meal hence the adverse effect on gain/feed ratio. According to Fleury(2004) anti-nutritional factors are known to bind to nutrients and enzymes of digestion thus reducing the release of nutrients and adversely affecting gain/feed ratio.

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0.7

0.6

0.5

Gain/Feed ratio

0.4 Control

5AJLM
0.3 7.5AJLM 10AJLM 0.2

0.1

0
Week 4 Week 5 Week 6 Week 7 Week 8

Age Fig. 3 Effect of Albizia julibrissin leaf meal on mean gain/feed ratio of broiler chicken (3-8 weeks of age)

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4.1.4 MEAN FINAL LIVE WEIGHT There was significant (P<0.05) difference in final live weight between birds fed control and those fed AJLM-based diets (table 7). There was no significant (P>0.05) difference in final live weight between birds fed control and those fed 5%AJLM-based diets. However, there was no significant (P>0.05) difference in final live weight among birds fed AJLM-based diets. Generally, final live weight decreased as inclusion level of AJLM increased in the diets. The decreased in final live weight at increased inclusion level of AJLM in the diets could be due to the adverse effect of mimosine which increased in concentration at higher inclusion levels and results in decreased weight gain and final live weight (Fleury, 2004).

4.1.5 MORTALITY Result from table 7 shows that there was no significant (P>0.05) difference in deaths between birds that fed on control diets and those fed AJLM-based diets. There were eight deaths recorded. Post-mortem examination of the dead birds during the experiment showed bacterial infection. This was rectified by administering antibiotics to all birds for 3 days.

4.2 CARCASS CHARACTERISTICS Table 8 shows the carcass parameters of broiler chicken (3-8 weeks) fed AJLM-based diets.. Table: 8 Effect of AJLM on carcass characteristics of broiler chicken (3-8 weeks of age) Parameters Control 5%AJLM 7.5%AJLM
ab b

10%AJLM
b

SED 0.158

P-Value 0.042

Dressed weight 1.76a (kg/b) Dressing (%) 77.4

1.40

1.26

1.27

75.8

69.9

76.8

6.99

0.697

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SED Standard Error of Difference

P- Probability

Means with different superscript letters are significantly different (P<0.05)

4.2.1 CARCASS DRESSING WEIGHT There was significant (P<0.05) difference in carcass dressing weight between birds fed the control diet and those fed with the AJLM-diets (table 8). However, there was no significant (P>0.05) difference between birds fed the control diets and 5%AJLM group. There was also no significant (P>0.05) in carcass dressing weight among birds fed AJLM-based diets. The decreased dressed weight at increased inclusion level could be as a result of mimosine which increased in the diets at higher inclusion levels of AJLM in the diets. Report by Dazala et al.(2010) indicates that the concentration of anti-nutritional factors increased at higher inclusion levels of non-conventional feedstuffs in the diet which resulted in decreased weight gain and final live weight and might also lead to decreased carcass dressing weight.

4.2.2 CARCASS DRESSING PERCENTAGE There was no significant (P>0.05) difference in carcass dressing percentage between birds fed the control diet and their counterparts fed the AJLM-based diets (table 8). However, the highest carcass dressing percentage was recorded in birds that fed control diet followed by 10%AJLM, 5%AJLM and 7.5%AJLM. The decrease in dressing percentage at an increased inclusion level of AJLM in the diets from control to 7.5%AJLM could be due to the effect of fibre and mimosine which increased in the diets at higher levels of AJLM in the diets. According to Teguia and Beynen (2005), high fibre leads to poor digestibility of the diets which adversely affects weight gain and might also affect carcass dressing percentage. Reports by Fleury(2004) indicated that anti-nutritional factors are known to bind to nutrients and enzymes of digestion thus reducing the 29

release of nutrients and adversely affecting weight gain and might also affect carcass dressing percentage.

4.3 ECONOMICS OF PRODUCTION (COST ANALYSIS) Table 7 shows the effects of AJLM on the economic parameters of broiler chicken. Table: 9 Effect of AJLM on economics of production of broiler chicken (3-8 weeks of age) Parameters Control 5%AJL M Total feed intake(kg/b) Feed cost/kg diet(Gh.) Total feed cost/bird (Gh.) Feed cost/kg gain (Gh.) SED Standard Error of Difference P- Probability 2.98 2.87 3.21 3.79 0.305 0.064
a b b b

7.5%AJLM 10%AJL M 3.63b 3.60b

SED

P-Value

4.17a

3.77b

0.139

0.012

1.11

1.06

1.04

1.01

------

------

4.63

4.00

3.78

3.64

0.149

< 0.001

Means with different superscript letters are significantly different (P<0.05)

The cost analysis of control diets and AJLM-based diets in broiler chicken production is presented in table 9. The results in table 9 indicates that there was no significant (P>0.05) difference in total feed intake/bird between birds fed control and those fed AJLM-based diets. However, there was

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significant(P<0.05) difference between birds fed control and those fed AJLM-based diets for cost analysis such as total feed intake(kg/b) and total feed cost(Gh.).There was no significant (P>0.05) in total feed cost/bird among birds fed AJLM-based diets. Feed intake/bird decreased as inclusion level increased in the diets (table 9). There was no significant (P>0.05) difference in feed cost/kg gain between birds fed control and those fed AJLM based diets (table 9). The high cost of feed/bird recorded in the control was due to non-inclusion of AJLM while subsequent treatments with increasing levels of AJLM decreased in cost. The cost analysis indicated that the use of AJLM was cost effective and profitable at 5% inclusion of AJLM in the diets. This was in agreement with the report by Rhule et al., (2007), that non-conventional feedstuffs often reduced feed cost. This confirms that there is better economic gain by feeding AJLM to broilers since it has the potential of reducing the feeding cost of broilers.

4.4 OTHER OBSERVATION(S)

Plate 2. Yellow skin pigmentation of birds fed AJLM-based diets

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The yellow colouration of the shank, beak and skin observed on birds that fed on AJLM-diets in the course of experimentation is a confirmation to Dei et al.(2012) report that AJLM has a high content of carotenoids. The yellow colouration of the skin in birds that fed on AJLM-based diets would tend to meet all the vitamin A dietary requirements of it consumers than birds having pale skin (Onibi et al., 1999). According to Dei et al.(2012), the yellow pigment of egg yolk increased as AJLM increased in the diet of layer chicken. While the AJLM-diets results in yellow colouration of the shank, beak and skin of birds that fed on it, that of the control diet was pale. The pale colour of the shank, beak and skin of birds that fed on the control diet was as a result carotenoids deficiency in control diets. The lack of trend in skin pigmentation in relation to dietary treatments is a pointer to the fact that shank, beak and skin pigmentation are a better indicator of intensity of pigmentation in chickens (Onibi et al., 1999). It is likely that meat from chickens that fed the leaf meals would contain more vitamin A since chickens are able to incorporate dietary components into their muscles (Onibi et al., 1999). Birds with yellow skin pigments tended to be more attractive and will therefore be more preferred by consumers than those with pale skin. Attractiveness and high preference of birds by consumers will also result in high marketability.

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CHAPTER FIVE 5.0. Conclusion and Recommendation 5.1. Conclusion It was clear from the result obtained that AJLM can be used in broiler chicken ration up to 5% level without adverse effect on performance. AJLM should not be used above 5% inclusion level. It also has the potential of reducing the feeding cost of broilers.

5.2. Recommendation Farmers should use AJLM for broiler birds. It is economical to use 5%AJLM in broiler diet formulation.

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