Effect of Whole Wheat Dilution on Performance and Carcass Characteristics of Male Turkeys

Transcription

1 2003 Poultry Science Association, Inc. Effect of Whole Wheat Dilution on Performance and Carcass Characteristics of Male Turkeys C. D. Bennett*,1,2 and H. L. Classen* *Department of Animal and Poultry Science, University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada, S7N 5B5; University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada, S7N 5B4 Primary Audience: Nutritionists, Researchers, Feed Manufacturers SUMMARY Field trials and published research suggest that it is possible to dilute commercial turkey and broiler chicken rations with whole wheat and suffer little or no loss in performance. It has been hypothesized that birds fed whole wheat have improved gizzard health and are able to self-select whole grain to better meet their individual nutritional needs. In 6 dietary treatments, the effect of diluting turkey diets with different amounts of whole and pelleted wheat was investigated. In the diets diluted with whole wheat, the whole wheat was blended with the other feed ingredients after they had been steam pelleted. In the diets diluted with pelleted wheat, the extra wheat used to dilute the rations was ground and then blended with the other ingredients prior to pelleting. The influence of adding extra synthetic amino acids to diluted diets was also studied. All diets were supplemented with a commercial feed enzyme. Dilution, without extra synthetic amino acid supplementation, resulted in large reductions in body weight, feed efficiency, and breast meat yield. At the highest level of dilution, where whole wheat dilution was 50% of the diet, body weight and weight of breast meat per bird were reduced by 15 and 20%, respectively. No advantage was observed in diluting with whole wheat compared with pelleted wheat. Addition of extra synthetic amino acids restored 66% of the body weight and 56% of the breast meat lost at the highest level of whole wheat dilution. These results suggest that reports of successful dilution of poultry rations are more likely due to formulation with excess nutrient levels of the undiluted diets rather than to a specific benefit to feeding whole grain. Key words: turkey, feed form, whole grain, whole wheat dilution 2003 J. Appl. Poult. Res. 12: DESCRIPTION OF PROBLEM In Europe, Australia and Canada, poultry producers have sought to reduce feed ingredient and handling costs by adding whole wheat to poultry rations on farm [1, 2]. Results from field trials indicate turkey diets can be diluted with whole grain with little or no loss in performance [3]. Research trials with broiler chickens have demonstrated no significant decrease in weight gain when the feed is diluted with up to 30% whole wheat [4, 5], 30% whole hulless barley [6], or 30% whole hulless oats [7]. Without dilution, turkeys have been successfully fed diets 1 Present Address: Manitoba Agriculture, Food, and Rural Initiatives, 545 University Crescent, Winnipeg, MB R3T 5S6. 2 To whom correspondence should be addressed: cbennett@gov.mb.ca.

2 BENNETT ET AL.: WHOLE WHEAT DILUTION 469 containing up to 50% whole wheat or 50% whole barley [8, 9]. It has been hypothesized that feeding whole grain will improve bird health [1] or gizzard function [3]. Some researchers have speculated that whole grain diets can be successfully fed to poultry because the birds select whole grain and pellets from the feed trough in the proportions that best meet their individual nutritional needs [2]. If these theories are correct, birds may perform better on rations diluted with whole wheat compared with rations diluted with wheat that has been ground and incorporated into pellets with the rest of the feed ingredients. The present study investigated the effect of diluting turkey tom diets with whole wheat on live performance and carcass characteristics. Dilution with whole wheat was further compared with dilution by incorporating extra wheat