The growth performance of grower pigs fed on moringa oleifera seed meal supplement at Busitema university Arapai campus

Abstract

This experimental study aimed to evaluate the effects of Moringa oleifera seed meal (MOSM) rations on the growth performance of grower pigs. To achieve this, the researcher sought to assess the nutritional composition of the feed composites and subsequently determine the average daily weight gain and feed conversion efficiency. Feeding is one of the biggest challenges in pig production.in that regard there is need to find a cheap alternative protein source to the currently expensive feed resources like soy bean meal. This study therefore aims at finding a cheap and sustainable alternative source of protein of which is moringa. A completely randomized design with four treatments of different MOSM inclusions (R1, R2, R3, and R4) and three replicates were used. The pigs were fed on standard control feed for a period of 7 days before data collection started, this will be done to acclimatize the pigs to the new environment. A total of 12 male uncastrated pigs 2 months old pigs were randomly assigned to four dietary treatments: R1 (control), R2 (5% MOSM), R3 (10% MOSM), and R4 (15% MOSM). The pigs were restrictively fed for 8weeks and their body weight, feed intake and feed conversion ratio (FCR) were measured. The results showed that MOSM supplement improved the body weight gain, feed intake, and FCR of the pigs. The highest growth performance was observed in R1, followed by R2, R4, and R3. The results got from the study suggests that supplementing Moringa oleifera seed meal in the diet of grower pigs could be a cheaper source of protein feed. My findings revealed inclusions of 5% of MOSM greatly improved growth performance and feed conversion efficiency as compared to the other treatments. The control ration recorded better results on weight gain however, its feed conversion efficiency was slightly lower than that in R2. I recommend the future research is directed to exploring different processing methods (such as heat treatment) of moringa seeds to optimize nutrient availability, establishment of the most effective inclusion rate of the supplement in the various animal species. Since no mortality was reported, researchers may also explore the antimicrobial properties of MOSM.