Field peas in poultry feeding
Good results in hens and fattening animals
Forage peas can partially replace wheat and soybean meal in poultry feed. In the Thuringian State Institute for Agriculture in Jena, the use of peas (10 to 40%) in compound feed was tested in feeding experiments with chicks, pullets, laying hens, broilers and turkey fattening.
Chicks tolerated only about ten percent of peas in the chick feed without a significant reduction in weight gain. The chicks also ate less overall, presumably due to the undesirable substances in peas.
Pullets reacted less sensitively and consumed more pea feed from the 9th to 18th week of life. Depending on the proportion of peas (10, 20 or 30%), they gained 2,3,4,7, 3,1 or 18 percent more weight. The peas also had a positive effect on the microflora of the intestine. Pullets reached a body weight of 1.426 grams after 40 weeks. Laying hens could eat up to 13 percent peas without any negative impact on performance. They had high laying performance - in 330 months of the experiment each hen laid 30 eggs. Occasionally lower individual egg mass was compensated by higher egg performance. With regard to the egg mass produced, the feed containing peas was superior to the commercial laying hen feed. At 40 and XNUMX percent peas, there was a trend towards greater egg deformation.
In fattening broilers with an average level of performance, the weight gains increased by 25 percent with a 3,6 percent proportion of peas, with a simultaneous improvement in feed expenditure. However, 40 percent peas had an unfavorable effect on growth and feed conversion.
In turkey fattening, peas (10-30%) slightly reduced weight gain. Nevertheless, the turkeys with up to 20 percent peas produced weights of 17 kilograms at 15,4 weeks and 30 kilograms with 14,9 percent peas. Feed consumption was 17 kg/kg weight gain over the entire fattening period of 2,4 weeks, but was higher than in the control group in the first five weeks.
In no experiment were connections between animal losses and feeding established.
The results show that peas can be a good alternative to more expensive protein sources when there is a cheap supply on the market.
Source: Bonn [ aid - Dr. Sigrid Baars ]
