Carcass Composition of Chickens Fed Carbohydrate-free Diets Containing Various Lipid Energy Sources

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Abstract
Studies clearly show that the chick can grow and develop when fed diets in which all the nonprotein energy is derived from lard or soybean oil. The experiments described in this report indicate that lard, corn oil, or linseed oil will serve equally well as the sole nonprotein energy source in the diet of young growing chickens; however, the menhaden oil tested in these experiments was not equal to these other oils in this respect. In one experiment all the chickens fed menhaden oil died. In the other experiment, where special precautions were taken to prevent oxidation, excess mortality and poor growth resulted when menhaden oil was the sole source of nonprotein energy in the diet. With the exception of the chickens fed the menhaden oil diet there was very little difference in total carcass composition of chickens fed the control glucose monohydrate plus 4% corn oil diet and those fed lard, corn oil, or linseed oil as energy sources. The fatty acid composition of the total carcass lipids was very different for the various treatments and, in general, reflected the fatty acid composition of the oils fed. The feeding of corn oil or linseed oil not only caused large increases in the levels of linoleic acid and linolenic acid in the carcass lipid but also a reduction in the total quantity of saturated fatty acids.