Effects of chestnut (Castanea sativa) meal supplementation on growth performance, carcass characteristics, and meat quality of pigs

Abstract

This study examined the effect of chestnut (Castanea sativa) meal (CNM) on growth performance, carcass characteristics, and meat quality of pigs. Thirty-two crossbred pigs were randomly allocated equally into four groups and fed one of four diets containing 0, 30, 50, or 100 g kg(-1) DM CNM for 49 days. The animals were housed individually into the cage, fed the diet ad libitum, and allowed to access water freely. Feed efficiency decreased quadratically, while carcass yield decreased linearly with increasing CNM supplementation. The highest pH and the lowest drip loss were found in 30 g kg(-1) of CNM supplementation, respectively, while no effects on fatty acid profiles were observed in all treatments. The addition of CNM at 30 g kg(-1) into the diets could improve feed efficiency and reduce drip loss in meat.