• Korean Journal of Poultry Science
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• v.36 no.2
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• pp.139-147
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• 2009

This experiment was conducted to investigate the effect of organic dietary ME and CP on performance, blood composition and meat quality of cross-bred chicks for 15 weeks. Experiments were factorially designed with 3,000, 3,050, and 3,100 kcal of ME/kg, and 21 and 22% CP for the first five weeks; 3,050, 3,100, and 3,150 kcal of ME/kg, and 19 and 20% CP for the second five weeks; and 3,100 and 3,150 kcal of ME/kg, and 17 and 18% CP for the rest of weeks. Each treatment consisted of four replicates. Weight gain increased in treatments with higher ME diets for the first five weeks, but feed intake decreased significantly as dietary ME increased (P<0.05). Feed conversion also improved in chicks fed 3,100 kcal of ME/kg diets compared with those of 3,000, and 3,050 kcal of ME/kg (P<0.05), but was not influenced by dietary protein. Weight gain and feed conversion showed similar tendency for the second five weeks to those of the first five weeks. However, feed conversion improved significantly in 3,100 and 3,150 kcal of ME /kg compared to 3,050 kcal of ME/kg (P<0.05). Dietary protein did not affect the performance at all for this period. Weight gain and feed intake tended to increase in higher ME and lower protein diets from 11 to 15 weeks of age, whereas feed conversion decreased in 3,150 kcal of ME/kg more than 3,000 kcal/kg. No difference was found by CP treatments (P<0.05). There were no interactions in performance, blood composition and meat quality between dietary ME and protein. Further studies need to describe in whole period experiments instead of periodical experiment.