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Diversification and expansion of the poultry industry with fast-growing and highly prolific birds such as the quail (Coturnix coturnix), could contribute significantly in achieving global food and nutrition security. However, sustainable intensification of the quail relies on the cost of dietary ingredients used during feed formulations. The use of non-conventional energy sources such as sorghum, millet, and cassava in lieu of expensive energy sources such as maize, could ensure sustainable quail businesses. Generally, alternative feedstuffs should be cost-effective and possess comparable nutritional qualities as maize. In tropical countries such as South Africa, the use of sorghum, millet, and cassava in quail diets can serve as ideal alternatives because they have relatively comparable energy values as maize. Furthermore, these alternatives are largely available and easily accessible in many farming areas of South Africa. However, the presence of antinutritional factors such as tannins, cyanides and phytic acid, among others, as well as their high fiber levels may limit their utilization in quail nutrition. Nevertheless, attempts have been made to develop improved varieties with low antinutrient compositions, for instance, low-tannin sorghum varieties are increasingly being fed to poultry birds. Furthermore, there is growing evidence that certain processing techniques such as sun-drying, soaking, boiling and fermentation, among others, can lower the concentrations of antinutrients in these alternative feedstuffs, thus increasing their feeding value. To this end, nutritional feeding trials on the positive effects of sorghum, millet and cassava in quail nutrition are inconsistent, mainly due to differences in cultivar type, harvesting site or environmental conditions, sampling, and handling methods amongst other factors. Thus, the present review aimed to discuss the potential of substituting maize with sorghum, millet, and cassava in quail diets.

Background and Aim: Garcinia kola seed (GKS) is used to prevent and cure a number of gastric-related ailments. GKS contain a copious amount of polyphenols and can be utilized as a natural growth promoter in the nutrition of weaned rabbits. This study aimed to determine the dietary effects of GKS meal (GKSM) on the growth performance, hematology and serum biochemical parameters of weaned rabbits. Materials and Methods: GKS were dried and ground into powder. Thirty-two 8-week-old crossbred rabbits with an average weight of 614 g were randomly divided into four dietary groups. The diets were designated as follows: Control (corn-soybean based diet with 0% GKSM) and the GKSM-supplemented diets with 1.5% GKSM, 3% GKSM, and 4.5% GKSM. On the 56th day of the feeding trial, blood was collected from the marginal ear vein of all rabbits and transferred into two separate labeled tubes. The first set of blood was used to determine the hematological indices. The second set of blood was transferred into plain bottles and allowed to coagulate. The coagulated blood was subjected to standard methods of serum separation, and the sera were harvested and used to evaluate serum biochemical parameters. Results: Although the average final body weight was highest in rabbits fed with 1.5% GKSM; this value was similar to rabbits fed with 0% and 4.5% GKSM. The average daily weight gain was highest in rabbits fed with 1.5% GKSM, while the feed conversion ratio was improved in the 0% and 1.5% GKSM groups. The dietary treatments also had a significant effect on the red blood cell count (RBC) and hemoglobin (Hb) concentration, while other blood parameters did not differ significantly (p>0.05). Higher inclusion levels (3% and 4.5%) of GKSM led to a significant increase in RBC and Hb values (p

This study aimed to determine the dietary effects of cowpea hull (CPH) meal on nutrient digestibility, growth, carcass, and biomarker traits of weaner rabbits. Sixteen 6-wk-old hybrids (Chinchilla × New Zealand white) rabbits with an average weight of 760 g were randomly allocated to four dietary treatments in four replications of one rabbit each. The dietary treatments consisted of basal diets supplemented with cowpea hull at 0, 10, 20, and 30% levels, represented as CPH0, CPH10, CPH20, and CPH30. Rabbits fed CPH0 and CPH10 had higher (P < 0.05). It was concluded that up to 10% cowpea hull inclusion did not impair the nutrient digestibility and growth performance of rabbits, but improved their health status and reduced the cost of production.

This study determined the dietary effects of pomegranate peel powder meal (PPPM) supplementation on growth performance, digestibility, carcase and organ weights, serum, and some meat antioxidant enzyme indices of Cobb 500 birds. Birds (n = 432) were randomly assigned to six experimental groups of four replicates each and were fed either diets supplemented with 2, 4, 6 and 8 g/kg of PPPM (PPPM2, PPPM4, PPPM6 and PPPM8), 0% additives (Negative control; NEGCON), or with α-Tocopherol acetate at 200 g/tonne (Positive control; POSCON). The diet × week interaction effect on feed intake (FI) and feed conversion ratio (FCR) showed that the POSCON diet promoted a better FI and FCR at week 3. However, the FCR of the POSCON birds was comparable to that of the NEGCON, PPPM4 and PPPM6 birds. The average final body weight and average daily weight gain was highest in the PPPM2 and PPPM4 birds, whereas, PPPM2 birds had improved FCR and protein efficiency ratio compared with the POSCON birds. Thigh weight was highest in the PPPM4 group, whereas PPPM8 birds had the highest breast weight compared with the POSCON. Birds fed the PPPM4 diet also had improved nutrient digestibility compared with the POSCON birds. Spleen and gizzard weights were highest in PPPM4 birds compared with the NEGCON group. The concentration of serum aspartate aminotransferase (AST) was decreased in PPPM4 birds, whereas meat from PPPM8 group had the highest catalase enzyme activity. It can be concluded that birds fed 4 g/kg PPPM outperformed the birds that were fed α-tocopherol supplemented (POSCON) diets in terms of performance, digestibility, carcase and organ indices. The effect of pomegranate peel powder meal supplementation was also pronounced in decreasing the concentration of AST at 4 g/kg and increasing the activity of catalase enzyme at 8 g/kg compared with the POSCON and NEGCON diets.Highlights Dietary pomegranate peel powder can improve performance in broilers. Dietary pomegranate peel powder can enhance the enzyme activity of broiler meat.