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Corn and soybean meal high prices have resulted in an increasing demand for alternative ingredients to decrease the cost of production in swine industry. The vitamin B2 by-product (VBP) might be a cost-effective alternative resource to partially replace corn and soybean meal, and may serve as a cheaper form to provide an extra vitamin B2. The purpose of the present study was to evaluate the effects of VBP on growth performance, nutrient digestibility, blood profiles and meat quality in pigs. A total of 140 (Landrace × Yorkshire) × Duroc pigs with an average initial body weight (BW) of 26.05 ± 1.32 kg were used in a 16-week feeding trial. Pigs were randomly allotted to 1 of 4 dietary treatments (5 pigs/pen and 7 replicates/treatment). Dietary treatments consisted of 0, 1, 2 and 3% of vitamin by-product as CON, VBP1, VBP2 and VBP3 dietary groups, respectively. The trial was performed in a 3-phase feeding program (0 to 4, 4 to 8, 8 to 13 week).
With the supplementation of increasing levels of VBP, no significant differences were observed on growth performance and nutrient digestibility among treatments over the entire experimental period. During the phase 2 experimental period, there was a linear decrease in blood norepinephrine concentration (1040.83, 983.68, 762.10, and 958.77 for CON, VBP1, VBP2 and VBP3, respectively) associated with the inclusion of VBP in the diets. Besides, at the end of phase 3, a linear decrease was observed in sensory evaluation of meat color (3.29, 3.44, 3.57, and 3.47 for CON, VBP1, VBP2 and VBP3, respectively). The lean meat percentage (57.49%, 57.97%, 58.27%, and 58.16%) were linearly increased by the increasing levels of VBP supplementation.
In conclusion, it was observed that dietary supplementation with increasing levels of vitamin B2 by-product can concurrently decrease negative stress effects and improve the lean meat percentage without having a negative impact on growth performance and nutrient digestibility. These results indicate the potential of vitamin B2 by-product as a suitable substitute for partially replacing corn and soybean meal in pig nutrition.
Shi, H., J. K. Kim, S. Serpunja, J. Hu, and I. H. Kim. Effects of the Inclusion of Vitamin B2 By-Product on Growth Performance, Blood Profiles and Meat Quality in Growing-Finishing Pigs. Journal of Animal Science 96 (2018): 44-44. https://doi.org/10.1093/jas/sky073.083