Effects of Dietary Supplementation of Vitamin C and Sea Buckthorn on the Performance and Meat Quality in Old Laying Hens

Abstract

The objective of this study was to investigate the effect of dietary supplementation of vitamin C and Sea buckthorn on the performance, blood biochemistry and meat quality in old laying hens. A total 200 Hy-Line Brown laying hens (101 weeks old) were randomly allotted to 1 of 5 dietary treatments : (1) Basal : basal diet, (2) Vit. C : basal diet + 0.1% vitamin C, (3) SB 0.1 : basal diet + 0.1% Sea buckthorn, (4) SB 0.5 : basal diet + 0.5% Sea buckthorn, and (5) SB 1.0 : basal diet + 1.0% Sea buckthorn. Each treatment was replicated 4 times with 10 birds units were arranged according to randomized block design. Feeding trial lasted 4 weeks under 16L:8D lighting regimen. The diets were fed to hens on an ad libitum basis for 4 weeks. Result indicated that during feeding trial of the experiment, hen-day egg production and feed conversion ratio were not significantly influenced by treatments. However, feed intake was significantly (P<0.05) higher in Vit. C and SB treated groups than the basal during 1 wks and 3 wks. Egg weight was significantly (P<0.05) higher in basal and Vit. C than the SB 1.0 treatment. There were no differences in carcass yield during feeding trials. However, partial ratio (breast and neck) was significantly (P<0.05) higher in SB 0.5 than other treatment. There were no differences in the level of leukocytes and erythrocytes. There were no significant differences on proximate analysis (DM, crude protein, crude fat, and crude ash), meat color, water holding capacity, cooking loss, and fatty acids concentrations. In conclusion, dietary supplementation of vitamin C and Sea buckthorn to the diet of old laying hens might be a potential ingredient for increasing partial weight (breast) in old laying hens.

Comprehensive review on sea buckthorn: Biological activity and its potential uses

“…Sea buckthorn supplementation of poultry layer feed for four weeks raises egg production and feed conversion ratio in old laying hens. This not only aids in the production of higher-quality eggs, but also improves the quality of chicken meat due to the presence of vitamin C (Kang et al, 2015) [50] . According to a study by Ben-Mahmoud et al, (2014) [9] adding 5% sea buckthorn residue to a broiler feed increases skin pigmentation.…”

Potential of sea buckthorn-based ingredients for the food and feed industry – a review

“…Intramuscular fat content in thigh and breast tissue was higher in broilers fed with flavones from SB fruits, yet abdominal fat percentage was significantly reduced in these groups when compared to control. Kang et al (2015) Ad libitum diet supplemented with 0,1% vitamin C; 0,1% SB; 0,5% SB and 1% SB for 4 weeks Egg production, feed conversion ratio, intake, egg weight, carcass yield, partial ratio (breast and neck), level of leukocytes, and erythrocytes. In addition, they measured DM, crude protein, crude fat, and crude ash as proximate analysis, and meat color, water holding capacity, cooking loss, and fatty acid concentrations.…”

Comparison of Quality and Sensory Characteristics of Spent Hen and Broiler in South Korea

“…According to the Korean Statistical Information Service, the breeding numbers of spent hens and broilers were 70 million and 93 million, respectively, in 2019; however, the number of slaughters showed a large difference, with 200 spent hens and 70 million broilers in the same year [ 7 ]. As a result, spent hens show difficulties in terms of the consumption of spent hen at the end of their economic life cycle, and they are typically exported to other countries or sold at a cheap price [ 8 ]. On the other hand, broilers steadily increased from 9.62 kg/person in 2009 to 14.80 kg/person in 2019 [ 9 ].…”