Cassava (Manihot esculenta) leaf and tuber concentrate in diets for broiler chickens

Experiment 1 was conducted to determine the nutritive quality of cassava tuber leaf concentrate prepared either by mixing cassava tubers and leaves together before grinding or grinding them separately before mixing. Three mixing proportions of 50:50, 60:40 and 80:20 were used. Samples were subjected to either sundrying or oven drying. Physical examination of samples, proximate analysis and cyanide content of each of the samples were determined. In experiment 2 the sample of highest nutritive value was selected for inclusion in four diets at levels of 0%, 10%, 20% and 30% respectively. A total of 120 day-old broilers were divided into four groups and each group further into three subgroups. The four experimental diets were fed to each of the groups for a period of 9 weeks. Growth parameters, carcass characteristics and haematological parameters were also determined. Results showed that in experiment 1 the grinding together of cassava tubers and leaves in the proportion of 50:50 before sun-drying gave the best texture, highest CP content with low HCN content. Inclusion of 10% cassava concentrate gave good performance in terms of growth and feed conversion, with no detrimental effects on haematological parameters and carcass characteristics.