Meat and carcass characteristics of growing pigs fed microbially enhanced cassava peel diets

the proximate composition of meat and carcass characteristics of twenty-four (24) growing pigs fed graded levels of a microbially enhanced cassava peel diets were assessed in a trial that lasted three months. the cassava peels were fermented with a consortium of aspergillus fumigatus (a fungus) and two lactic acid bacteria namely, lactobacillus coryneformis and lactobacillus delbrueckii, thus the fermented product was designated microbially enhanced cassava peel (mecp). the mecp was included in the ration formulation of the pigs at 0%, 20%, 40% and 60% levels. at slaughter, meat samples were collected from the m. biceps femoris to determine their proximate composition and the weights of the head, viscera and back fat thickness at the 1st and 10th ribs and 1st lumbar vertebra were taken. the results obtained revealed significant differences (p<0.05) in proximate meat composition and carcass characteristics between animals fed on the control diet and those fed on varying levels of mecp diets. the treatment effect showed that animals raised on mecp with 60% level of inclusion had the highest (15.09%) muscle protein. the female animals had significantly (p<0.05) higher dry matter, ash, protein and fat content while the males had a higher moisture content in their m. biceps femoris muscle. the sex versus treatment effect revealed the female animals on 60% mecp had the least (69.21%) moisture content while the male animals on 40% mecp had the highest (75.42%). muscle protein was highest in animals fed 20% mecp while the female animals on 60% mecp had the highest (13.86%) level of muscular fat. the female animals had thicker back fat at the 1st and 10th ribs and at the 1st lumbar vertebra. ash content of the muscle increased as the level of inclusion of mecp in the diets increased also animals fed mecp diets had the leanest carcasses. it can be concluded that feeding pigs with 40% dietary level of mecp would ensure carcass leanness and improve protein and dry matter conten