Effect of supplementation of red beetroot powder in quail diets

Abstract

This study aims to determine the effects of different levels of supplements (0, 0.5, 1.0 and 1.5%) of red beetroot (B. vulgaris var. rubra L.) powder in the diets of laying quails on productive traits, egg quality, some blood parameters, yolk fatty acid profiles and cholesterol levels. A total of 112, 12-week-old female quails were used in the 4-week study. While the red beetroot powder (RBP) significantly affected egg yield, it was not effective on daily feed intake (DFI), feed conversion ratio (FCR) and egg weight (EW). Among the blood parameters, there were significant differences in terms of the triglyceride (TG), Ca and Na values among the trial groups. In terms of the egg yolk fatty acid profiles, there were significant differences among the palmitic acid and linolenic acid levels of the groups. The results obtained in terms of the egg yolk cholesterol levels showed that the RBP did not significantly affect the cholesterol levels. Consequently, considering its positive effects on some parameters like egg yield, egg yolk colour and palmitic and linolenic acid values, it may be recommended to add RBP to the diets of quails by up to 1%.

Reuse of vegetable wastes in animal feed: the influence of red beet powder supplementation on performance, egg quality, and antioxidant capacity of layer quails

“…These authors suggest that the improvement in the feed conversion ratio occurred after the eighth week, with no differences observed in the previous weeks. This fact would explain why previous authors (Kopřiva et al, 2014;Şengül, 2021) did not find differences in this parameter, because they include younger animals in their study.…”

“…Changes in animals' feeding are the most commonly studied and applied way to modify meat properties and quality (Vieira et al, 2021;Gül et al, 2022). Earlier authors suggest that, due to the composition of red beets, their inclusion in poultry diets could modify productive performance and affect certain egg parameters, such as yolk color or antioxidant compounds (Kopřiva et al, 2014;Souza et al, 2019;Al-Waeli et al, 2021;Şengül, 2021). However, few researchers have investigated beetroot as animal feed, and the majority of recent work has focused on the application of beetroot as an additive in meat preparations (Domínguez et al, 2020).…”