Effect of Substitution of Sorghum Grain by Teff (Eragorestis tef) Grain on the Performance of Broiler Chicks

Abstract

This study aimed to determine the effect of the substitution of sorghum grain with teff grain (Eragorestis teff) on the performance of broiler chicks. The teff plant has been grown in Ethiopia and is used to prepare a kind of food called injera. The seeds were brought from the Sudanese Ethiopian Border. A total of 160 one-day-old, unsexed broiler chicks (Ross 308) were used. The birds were distributed randomly into 16 pens (10/pen) as replicates, in a completely randomized design. The experimental diets were formulated by substitution of sorghum grain with teff grain at a level of 0, 10, 15 and 20%. The chemical constituents of teff grain were measured by two methods (AOAC) and (NIR) Near-Infrared spectroscopy. The parameters measured were feed intake (FI), body weight gain (BWG), feed conversion ratio (FCR), carcass weight (CW), the weight of internal organs (liver, gizzard, pancreas, neck and heart), and serum contents (cholesterol, glucose and triglyceride). The CP percentage of teff grain was 7.96%, the starch content was (65.65%), and the fiber content was (8.61%). For chick’s performance, the birds fed 20% teff consumed more feed (3403.0g), gained more weight (2040.5g), had the highest carcass weight (1733.8) and had the best FCR (1.66) than the control. For blood biochemical, the group of birds that fed 20 % teff grain recorded the highest value of Glucose (113.0) and the lowest value of triglyceride (107.0) and Cholesterol (128.8). It could be concluded that the teff grain is superior to sorghum in terms of chemical constituents and broiler chicken’s performance and could be a good substation for the sorghum if it is established in Sudan.