Bakery waste as a sustainable feed resource for growing Awassi lambs: Effects on growth performance, nutrient utilization, carcass traits, meat quality, and health indicators.
- 1Department of Animal Production, Faculty of Agriculture, Jordan University of Science and Technology, P.O. Box 3030, Irbid 22110, Jordan.
- 2Department of Nutrition and Food Technology, Faculty of Agriculture, Jordan University of Science and Technology, P.O. Box 3030, Irbid 22110, Jordan.
- 3School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Universiti Sains Malaysia, 11800 Pulau Pinang, Malaysia.
Abstract
Background and aim
Bakery waste (BAWA) represents a potentially economical and sustainable alternative feed resource for ruminant production, particularly in regions where conventional feed ingredients are costly or scarce. This study evaluated the effects of dietary BAWA inclusion on nutrient intake and digestibility, growth performance, nitrogen (N) balance, economic efficiency, carcass characteristics, meat quality, fatty acid (FA) composition, and blood biochemical indicators in growing Awassi lambs.Materials and methods
Twenty-four male Awassi lambs (initial body weight, 17.33 ± 0.821 kg; age, 75 ± 1.5 days) were randomly allocated to three dietary treatments (n = 8/group): control (CON; 0 g/kg BAWA), BAWA100 (100 g/kg BAWA), and BAWA200 (200 g/kg BAWA) on a dry matter (DM) basis. The 73-day experiment comprised 10 days of adaptation and 63 days of data collection. Nutrient intake, growth performance, feed efficiency, and feeding costs were determined. Five lambs per group were used for digestibility and N balance assessment. Carcass characteristics, meat quality, FA composition, and serum biochemical indicators were also evaluated.Results
BAWA100 and BAWA200 increased DM, crude protein (CP), and metabolizable energy intake compared with CON (p < 0.02). BAWA200 increased final body weight, total gain, and average daily gain and improved feed efficiency (p ≤ 0.007). The cost of gain was lower with BAWA200 (p < 0.001). DM and CP digestibility increased with BAWA200, while N retention improved with both BAWA treatments (p < 0.05). Fasting live weight, hot and cold carcass weights, and carcass cut weights were greater with BAWA200 (p ≤ 0.03). Dietary BAWA did not adversely affect meat quality or FA composition. Most serum biochemical indicators remained unaffected, whereas aspartate aminotransferase was numerically lower (p = 0.051) and alanine aminotransferase activities were lower in BAWA-fed lambs (p ≤ 0.05).Conclusion
Dietary inclusion of BAWA, particularly at 200 g/kg DM, improved growth performance, nutrient utilization, N retention, carcass yield, feed efficiency, and economic outcomes without compromising meat quality, FA composition, or health indicators. BAWA can therefore serve as a practical alternative to conventional concentrate ingredients in growing Awassi lamb diets while supporting more economical and sustainable small-ruminant production.
Related
- Effects of reduced dietary crude protein supplemented with crystalline amino acids on productive performance, egg quality, nutrient utilization, and cecal microbiota of Jinding laying ducks
- Effects of Partial Fishmeal Replacement With Methanotrophic Bacterial Protein (Methylococcus capsulatus) in Siberian Sturgeon (Acipenser baerii) on Growth Performance, Nutrient Utilization, Body Composition, Immune Responses, Liver Histology, Gene Expression, and Gut Microbiota
- Independent effects of phytase and β-mannanase on growth performance and nutrient utilization in broilers fed phosphorus-deficient diets without supplemental inorganic phosphorus.
- Drip Irrigation and Fertilization Strategies Shape Soil Bacterial Community and Nutrient Utilization in Summer Peanut
- Increased nutrient diversity can induce loss of microbial diversity through enhanced resource uptake
BibTeX
@article{obeidat2026bakery,
title = {{Bakery waste as a sustainable feed resource for growing Awassi lambs: Effects on growth performance, nutrient utilization, carcass traits, meat quality, and health indicators.}},
author = {Belal S Obeidat and Hadil S Subih and Linda Alyahya},
journal = {Veterinary world},
year = {2026},
month = sep,
doi = {10.14202/vetworld.2026.4230-4243},
url = {https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42928740},
note = {CC BY},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Bakery waste as a sustainable feed resource for growing Awassi lambs: Effects on growth performance, nutrient utilization, carcass traits, meat quality, and health indicators.
AU - Belal S Obeidat
AU - Hadil S Subih
AU - Linda Alyahya
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/09/24
JO - Veterinary world
DO - 10.14202/vetworld.2026.4230-4243
UR - https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42928740
AB - Background and aim Bakery waste (BAWA) represents a potentially economical and sustainable alternative feed resource for ruminant production, particularly in regions where conventional feed ingredients are costly or scarce. This study evaluated the effects of dietary BAWA inclusion on nutrient intake and digestibility, growth performance, nitrogen (N) balance, economic efficiency, carcass characteristics, meat quality, fatty acid (FA) composition, and blood biochemical indicators in growing Awassi lambs.Materials and methods Twenty-four male Awassi lambs (initial body weight, 17.33 ± 0.821 kg; age, 75 ± 1.5 days) were randomly allocated to three dietary treatments (n = 8/group): control (CON; 0 g/kg BAWA), BAWA100 (100 g/kg BAWA), and BAWA200 (200 g/kg BAWA) on a dry matter (DM) basis. The 73-day experiment comprised 10 days of adaptation and 63 days of data collection. Nutrient intake, growth performance, feed efficiency, and feeding costs were determined. Five lambs per group were used for digestibility and N balance assessment. Carcass characteristics, meat quality, FA composition, and serum biochemical indicators were also evaluated.Results BAWA100 and BAWA200 increased DM, crude protein (CP), and metabolizable energy intake compared with CON (p < 0.02). BAWA200 increased final body weight, total gain, and average daily gain and improved feed efficiency (p ≤ 0.007). The cost of gain was lower with BAWA200 (p < 0.001). DM and CP digestibility increased with BAWA200, while N retention improved with both BAWA treatments (p < 0.05). Fasting live weight, hot and cold carcass weights, and carcass cut weights were greater with BAWA200 (p ≤ 0.03). Dietary BAWA did not adversely affect meat quality or FA composition. Most serum biochemical indicators remained unaffected, whereas aspartate aminotransferase was numerically lower (p = 0.051) and alanine aminotransferase activities were lower in BAWA-fed lambs (p ≤ 0.05).Conclusion Dietary inclusion of BAWA, particularly at 200 g/kg DM, improved growth performance, nutrient utilization, N retention, carcass yield, feed efficiency, and economic outcomes without compromising meat quality, FA composition, or health indicators. BAWA can therefore serve as a practical alternative to conventional concentrate ingredients in growing Awassi lamb diets while supporting more economical and sustainable small-ruminant production.
SN - 0972-8988
SN - 2231-0916
ER -