into the complete pelleted diet. The turkeys may have been able to self-select whole grain and pellets from the feed diluted with whole wheat. In the diets diluted with pelleted wheat, self-selection was not possible because the extra wheat was ground and mixed with the other feed ingredients prior to pelleting to form one complete ration. The possibility of fortifying turkey diets with extra synthetic amino acids to overcome any negative impact of whole wheat dilution was also investigated. MATERIALS AND METHODS A total of 1,080 male Hybrid Turkey 1-dold poults were housed in 6 environmentally controlled rooms, with 6 pens (2.3 m 4.0 m) per room and 30 poults in each of the pens. Straw was used as a bedding material. During the first 11 d, supplemental heat was provided by hot water pipes (room temperature of 30 C) and one electric lamp (250-W bulb) per pen. The toms were kept in rings inside each pen until 11 d. At 11 d, the heat lamp was removed, and room temperature was gradually reduced to 16 C by 62 d. Birds were reared under an increasing lighting program [10]. From 0 to 20 d, all birds were fed a crumbled prestarter diet formulated to NRC [11] specifications for amino acids and metabolizable energy. Poults dying during this period were replaced with extra poults fed the same prestarter diet. The experimental period of the trial was 20 to 117 d. At 20 d, one pen per room was randomly assigned to 1 of 6 treatments. In 3 of these treatments, whole grain was fed. To train their gizzards to grind whole wheat, turkeys in the whole grain treatments were fed a starter diet containing 5% whole wheat from 20 to 41 d (Table 1). Turkeys in the remaining treatments were fed a similar diet containing 0% whole wheat. Both diets were formulated to NRC specifications for amino acids and metabolizable energy. The 5% whole wheat starter diet was fed as a mixture of whole wheat and crumbles, and the 0% whole wheat starter diet was fed as crumbles. No dilution occurred, and the only difference between the starter diets was feed form. No insoluble grit was supplied during this period or at any other time during the trial. Throughout the trial, all diets were supplemented with a commercial feed enzyme with α-amylase, xylanase, protease, and pectinase activity [12]. At 41 d, dilution with whole or pelleted wheat was initiated. Turkeys on the control treatment (Trt 1) were fed pelleted diets formulated to the amino acid and metabolizable energy specifications of NRC (Table 1). Control birds were fed grower 1 from 41 to 62 d, grower 2 from 62 to 83 d, and finisher from 83 to 117 d. The birds on the remaining treatments were fed diets formulated by diluting the control diets with whole or pelleted wheat. The portion of each diet that was not fed as whole grain was steam-pelleted and fed in pelleted form. Any wheat included in the diets in excess of the amount of whole wheat added was ground and incorporated into the pellets. The whole wheat diets were produced by blending together the whole wheat and pellets in a ribbon mixer. In treatments where the feed was diluted with pelleted wheat, the wheat used to dilute the feed was ground and then mixed with the other ingredients prior to pelleting. Six types of wheat dilution were compared: Trt 1, control no dilution; Trt 2, medium whole wheat dilution dilution by adding 15% whole wheat at 41 d, 20% at 62 d, and 35% at 83 d; Trt 3, high whole wheat dilution dilution by adding 15% whole wheat at 41 d, 35% at 62 d, and 50% at 83 d; Trt 4, medium pelleted wheat dilution dilution with pelleted instead of whole wheat at the same levels and ages as Trt 2; Trt 5, high whole wheat dilution dilution with

