Effects of locally available ingredients on haematological composition, physicochemical properties, proximate analysis and sensory of broiler chicken

The poultry industry has been dramatically affected by the high costs of animal feed ingredients, which has resulted in expensive commercial feeds. A high-quality with enough nutrients feed can help the birds grow faster. Therefore, the price of protein ingredients is very high, making it difficult for many farmers to sustain their farms and survive. Black Soldier Fly Larvae (BSFL), fermented coconut dregs, water spinach, and turmeric were ingredients with a good source of protein that can be effectively optimized within feed formulations compared to other expensive protein ingredients. A study was conducted to determine the effect of local ingredients in poultry feed on broiler chicken. Haematological analysis, meat quality of physicochemical properties and proximate analysis, and sensory evaluation were tested to ensure that the broiler meat is safe for human consumption. Results from the haematological analysis showed that all parameters have a significant difference (p<0.05) except on white blood cells. The physicochemical properties of broiler meat were high in pH; thus, the pH value influenced other physicochemical properties. Proximate analysis of all groups has a significant difference with p<0.05. Lastly, the sensory evaluation did not significantly differ (p<0.05) for all parameters except for the colour of raw broiler chicken. There was no effect on the sensory evaluation of broiler meat. To summarise, Treatment 2 with 15% BSFL is a good feed formulation for poultry because it had the optimum pH value as pH value will influence other physicochemical properties in broiler meat, had the value closest in haematological analysis to the standard value in broiler and had the closest value in proximate analysis to Control when compared to the other treatments.