Nutritional evaluation of sorghum germ meal as a substitute for sorghum in broiler diets

Abstract Sorghum germ meal (SGM) samples were analysed for proximate composition and then fed to broiler chicks as a substitute for sorghum, on an isoenergetic basis. At the lowest levels of inclusion SGM replaced 0, 25 and 50% and at the highest levels 75 and 100% of sorghum apparent metabolizable energy (AME). On average, SGM contained 989.8 g kg −1 dry matter, 126 g kg −1 crude protein, 280 g kg −1 ether extract, 45.4 g kg −1 crude fibre, 39.39 g kg −1 ash, 0.1 g kg −1 calcium, 0.4 g kg −1 phosphorus, 2250 mg (100 g) −1 phytic acid equivalent and 17.92 MJ kg −1 calculated metabolizable energy. Increasing SGM inclusion resulted in increasing dietary crude fibre and phytic acid content. Increased dietary SGM levels resulted in a linear reduction in body weight ( P P P P