Acerola meal in food restriction program for heavy pigs

• Grant number: 11/22906-6
• Support Opportunities: Regular Research Grants
• Start date: June 01, 2012
• End date: November 30, 2014
• Field of knowledge: Agronomical Sciences - Animal Husbandry - Animal Nutrition and Feeding
• Principal Investigator: Maria Cristina Thomaz
• Grantee: Maria Cristina Thomaz
• Host Institution: Faculdade de Ciências Agrárias e Veterinárias (FCAV). Universidade Estadual Paulista (UNESP). Campus de Jaboticabal. Jaboticabal , SP, Brazil

Abstract

The objective of this study was to evaluate the level of whole acerola meal in the diet of pigs with high slaughter weight. For this, two experiments will be conducted, the first biologically evaluate the acerola meal. In the second trial will evaluate the experimental diets, performance, passage rate, the weight of the gastrointestinal tract of animals, determined carcass characteristics, meat quality and fatty acid profile of pigs. Also measured is the potential environmental impact of the faeces, by determining the production, characterization and anaerobic digestion of faeces. Finally, there will be an economic evaluation of the use of diets. For that, will be used 48 barrows, with approximately 80 kg weight, divided into four groups according to the following treatments: FA0- Controlled diet, composed mainly by corn and soybean meal; FA9- Diet with inclusion of 9% acerola meal, FA18- Diet with inclusion of 18% acerola meal, FA27- Diet with inclusion of 27% acerola meal. Each treatment will have twelve replicates of each animal represents an experimental unit. In both experiments will be used a randomized complete block design, with the exception of anaerobic digestion, which will be used in a completely randomized, since the volumes and biogas composition will be evaluated by repeated in time using the GLM procedure of the statistical program SAS model 9.2. The degrees of freedom of the treatment are broken down into linear, quadratic and cubic. (AU)