3 470 JAPR: Research Report TABLE 1. Percentage ingredient composition of starter, grower, and finisher diets Starter, 20 to 41 d Grower 1, 41 to 62 d Grower 2, 62 to 83 d Finisher, 83 to 117 d Trt 1, Trt 2, Trt 2 Trt 4 Treatment 4 and 5 3 and 6 Trt 1 and 3 and 5 Trt 6 Trt 1 Trt 2 Trt 3 Trt 4 Trt 5 Trt 6 Trt 1 Trt 2 Trt 3 Trt 4 Trt 5 Trt 6 Ingredient Whole wheat Ground wheat Soybean meal Meat meal Limestone Dicalcium phosphate Tallow Canola oil Salt DL-Methionine Lysine HCL L-Threonine Stafac 22 A Coccidiostat B Ethoxyquin C Vitamin-mineral mix D Feed enzyme E Pellet binder F Calculated analysis Crude protein, % ME, kcal /kg 2,900 2,900 3,000 2,994 2,994 2,983 3,100 3,067 3,054 3,067 3,054 3,037 3,200 3,120 3,085 3,120 3,085 3,069 Calcium, % Av. phosphorous, % Methionine + cystine, % Lysine, % Threonine, % Sodium, % A Virginiamycin, 22g/kg premix, Pfizer Canada Inc., London, ON, Canada. B Coban 60, 60 g/lb monensin sodium premix, Elanco Animal Health, Guelph, ON, Canada. C Monsanto, St. Louis, MO. D The vitamin-mineral premix supplied per kilogram of complete feed: 15,000 IU vitamin A; 4,500 IU vitamin D 3; 48 IU vitamin E; 4.5 mg menadione; 3 mg thiamine; 12 mg riboflavin; 180 mg niacin; 6 mg pyridoxine; 0.03 mg vitamin B12; 24 mg pantothenic acid; 2.1 mg folic acid; 0.3 mg biotin; 600 mg choline; 30 mg vitamin C; mg antioxidant; 100 mg iron; 100 mg zinc; 100 mg manganese; 25 mg copper; 2 mg iodine; 1 mg cobalt; 0.3 mg selenium. E Avizyme TX, Finnfeed International, Marlborough, Wiltshire, UK. Enzyme activities: α-amylase, 500 U/g; xylanase, 400 U/g; protease, 500 U/g; pectinase, 50 U/g. F Agri-colloid binder, Swift Adhesives, Edmonton, AB, Canada.

4 BENNETT ET AL.: WHOLE WHEAT DILUTION 471 pelleted instead of whole wheat at the same levels and ages as Trt 3; and Trt 6, high whole wheat dilution with extra synthetic amino acids dilution with whole wheat at the same ages and levels as Trt 3 except that extra synthetic amino acids were added to the feed. In Trt 2 and 3, the diluted feed was formulated by reducing the soybean meal, added fat, ground wheat, and synthetic amino acids in the control rations and replacing them with whole wheat. Each of these ingredients was decreased in proportion to the amount found in the control rations. The remaining ingredients in the feed, instead of being reduced, were adjusted such that the levels of calcium, available phosphorous, and sodium as well as the inclusion rate of the vitamins, minerals, medications and other microingredients were maintained at the same levels as in the control diets. The diets in Trt 4 and 5 were diluted in a similar manner except that the extra wheat was ground and incorporated into the pellets. In Trt 6, the feed was diluted the same way as in Trt 3 except that the synthetic amino acids were not decreased as the whole wheat was added. Instead, lysine HCl, DL-methionine, and L-threonine were supplemented to supply the same levels of lysine, methionine plus cystine, and threonine as the control diet. Birds and feed were weighed on a pen basis at each feed change. Feed-to-gain ratios were calculated using the above data with a correction for mortality in which the weight of the dead birds was included in the pen weight at the end of each period. Dead birds were recorded and weighed daily. At 118 d, 30 birds per treatment (5 per replicate) were randomly selected and processed at a commercial processing plant. After evisceration, the carcasses were packed in ice and stored at 1 C for 2 d prior to meat yield detemination. The following carcass components were weighed: whole carcass (neck excluded), pectoralis major, pectoralis minor, breast skin, keel bone, thigh meat, thigh skin, thigh bone (femur), drumsticks (skin and bone included), wings (skin and bone included), and rack (carcass remaining after removal of breast, wings, and legs). Statistical analyses were computed using SAS software [13]. Response variables were analyzed as a two-way analysis of variance with diet and room as the independent variables. Where appropriate, means were separated using Duncan s multiple range test, and differences were considered significant at P < RESULTS AND DISCUSSION Dilution Without Extra Synthetic Amino Acids Reports from field trials in Europe indicate that poultry diets can be