Replacement of Wheat Offal with Millet Bran Improved the Performance of Broiler Starters

Abstract

As a result of continuous increase in the prices of raw materials used in poultry feeds due to competition for some these raw materials between humans and Animals, and the need to find an alternative with a view to reduce the production cost and increase profit margin. This study evaluated the performance of broiler starter chickens fed diets containing graded levels of millet bran as a substitute for wheat offal over a four-week feeding period. A total of 235 broiler starter chicks were randomly assigned to three experimental diets. Diet 1, which contained wheat offal without millet bran, served as the control, while Diets 2 and 3 were formulated by replacing wheat offal with millet bran at 50% and 100%, respectively. The results showed that dietary replacement of wheat offal with millet bran had no significant effect (P > 0.05) on the measured performance parameters. Average feed intake was 1989.59 g, 1781.60 g, and 1978.51 g for birds fed Diets 1, 2, and 3, respectively. Similarly, weight gain values of 646.93 g, 660.91 g, and 622.93 g, feed conversion ratios of 3.19, 2.87, and 2.89, and mortality rates of 26.60%, 21.80%, and 15.40% were not significantly different (P<0.05) among the treatment groups. The findings indicated that millet bran can effectively replace wheat offal, even at complete substitution, in broiler starter diets without adversely affecting growth performance, feed efficiency, or bird survival. The use of millet bran therefore represents a practical alternative feed ingredient that could contribute to reducing feed costs while maintaining satisfactory production performance.