DETERMINAÇÃO E USO DO CONSUMO RESIDUAL COMO MEDIDA DE EFICIÊNCIA ALIMENTAR DE POEDEIRAS COMERCIAIS
brown, energy partition, laying hens, white
The present research was defined to evaluate the residual feed intake (RFI) nof two genotypes of aged laying hens. A completely randomized design was used, with two treatments and 15 replicates, of one hen per replicate, totaling 30 hens. The treatments consisted of two genetic groups, Brown Hy Line and White-W80 Hy Line. The experimental period lasted five weeks, 85 to 90 weeks of age. Performance, egg quality, biometrics and body composition, energy partition, RFI, and residual metabolizable energy intake (RMEI) were evaluated. The variables of observed feed intake, egg production, and weight gain did not differ between genotypes (P>0.05). The results showed that egg weight was the main responsible for the difference between genotypes, affecting the production for egg mass, yolk weight, and eggshell weight, as well as measures related to the utilization efficiency (P<0.05). Body weight differed between genotypes, favoring differences in the weight of chemical components (protein, fat, water, and minerals) and viscera weight for brown layers (P<0.05). The size of the uterus + vagina was larger for white layers (P<0.05). The partition for maintenance of metabolic weight did not differ between genotypes. The values obtained for RFI and RMEI were lower (P<0.01) for white layers and, therefore, more efficient in the use of feed and energy intake, while brown hens did not present hens with low RFI, and 64.3% of the layers were classified as high RFI. The maximum utilization efficiency value was estimated at 94% for the white layer and 90% for the brown layer, for a scenario with RFI = 0. The differences shown in this research between white and brown layers are smaller than in the past and show a tendency towards similarity, however, the economic impacts of the current differences are significant and must be considered.