The Influence of Dietary Hazelnut Kernel Oil on the Performance and Fatty Acid Composition of Broilers

Abstract

A total of 360 one-day-old broilers (Ross 308) were allocated to three treatment groups with four replicates each of 30 chicks to evaluate the effects of the dietary hazelnut kernel oil (HKO) inclusion on the performance and the composition of fatty acid of meat in broilers. Treatments were diets with (1) soybean oil (SO), (2) HKO, or (3) HKO+SO (in equal amount, HKSO) added to the basal diets. There were no significant differences in weight gain, feed per gain, dressing percentage, abdominal fat weight, and mortality among the different dietary oil sources. Dietary HKO decreased (P < 0.01) linoleic and linolenic acids contents and the ratio of SFA:MUFA (saturated fatty acids:unsaturated fatty acids) of breast meats in broiler, and increased oleic acid content compared to SO. The result indicates that meat from broiler chickens fed diets containing HKO, singly or combined with SO could be an important source of oleic acid for human diets. © 2007 Society of Chemical Industry.