diluted with whole grain with little or no loss in live performance [1, 3]. These reports have encouraged the use of whole wheat dilution in Canada, Australia, and other poultry producing regions. The progressive decline in body weight and feed efficiency as the feed was diluted with wheat in the present research provides a significant contrast to the European experience (Table 2). The effect of dilution was greatest in treatments for which no extra synthetic amino acids were added to the feed (Trt 2 to 5). Even 15% dilution of feed formulated to NRC specifications caused a loss in body weight (Trt 2 to 5 vs. Trt 1) at 62 d and feed efficiency (Trt 3 vs. Trt 1) from 41 to 62 d. As dilution was increased after 62 d, the loss in body weight and feed efficiency became progressively greater. At 83 and 117 d, birds fed the control rations (Trt 1) had the highest body weights, and those fed diets diluted with a high level of whole or pelleted wheat (Trt 3 and 5) had the lowest body weights compared with birds on the other treatments. From 62 d to the end of the trial, control birds (Trt 1) had a significantly lower feed-to-gain ratio than birds on the other treatments (the only exception being Trt 4 from 62 to 83 d). During the same period, toms fed diets diluted with a medium level of whole wheat had a lower feed-to-gain ratio than those fed diets diluted with a high level of whole wheat (Trt 2 vs. 3). A similar effect on feed efficiency was observed between dilution with medium and high levels of pelleted wheat (Trt 4 vs. 5). Birds fed the control diets had a lower cumulative feed-to-gain ratio than birds fed diets diluted with any level of whole or pelleted wheat. Dilution with a high level of whole wheat (Trt 3) resulted in a cumulative feed-to-gain ratio higher than any other treatment. The marked loss in performance agrees with practical experience reported when diluting chicken diets in Australia [1].

5 472 JAPR: Research Report TABLE 2. Effect of dilution with whole and pelleted wheat on body weight, feed-to-gain ratio, and mortality Treatment A Age, d SEM Body weight, kg a 5.40 b 5.33 b 5.39 b 5.43 b 5.52 ab a 8.70 b 8.16 c 8.61 b 8.31 c 8.85 b a bc d c d b Feed-to-gain ratio cd 1.57 abc 1.58 ab 1.46 d 1.49 bcd 1.61 a b 1.95 ab 1.83 b 2.02 a 1.83 b 1.79 b d 2.41 c 2.68 a 2.36 cd 2.55 b 2.50 b d 3.25 bc 3.50 a 3.15 c 3.38 ab 3.22 bc c 2.44 b 2.51 a 2.37 b 2.41 b 2.42 b Mortality, % a d Means within a row with different superscripts are significantly different, P < A Trt 1 = 0% whole wheat; Trt 2 = 5% whole wheat at 20 d and 15% whole wheat dilution at 41 d, 20% at 62 d, and 35% at 83 d; Trt 3 = 5% whole wheat at 20 d and 15% whole wheat dilution at 41 d, 35% at 62 d, and 50% at 83 d; Trt 4 = Trt 2 replicated using pelleted wheat; Trt 5 = Trt 3 replicated using pelleted wheat ; Trt 6 = Trt 3 with extra synthetic amino acids. Dilution of the feed without extra amino acid supplementation (Trt 2 to 5) reduced carcass weight and meat yield at 118 d (Table 3). Compared with toms fed the control diets, toms fed diets diluted with a medium level of whole or pelleted wheat (Trt 3 and 5) had significantly lower carcass weight, carcass yield and yield of pectoralis major, total breast meat, and total breast plus thigh meat. These birds had a higher yield of wings and drumsticks than the control birds. The trend was the same with a high level of dilution (Trt 2 and 4) except that the yield of pectoralis minor was also reduced compared with that of birds fed the control rations. The loss in breast meat is consistent with lower crude protein and lysine contents of the diluted diets. The diluted diets also had a lower level of added fat but fat level in the diet would not be expected to negatively effect breast meat yield [14, 15, 16]. The lower level of added fat in the diets diluted with wheat could have contributed to the reduction in body weight. Decreased body weight has been previously observed when added fat, as a percentage of the