• Korean Journal of Agricultural Science
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• v.51 no.1
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• pp.53-61
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• 2024

A total of 180 21-day-old weaning pigs ([Yorkshire × Landrace] × Duroc) with an initial body weight of 6.44 ± 0.01 kg were randomly assigned to 9 treatments for evaluating the effects of replacing dietary inorganic copper (Cu) and zinc (Zn) with glycine (Gly) or methionine (Met)-chelated Cu and Zn on growth performance and nutrient digestibility. The experimental period was 35 days. There were four replicated pens per treatment, with five pigs (three males and two females) per pen. Dietary treatments consisted of a basal diet (CON), in which the sources of Cu and Zn were in inorganic form. The inorganic Cu and Zn in the basal diet were replaced by glycine-chelated (GC) and methionine-chelated (MC) Cu and Zn by 30, 50, 70, or 100% to form the GC1, GC2, GC3, GC4, or MC1, MC2, MC3, MC4 groups. The 100% replacement of dietary inorganic Cu and Zn with GC or MC increased (p < 0.05) average daily gain, average daily feed intake, and gain-to-feed ratio. The complete replacement of dietary inorganic Cu and Zn with GC or MC led to enhanced (p < 0.05) digestibility of dry matter, nitrogen, Cu and Zn. Thus, the replacement of inorganic Cu and Zn with GC or MC can improve the growth efficiency and nutrient utilization of weaning pigs.