Relative Bioavailability of Basic Zinc Sulfate and Basic Zinc Chloride for Chicks

An experiment was conducted to compare the estimated relative bioavailability of two new potential sources of zinc (Zn), basic Zn sulfate and basic Zn chloride with that of feed-grade Zn oxide, using reagent-grade Zn sulfate heptahydrate as the standard in chicks fed for 21 days. Based on bone Zn accumulation regressed on added dietary Zn concentration and assuming a value of 100% for reagent-grade Zn sulfate, relative bioavailability values were 101, 107, and 49% for basic Zn sulfate, basic Zn chloride, and Zn oxide, respectively.