Effect of pelleting on nutrients and energy digestibility in growing pigs fed corn-soybean meal-based diet or diet containing corn distillers dried grains with solubles (cDDGS), wheat middlings and bakery meal
This study was conducted to determine the effect of pelleting and diet type on the apparent ileal (AID) and total tract digestibility (ATTD) of nutrients and energy in growing pigs. Six pigs were cannulated at the ileum and were assigned to treatments following a crossover design. One diet was a control diet based of corn and soybean meal (CT). Part of it was replaced by corn distillers dried grains with solubles (cDDGS), wheat middlings and bakery meal in the second diet (ByP). Diets were in mash (CT-MH and ByP-MH) or pelleted (CT-PT and ByP-PT) form. Results showed that pelleting increased digestibility in all diets with a distinct effect on the CT diet (interaction Diet x Pelleting, P < 0.05). Pelleting improved the AID of DM, CP and energy by 17, 27 and 17% in the CT diet and by 10, 9 and 17% in the ByP diet (P < 0.01). The AID of AA followed the effect observed on CP (P < 0.01). Pelleting increased AID of total NSP for the CT diet by 63% and 42% for the ByP diet (P < 0.01). The pelleting conditions improved the degradability of the compounds in the diets during digestion in pigs.