Nutrient Content of Different Wheat and Maize Varieties and Their Impact on Metabolizable Energy Content and Nitrogen Utilization by Broilers

The study aimed to determine the effect of nutrients of wheat (nine cultivars) and maize (nine cultivars) grain on nitrogen balance and apparent metabolizable energy (AME_N) content for broiler chickens. In vivo digestibility and balance trials were carried out with 90 Ross 308 chickens (2 × 9 groups with 5 birds per group) aged from 42 to 49 days, separately for each cultivar. Considerable variation within each cereal species in fiber and non-fiber carbohydrate fractions and nutrient digestibility of grain were demonstrated. Additionally, regression equations were proposed which allow the estimation of AME_N content of wheat and maize grain varieties based on simple analytical procedures, including cell wall components, starch, and sugars. For practical purposes, these equations seem to be the best solution while reducing time, labor, and cost of analytical procedures.