The use of Moringa oleifera in Poultry Feeds

Abstract

As in other livestock breeding sectors, feed costs constitute the most important part of the costs of poultry farming. In particular, feed costs, which have become increasingly important, difficult to find and expensive in many developing countries, have led to the closure of many small-scale poultry farms and increased the total cost of poultry production. This situation leads to an increase in the prices of poultry products such as chicken meat and eggs, as well as a decrease in the consumption and purchasing power of poultry meat and products, which are the primary source of animal protein in many developing and underdeveloped countries leading to many negative situations such as inadequate and unbalanced nutrition. The search for an alternative feedstuff is very important in order to reduce feed costs and the total cost of the products obtained from poultry. Moringa oleifera, native to Asia, is one of the plants that is rich in nutrients and can replace some of the feedstuffs that can be used in traditional animal rations such as soybean and corn. Many studies have been conducted in Africa and Asia investigating the effect of Moringa oleifera on poultry performance and economic efficiency. It has been reported that the inclusion of a certain amount of Moringa seeds or leaves in the ration improves production performance, meat quality, animal health and welfare, but when higher amounts are used, it may affect the perfortmance of the animal leading to a decrease in production and welfare parameters. Studies have shown that the addition of Moringa between 5-10% to poultry ration has a positive effect on performance, however, higher levels than 10% may deteriorate the performance of the animal. This review conducted to provide information on the use of Moringa leaves and seeds in ration of broiler chicken and layer hen and its influence on perfromance.