diet, has been decreased by 4 to 6% [17, 18, 19]. In the present study, however, the difference in fat content between the control and diluted diets was comparatively small. Between the control and most diluted rations, the difference in added fat content was 0.6% in grower 1, 1.5% in grower 2, and 2.7% in the finisher diet. In 2 Iowa State University studies, fat levels similar to those in the present research were fed to turkey toms and hens in corn- and milo-based diets [20, 21]. In a series of trials in each study, diets containing 3 and 5% or 2 and 4% added fat were compared. At the lower level of added fat, an average reduction in body weight of 2.1% was observed in the first study and 1.1% in the second study. In research with wheatbased rations, Salmon [14] fed mash and pelleted diets containing 3 and 6% added fat diets to Small White turkeys and observed a greater impact of added fat with the mash diets. The lower fat level resulted in a 0.6% reduction in body weight with pelleted diets and 4.8% with mash diets. In the present research, the reduction in body weight at the high level of dilution (approximately 14% in Trts 3 and 5) was much greater than would be expected due to the lower added fat levels. In Trt 6, in which extra synthetic amino acids were added to the diluted ration, the reduction in body weight was only 4.9%, and this small reduction might be explained by the lower level of added fat in the diet. Influence of Extra Synthetic Amino Acids Adding extra synthetic amino acids (Trt 6) restored much of the bird performance lost at

6 BENNETT ET AL.: WHOLE WHEAT DILUTION 473 TABLE 3. Effect of dilution with whole and pelleted wheat on carcass weight, carcass yield, and meat yield Treatment A Item SEM Weight (kg/bird) Live weight a b c b c ab Eviscerated weight a bc 9.72 d c 9.59 d b Yield as a percentage of live weight Eviscerated weight a b bc bc c b Yield as a percentage of eviscerated carcass (%) Pectoralis major a bc bc bc c ab Pectoralis minor 5.45 a 5.22 abc 5.17 bc 5.37 ab 5.17 bc 5.13 c Breast skin Breast total a b bc b c b Thigh meat ab ab b ab ab a Thigh bone 1.80 c 2.02 ab 2.15 a 2.06 a 2.14 a 1.93 b Thigh skin Breast and thigh meats a bc cd bc d ab Total bone Wings c a a ab a bc Drumsticks c ab a ab ab bc Keel Rack Abdominal fat a d Means within a row with different superscripts are significantly different, P < A Trt 1 = 0% whole wheat; Trt 2 = 5% whole wheat at 20 d and 15% whole wheat dilution at 41 d, 20% at 62 d, and 35% at 83 d; Trt 3 = 5% whole wheat at 20 d and 15% whole wheat dilution at 41 d, 35% at 62 d, and 50% at 83 d; Trt 4 = Trt 2 replicated using pelleted wheat; Trt 5 = Trt 3 replicated using pelleted wheat ; Trt 6 = Trt 3 with extra synthetic amino acids. the high level of whole wheat dilution (Tables 2 and 3), with final body weights being significantly greater than toms fed diets diluted with high levels of whole or pelleted wheat without extra synthetic amino acids (Trt 6 vs. Trt 3 and 5). Body weight of the birds on Trt 6 at the end of the trial was also greater than birds fed diets diluted with a medium level of pelleted wheat (Trt 4). The extra synthetic amino acids improved feed efficiency but did not restore it to the same level as the control rations. At 62 to 83 d and 83 to 117 d, birds on Trt 6 had significantly lower feed-to-gain ratios than those fed the same level of whole wheat without extra synthetic amino acids (Trt 3). The cumulative feed-to-gain ratio of the birds in Trt 6 was similar to those reared on a medium level of whole wheat dilution (Trt 2) and lower than for birds reared on the high level of whole wheat dilution without extra synthetic amino acids (Trt 3). Supplementation with extra synthetic amino acids restored the percentage of pectoralis major and total breast plus thigh meat to match that in the undiluted controls. The percentage yield of wings and drumsticks of carcasses from Trt 6 was also similar to that of the control treatment. Addition of extra