Interpretive Summary: Net energy value of canola meal, field pea, and wheat millrun fed to growing-finishing pigs

By: Dr. Emily Taylor

Energy is the most expensive component of swine diets; thus, optimizing energy utilization is needed to reduce costs. One way to maximize utilization is matching dietary energy supply to its requirements by pigs. Energy values of certain feedstuffs are critical to making this match. In North America, canola meal, field pea, and wheat millrun (WE) are alternatives to soybean meal (SBM) and cereal grain. Therefore, the objective of the current study was to determine the NE value for SBM, Napus canola meal (NCM), Juncea canola meal (JCM), field pea, and WM using indirect calorimetry (experiment 1). Furthermore, researchers aimed to utilize these feedstuffs in the diets of growing pigs and then compare the determined NE values with the calculated NE values (experiment 2). 

Determined NE values were based on DE and macronutrient composition. SBM, NCM, and JCM did not differ in determined NE values. Field pea and WM also did not differ in NE value. The equation used to calculate NE values was adopted that by the 2012 NRC. Calculated SBM, NCM, and JCM NE values did not differ from the corresponding determined NE values of the same feedstuff. However, the calculated NE value for field pea was greater than the determined NE value, and the calculated NE value of WM tended to be lower than the determined NE value.

In conclusion, researchers determined that the NE value for SBM, NCM, and JCM can be predicted based on the DE value and the macronutrient composition of the same feedstuffs.

This article is available on the Journal of Animal Science.