Effects of dietary chromium picolinate on growth, carcass quality and serum lipids of female broilers

The effects of dietary chromium (Cr) picolinate on growth, carcass quality and serum lipids of female broilers were examined. One-day-old female chunky chicks were group fed a commercial diet for 7 days. After then, they were divided into three dietary groups of 20 chicks each, and supplied the experimental diets containing 21.5% crude protein (CP) and 3.100 kcal metabolizable energy (ME)/kg for 14 days, and then 18.3% CP and 3.200 kcal ME/kg for 21 days. To the basal diets Cr picolinate was added 0. 200 or 400 ppb as Cr. Body weight was measured at 1, 3 and 6 weeks of age. Feed intake and feed conversion ratio were measured 2 times from 1 to 3 from 3 to 6 weeks of age. At the end of the trial, total cholesterol and triglyceride in the serum were determined. After feeding trial, chicks were sacrificed for measurement of contents of the abdominal fat, crude fat, CP and moisture of skin-off breast meat and skin-on drumsticks meat. No significant effect of Cr picolinate on body weight gain, feed intake and feed conversion ratio was observed. An increase in the dietary Cr content resulted in a tendency of depression of abdominal fat. The weight of skin-on breast meat and skin-on thigh meat, and percentages of these meats per body weight were not influenced by dietary Cr contents. Crude fat content of skin-off breast meat in the 400 ppb Cr group was lower than in the other groups. The addition of Cr picolinate to the diet resulted in a depression of crude fat content and an increment of moisture in the skin-on drumsticks meat. The CP content of each portion of meat was not affected by the dietary Cr picolinate. Total cholesterol and triglyceride in the serum showed no changes associated with the addition of Cr picolinate to the diet. From these results, it was indicated that dietary Cr picolinate reduced crude fat contents of edible meat without reducing performance of broilers