Palm oil is a natural energy source ingredient in poultry diets that offers a broad range of beneficial effects on the performance of broiler chickens. This review was conducted to highlight the impact of palm oil as a feed ingredient on growth performance and carcass quality, as well as the biochemical, antioxidant activity and tissue fatty acids (FA) composition of broiler chickens. Palm oil inclusion in broiler chickens' rations contributes significantly to the high metabolisable energy (ME) of feed formulation, increases feed palatability and decreases digesta passage rate in the intestine. The reviewed literature indicated that dietary palm oil has a beneficial effect on broiler chickens' overall growth performance traits. The addition of palm oil can also improve the heat tolerance of chickens reared in high ambient temperature conditions. Regardless of breed and breeding conditions, palm oil exhibits good oxidative stability in broiler chickens due to the presence of prevalent phytonutrient elements in this oil. The inclusion of palm oil increased palmitic (C16:0) and oleic (C18:1) acids in tissue deposits, which improves meat stability and quality. Moreover, molecular studies have revealed that higher mRNA expression of several lipid-related hepatic genes in broiler chickens fed palm oil. Nonetheless, dietary palm oil can influence FA deposition in tissues, modulate lipoprotein and triglycerides (TG) levels, and cytokine contents in the blood serum of broiler chickens.
Understanding the nature of ruminant nutrition and digestion is essential to improve feeding management and animal production. Among many approaches, manipulating ruminant nutrition and fermentation through feed supplementation is being practised and researched. Over the last decade, the utilization of vegetable oils in feed formulation and their effects on various aspects of ruminants have been reported by many researchers. It is important to understand the lipid metabolism in ruminants by microorganisms because it affects the quality of ruminant-derived products such as meat and milk. Majority of vegetable oil supplementation could reduce rumen protozoa population in ruminants due to the effects of medium-chain fatty acids (FAs). However, vegetable oil also contains unsaturated FAs that are known to have a negative effect on cellulolytic bacteria which could show inhibitory effects of the fibre digestion. In this paper, the physiology of nutrient digestion of ruminants is described. This paper also provides a current review of studies done on improvement and modification of rumen fermentation and microbial population through vegetable oil supplementation.
Ammoniation of oil palm frond (OPF) with non-protein nitrogen (N) sources has been shown to improve the nutritional value and digestibility of OPF in ruminants. This study evaluated the effect of treating OPF without (control) or with different urea levels (1%-5%) on chemical composition and in vitro gas production, digestibility and fermentation properties using goat rumen fluids. The results showed that the treated OPF with urea (1%-5%) had significantly lower (p