synthetic amino acids to diluted diets had no effect on total mortality. The improvement in growth rate and recovery in breast meat yield, when extra synthetic amino acids were added to the diluted feed, indicates that amino acid deficiency is one of the major causes of lost performance when feed is diluted with whole wheat. It has been suggested that positive experience with whole wheat dilution in commercial flocks could be due to over-formulation of the feed [1]. Dilution with Whole Versus Pelleted Wheat It has been hypothesized that birds fed whole wheat have the nutritional advantage of selfselecting from the feed trough the amount of whole wheat and pellets that meet their individual nutritional needs [2]. Research reported in the popular press has also indicated that a bird s gizzard can grind whole grain more effectively than a hammer mill, and the starch digestibity

7 474 JAPR: Research Report of wheat fed as whole grain is greater than for ground wheat [22]. If self-selection or increased starch digestibility theories are true, it would be expected that birds would perform better when fed diets diluted with whole wheat compared with pelleted wheat. In the present studies, the form of wheat used to dilute the diets had only a limited effect on bird performance (Tables 2 and 3). At the medium level of dilution (Trt 2 vs. Trt 4), no differences were observed in body weight, feed conversion, mortality, or carcass characteristics of turkeys fed diets diluted with whole or pelleted wheat [23]. At the high level of dilution (Trt 3 and 5), body weight, mortality, and carcass characteristics were similarly unaffected, but feed efficiency was impaired by dilu- CONCLUSIONS AND APPLICATIONS 1. No advantage was observed in diluting turkey diets with whole wheat blended with the other ingredients in pelleted form compared with dilution with extra wheat that was ground and then pelleted with the other feed ingredients. 2. Dilution of turkey diets with whole wheat or pelleted wheat markedly decreased body weight, feed efficiency, carcass yield, and breast meat yield. At the highest level of dilution, body weight was decreased by 15% and breast meat by 20%. 3. Supplementing diluted diets with extra lysine HCl, DL-methionine, and L-threonine restored 66% of the body weight gain and 56% of the breast meat lost due to dilution. 4. The positive experience with whole wheat dilution reported in the popular press has sometimes been attributed to a nutritional advantage from feeding whole wheat compared with pelleted wheat. The results of the present research do not support this theory. Excess nutrients in the undiluted diets would appear to be a more likely explanation for why some poultry companies have been able to dilute turkey feed with little or no loss in performance. 1. Cumming, R. B Opportunities for whole grain feeding. Pages in Proc. 9th Eur. Poult. Conf. Vol. 2., WPSA (UK Branch), Glasgow, Scotland. 2. Forbes, J. M., and M. Covasa Application of diet selection by poultry with particular reference to whole cereals. World s Poult. Sci. J. 51: Ferket, P Feeding whole grains to poultry improves gut health. Feedstuffs 72(37):12 13, Covasa, M., and J. M. Forbes Performance of broiler chickens as effected by split time feeding and wheat-diluted diet. Pages in Proc. 9th Eur. Poult. Conf. Vol. 2. WPSA (UK Branch), Glasgow, Scotland. 5. Bennett, C. D., H. L. Classen, and C. Riddell Live performance and health of broiler chickens fed diets diluted with whole or crumbled wheat. Can. J. Anim. Sci. 75: Atlantic Poultry Research Institute Evaluating whole hulless barley feeding for broiler chickens. APRI Facts, Factsheet #13. Atlantic Poultry Research Institute, Truro, Nova Scotia. REFERENCES AND NOTES tion with whole wheat. Dilution with a high level of whole wheat increased feed-to-gain ratio from 62 to 83 d and cumulatively from 20 to 117 d compared with dilution with a high level of pelleted wheat (Trt 3 vs. 5). No advantage was observed in diluting turkey diets with whole versus pelleted wheat. The absence of insoluble grit from the diet may have contributed to reduced feed efficiency when diluting with a high level of whole wheat. Research with turkeys and broiler chickens fed whole barley, however, has not revealed a benefit to feeding insoluble grit [9, 24]. It is possible that inadequate gizzard muscle mass, and not a lack of grit, accounted for the reduced feed efficiency on the high level of whole wheat [9]. 