Effects of genotype and protease enzyme supplementation on the primal carcass cuts of chickens

This study compared weight and percent yields of primal carcass cuts of commercial fast-growing broiler - Cobb 500 and medium-growing broiler genotype - Master Gris. Three hundred Cobb 500 chickens and three hundred Master Gris chickens were used for the experiment. Feed and water were provided ad-libitum. Treatments were: T1 - corn-soybean meal based control diet; T2: T1 − 4.0% crude protein than in the control diet + 0.2% protease and T3: T1 − 6.0% crude protein than in the control diet + 0.3% protease. Chickens were slaughtered at 49 days of age. Medium-growing hybrid Master Gris had a lower weight of all primal carcass cuts and breast yield (as a percentage of ready-to-grill carcass weight), as well as higher thighs, drumsticks, wings and pelvis yields in comparison with the Cobb 500 broilers (P0.05). Also, the addition of protease to broiler feed had no significant effect on the weight and percent yields of primal carcass cuts (P>0.05).