Carcass yield and sensorial analysis of meat from broiler chicken fed with tilapia byproducts meal

There are several ingredients that can replace those commonly used in the manufacture of animal ration in order to reduce production costs, as tilapia by products meal. However, as byproducts, more studies should be done to achieve the exact effects over the final product. An experiment was carried out aiming at evaluate the effects of the inclusion of five different levels (0%, 2%, 4%, 6% and 8%) of tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus) byproducts meal (TM) on poultry diets on carcass yield and sensory characteristics of broiler chicken meat. 480 one day old chicks, Cobb strain, were used to set the experiment with five treatments arranged in completely randomized design, with six replicates, and 16 birds per experimental unit. At the end of the experiment (42 days), the carcass yield parameters, breasts, drumsticks, thighs, wings, relative weight of the liver, and percent of abdominal fat were evaluated. A sensorial test of the meat was performed by 45 non-trained testers. The samples were evaluated using a structured hedonic scale, comprising nine steps to characterize the following senses: aroma, flavor, color, texture and whole quality. The addition of 8% TM to the diet fed to broiler chickens during total rearing period (1 to 42 days) is feasible without altering yield and sensorial quality of the meat.