Using Rapeseed Cake to Improve Fatty Acid Composition of Turkey Meat

Rapeseed is the most widely used oil crop in Europe and it is an ideal raw material for the production of biodiesel. Because of a high nutritional value and a relatively high omega-3 fatty acids content, rapeseed cake can be used in poultry nutrition for the enrichment of meat and eggs. Therefore, the aim of this study was to determine the possibility of using rapeseed cake in diets for turkeys for the purpose of enriching turkey meat with omega-3 fatty acids. In the study, 120 male day-old Nicholas 700 turkeys were used and randomly divided into 3 groups, each group with 4 replications (n= 10). The control groups of turkeys were fed on compound feed without rapeseed cake and the experimental groups were fed with 5 or 10% share of rapeseed cake in compound feed. Based on the results obtained, we can conclude that the share of rapeseed cake of 5 or 10% in the compound feed did not cause any adverse impact on the performance of turkeys. Also, we established that there was an increase of the amount of omega-3 fatty acids with increased share of rapeseed cake and there was a positive trend of a decrease of the ratio of omega-6/omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids. Positive financial effect of fattening can be expected, because rapeseed cake is a cheaper source of protein in comparison with the commonly used soybean meal. Therefore, rapeseed cake can be recommended in fattening of hybrid turkeys, with a share up to 10% in the compound feed.