Nutrient content and apparent metabolizable energy values of full-fat winged beans (Psophocarpus tetragonolobus) for young chicks

Abstract

Growth performance and N-retention efficiencies of chicks were severely reduced by the inclusion of raw full-fat winged bean seeds at rates of up to 400 g kg-1 in semi-purified diets. Heat treatment of the winged beans prior to dietary incorporation completely reversed the depressions in growth and efficiency of food utilization. Apparent metabolizable energy (AME) values of the two types of winged beans were calculated from the determined AME contents of diets containing these beans. Classical AME values of the raw beans ranged from 2.5 to 5.8 MJ kg-1 dry matter (DM) while N-corrected values ranged from 3.4 to 5.9MJ kg-1 DM. Classical AME values of heat-treated beans varied from 11.9 to 12.1 MJ kg-1 DM and N-corrected values ranged from 11.6 to 12.0 MJ kg-1 DM. In another experiment, classical and N-corrected AME values of heat-treated winged beans were 12.3 and 12.2 MJ kg-1 DM, respectively; comparable results for heat-treated soyabeans were 13.3 and 13.0 MJ kg-1 DM. It is suggested that mean classical and N-corrected values of 12.1 and 11.9 MJ kg-1 DM of heat-treated winged beans be used in diet formulations for poultry. These AME results indicate that heattreated winged beans may be suitable for incorporation into poultry diets.