This experiment was designed to determine if increased dietary energy content will compensate for the reduced feed intake previously shown in pigs fed diets with hybrid rye substituting for wheat. We hypothesized that pigs fed 40% hybrid rye would perform better on the high than the low energy diets. A total of 160 pigs (70.1 kg BW) housed into 32 pens, 5 pigs per pen, were fed diets with 0 or 40% hybrid rye (var. ‘KWS Bono’), either with low (2350) or high (2450) kcal NE per kg of diet over two growth phases (Phase 1; 70 to 85 kg BW; Phase 2; 85 to 130 kg BW).
Overall (d 0 to 50), pigs fed the low energy rye diets gained 77 g/d less than those fed the high energy rye diet or the low energy diet without rye, which was caused by an effect observed in the first 17 days of the trial. Final BW and overall feed intake were not affected by rye inclusion or NE level. The NE intake was greater and feed efficiency (G:F) was reduced in pigs fed rye diets compared to those fed diets without rye, whereas there was no effect of NE level on NE intake or G:F. Feed cost per pig and per kg BW gain was lower for the low NE vs. the high NE diets. There was no effect of rye inclusion on feed cost per pig, but feed cost per kg BW gain tended to be 0.04 CAD higher for diets with rye compared to those without. In conclusion, pigs can be fed diets including 40% hybrid rye with only minor changes in growth performance. Increasing the NE level of the first phase diet in the grower-finisher barn may be useful to avoid a reduction in growth performance when feeding hybrid rye. Reducing the dietary NE level can be a good strategy to save money on feed costs in the grower-finisher barn.
Response of growing pigs to the inclusion of hybrid rye in low or high energy diets (full article)
