Effects of duck feed supplemented with invasive giant salvinia (Salvinia molesta) on duck meat characteristics

Abstract

The present work was designed to study the potency of Salvinia molesta (SM) as feedstuff influencing meat characteristics in ducks for the first time. Therefore, the study aimed to evaluate the effects of fermented (FSM) and nonfermented (NFSM) SM powder as a duck feed supplement on the lipid composition (fat, total cholesterol, LDL, and HDL levels) and fatty acid profile of duck meat, as well as its protein and water content. This study included eighty 4-week-old ducks, which were assigned at random to 2 groups based on treatment: basal diets (control) and supplementation with SM (15% NFSM, 15% FSM, 17.5% FSM, and 20% FSM). The results indicated that SM significantly decreased the levels of total cholesterol and LDL of the duck meat while the HDL level significantly increased (P < 0.05). On the other hand, there was no change in the protein and water content of the duck meat because of SM supplementation. Furthermore, the levels of all fatty acids' composition except linolenic acid were significantly different between the control (basal diet) and treatment (SM diets) groups. Thus, SM, an invasive plant, can be used as a new dietary source of fatty acids for the production of healthy duck meat.