7. Atlantic Poultry Research Institute Evaluating whole hulless oats feeding for broiler chickens. APRI Facts, Factsheet #15. Atlantic Poultry Research Institute, Truro, Nova Scotia. 8. Bennett, C. D., and H. L. Classen Feeding whole wheat to turkey toms. Poult. Sci. 76(Suppl. 1):80. (Abstr.) 9. Bennett, C. D., H. L. Classen, K. Schwean, and C. Riddell Influence of whole barley and grit on live performance and health of turkey toms. Poult. Sci. 81: Classen, H. L., C. Riddell, F. E. Robinson, P. J. Shand, and A. R. McCurdy Effect of lighting treatment on the productivity, health, behaviour and sexual maturity of heavy male turkeys. Br. Poult. Sci. 35: National Research Council Nutrient Requirements of Poultry. 9th rev. ed. Nat. Acad. Press, Washington, DC. 12. Avizyme TX, Finnfeed International, Marlborough, Wiltshire, UK. 13. SAS Institute Inc SAS User s Guide: Statistics. SAS Institute Inc., Cary, NC.

8 BENNETT ET AL.: WHOLE WHEAT DILUTION Salmon, R. E Effects of pelleting, added sodium bentonite and fat in a wheat-based diet on performance and carcass characteristics of Small White turkeys. Anim. Feed Sci. Technol. 12: Blair, M. E., L. M. Potter, and R. M. Hulet Effects of dietary protein and added fat on turkeys varying in strain, sex, and age. 2. Carcass characteristics. Poult. Sci. 68: Ferket, P. R., and J. L. Sell Effect of early protein and energy restriction of Large turkey toms fed high-fat or low-fat realimentation diets. 2. Carcass characteristics. Poult. Sci. 69: Hurwitz, S., I. Plavnik, I. Bengal, and I. Bartov Response of growing turkeys to dietary fat. Poult. Sci. 67: Blair, M. E., and L. M. Potter Effects of varying fat and protein in diets of growing Large White turkeys. 1. Body weights and feed efficiencies. Poult. Sci. 67: Ferket, P. R., and J. L. Sell Effect of early protein and energy restriction of Large turkey toms fed high-fat or lowfat realimentation diets. 1. Performance characterisitics. Poult. Sci. 69: Sell, J. L., and W. J. Owings, Supplemental fat and metabolizable energy-to-nutrient ratios for growing turkeys. Poult. Sci. 60: Owings, W. J., and J. L. Sell Performance of growing turkey hens as influenced by supplemental dietary fat and different ME:nutrient ratios. Poult. Sci. 61: Svihus, B Norwegian poultry industry converts to whole grain pellets. Feed Technol. 5(10): Prior to start of dilution, turkeys on Trt 2 were fed a 5% whole wheat starter from 20 to 41 d and had higher feed-to-gain ratios than turkeys on Trt 4 fed a 0% whole wheat starter. A problem observed with the starter diet containing whole grain was that the crumbled portion of the diet appeared to break up as it was blended with the whole grain, and an elevated level of fines was observed (20% of the diet would pass through as 1.00-mm sieve). The pelleted grower and finisher diets fed at 41 to 117 d were much more durable, and fines were not a problem. After dilution was started at 41 d, turkeys in Trt 2 and 4 had similar feed efficiency. 24. Svihus, B., O. Herstad, C. W. Newman, and R. K. Newman Comparison of performance and intestinal characteristics of broiler chickens fed on diets containing whole, rolled or ground barley. Br. Poult. Sci. 38: Acknowledgments Funding for this research was provided by the Agriculture Development Fund of Saskatchewan Agriculture and Food, Canadian Turkey Marketing Agency and Saskatchewan Wheat Pool. The expert technical assistance of Robert Gonda, Karen Schwean, and the Poultry Centre staff is gratefully acknowledged.