Effect of Dietary Inclusion of Banana (Musa paradisiaca) Leaf Powder on Carcass Characteristics, Meat Composition and Sensory Attributes of Broiler Chickens

Abstract

Background: The poultry sector plays a vital role in national food production and food security, while also contributing significantly to poverty reduction, employment creation, and the socio-economic upliftment of rural communities. Aims: To evaluate the effect of dietary incorporation of banana (Musa paradisiaca) leaf powder on Carcass Characteristics and Organoleptic Traits of broiler chicken. Study Design: Completely Randomised Design. Place and Duration of Study: Instructional Poultry Farm (IPF), Nagla, College of Veterinary and Animal Sciences, G.B. Pant University of Agriculture and Technology, Pantnagar. The experiment was conducted from May, 2025 to June, 2025 (42 days). Methodology: In the feeding trial, a total of 120 day-old broiler chicks were randomly distributed into five treatment groups of 24 broiler chick per treatment with three replicates of 8 chicks in each. The 1st group served as control (T1) in which standard diet without any supplementation was fed, while in T2, T3, T4 and T5, treatment groups were incorporated with 1%, 3%, 5% and 7% banana leaf powder, respectively. At the end of the feeding trial, five broiler birds from each treatment group were randomly selected and slaughtered to evaluate carcass characteristics and organoleptic assessment of the meat. Breast and thigh muscle samples obtained after slaughter were collected and processed for proximate analysis. Results: The results were non-significant for organoleptic traits and carcass characteristics, except for the ether extract content of breast and thigh muscle. The ether extract content (% on dry matter basis) of breast and thigh muscle was significantly reduced (P < 0.05) with increasing dietary inclusion of banana leaf powder. Conclusion: The present study concludes that dietary inclusion of banana (Musa paradisiaca) leaf powder up to 7 percent in broiler chicken diet reduced the ether extract content of breast and thigh muscles, whereas no adverse effect was observed on meat quality and organoleptic characteristics of the birds.