| Popis: |
Methane digester effluent (MDE) from a full-scale digester (FD) was studied as a potential wet feedstuff for caged layers. Hens fed corn-soybean meal diets meeting National Research Council (NRC, 1977) nutrient requirements and containing up to .5% MDE, dry matter (DM) basis, showed no significant difference in hen-day egg production when compared with controls. Higher MDE levels (1.0 to 2.6%) produced a significant reduction in egg production. Egg weight and specific gravity were not affected by level of MDE. Haugh unit was adversely affected only in eggs laid by hens fed the highest level of MDE. True metabolizable energy (TME) and nitrogen corrected true metabolizable energy (TMEn) values of MDE samples from two types of digesters, pilot (PD) and full-scale were determined. Dry matter content was 2.92 and 1.58% for PD and FD, respectively. Mean gross energy values were 3502 and 3792 kcal/kg, and mean TME values were 1076 and 692 kcal/kg for PD and FD, respectively (dry matter basis). Both MDE samples had high gross energy values but comparatively low TME values, indicating that a large part of the nutrients in MDE were not digestible. The TMEn values were 936 and 531 kcal/kg for PD and FD, respectively. Based on this study, .5% full-scale MDE (DM basis) is suggested as the maximum level that should be used in a caged layer diet. |
