Evaluation of Different Protein Sources on the Growth Performance of Broiler Chickens in Kano State

This study evaluates the effect of different dietary protein sources on growth performance and carcass characteristics of broiler chickens in Kano State, North West Nigeria. Protein is the most expensive component of poultry diets, and identifying cost-effective alternatives to imported fishmeal and soybean meal is a priority for improving broiler profitability in northern Nigeria. This study uses a completely randomised design with five dietary treatments: standard soybean meal-based diet as control, diets with 25 and 50 percent replacement of soybean protein by groundnut cake protein, and diets with 25 and 50 percent replacement by locally produced Moringa leaf meal protein. One hundred and eighty day-old broiler chicks (Ross 308) are randomly allocated to treatments in six replicates of six birds each. Feed intake, body weight gain, feed conversion ratio, protein efficiency ratio, mortality rate, and carcass yield are measured over 42 days. Findings reveal that 25 percent groundnut cake replacement maintains growth performance statistically equivalent to the soybean control, with the lowest production cost per kilogram live weight. Fifty percent Moringa replacement shows acceptable performance up to 28 days but reduced growth thereafter, attributed to fibre effects. Full soybean diet produces the highest body weight gain of 2.18 kilograms per bird at 42 days. The study concludes that 25 percent groundnut cake inclusion is the most cost-effective protein substitution for Kano State broiler production. It recommends economic analysis integration in all future broiler feed substitution studies.

Keywords: broiler chickens, protein sources, groundnut cake, growth performance, Kano State.