Observations on Feeding Tung Oil to Chickens

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Abstract
The inclusion of commercially available crude tung oil in the rations of chicks at levels as low as 0.5% caused slow growth. Higher levels (2.0% to 5%) of tung oil in the diet caused high mortality. Upon autopsy the affected chicks showed enlarged gallbladders, fluid in the abdominal, thoracic and pericardial cavities, variable liver size, enlarged hearts and had an odor of tung oil. Methyl esters of the fatty acids from tung oil were not toxic. The unsaponifiable fraction from tung oil isolated after alkaline hydrolysis also was not toxic.

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