Abstract

A feeding trial was conducted using eighty (80) day-old broiler chicks (Marshal Breed) and they were assigned to four treatments of two replicates each in a completely randomized design. The study which lasted for eight weeks was undertaken to investigate the comparative advantages of cereal offal [maize offal (MO), sorghum offal (SO), and sorghum brewer dried grains (SBDG)] as a replacement for maize grain (MG) in the diet of broiler chickens. There were no significant differences (P>0.05) among the body weights. Birds fed sorghum offal (SO) attained the highest weight gain (2.4kg), followed by maize offal (2.3kg) and maize grain (2.15kg). The lowest weight gain was recorded on birds fed the diet containing SBDG. The birds gained weights indicate that the intake of energy and proteins were well above maintenance requirements. The best (1.10) feed conversion ratio was recorded in birds fed sorghum offal based diet followed by those on maize offal based diet (1.13). The financial analysis revealed that total feed cost was low with higher gross profits for birds on sorghum offal and maize offal based diets. It was concluded that sorghum offal and maize offal have potential in effectively replacing maize as a source of energy without any adverse effects on the performance broiler chickens.

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