Effect of dietary supplementation of turmeric (Curcuma longa) powder on the growth performance of the broiler chicken

Different levels on performance traits in broiler (weekly feed intake and feed consumption weekly body weight and body weight gain, the current study was carried out to investigate the effect of turmeric supplementation at two Feed Conversion Ratio (FCR), carcass characteristics, and sensory evaluation of meat. One hundred-day old chicks were randomly assigned to one of four dietary groups, each with five replicates for each five chicks, and were given ad libitum feed and water throughout the experiment to meet nutrient requirements (BIS, 2007). Turmeric was added to the basal diet in pre-starter, starter, and finisher phases, namely basal diet (T1), BD + 0.5% turmeric (T2), BD + 1% turmeric (T3), and BD + 1.5% turmeric powder (T4). Raw turmeric rhizomes were purchased and cleansed to produce turmeric powder. After slicing into thin long pieces, these were cooked in water for 30 minutes and sun dried for 15 days. The dried turmeric was pounded into powder and stored at room temperature before being used in broiler starter and finisher feed for 6 weeks. The overall feed consumption per broiler was highest in the T2 group (3459.4 g) and lowest in the T1 group (3348.7 g). The T3 group had the greatest end body weight per broiler (2231.1 g), followed by the T4 group (2150.4 g), T2 group (2107.5) and T1 group (1971.5 g). The overall FCR of the experimental groups during the entire period was best in the T3 group (1.53), followed by the T4 (1.55), T2 (1.62), and T1 (1.70) groups. T2 (241.36) had the highest production cost per broiler including the added cost of turmeric powder, followed by T4 (239, 91), T3 (237.82) and T1 (229.17) However, the T3 group had the highest gross profit per broiler (52.22), followed by the T4 (39.64), T2 (32.61) and T1 (27.12) groups. Thus, it is concluded that turmeric powder can be utilized effectively and inexpensively as a natural feed addition at a rate of 1.0% in commercial broiler chicken feed to increase overall broiler performance while having no negative effect on broiler output performance.