ABSTRACT

This project was carried out between the month of March and May 2006 with one hundred laying hens allocated to five treatments in a completely randomized experimental design. Each treatment was replicated with ten birds per repicate. Five diets were formulated using cashew nut meal as the test ingredient to Substitute soyabean meal in the layers ration at inclusion levels of 0%, 25%, 50%, 75% and 100%. The performance of the layers at the various inclusion Levels of cashew nut was observed. The cost effectiveness of production, the revenue realizable and the gross margin were also studied. At the end of the experiment, it was discovered that birds fed 25% and 50% cashew nut meal diet significantly (P<0.05) gave highest number of crates of eggs. The revenue realized and gross margin favoured diet 2 (inclusion level of cashew nut at 25%) therefore 25% inclusion level s recommended in the formulation of layers ration.

 TABLE OF CONTENTS

Title

Certification

Declaration

Dedication IV

Acknowledgement v

Table of contents vi

List of tables vii

Abstract viii

CHAPTER ONE

1.0 Introduction 1

1.1 Objective 2

1.2 Statement of problem 2

1.3 Justification ... 2

CHAPTER TWO

2.0 Literature Review 4

2.1 Agronomy of soyabean ... 4

2.2 Nutritive potential of soyabean 4

2.3 Anti-nutritional factors in Soyabean 6

2.4 Detoxification of anti-nutritional factors 8

2.5 Cotton seed meal in poultry nutrition .. 8

2.6 Cashew nut tree . 10

 

 

2.7 Origin and distribution ... 10

2.8 Agronomy of cashew nut meal ... 11

2.8.1 Planting and yield ... 11

2.8.2 Proximate composition of cashew nut ... 11

2.8.3 Amino acid ... 12

2.8.4 Mineral and vitamin composition ... 12

2.8.5 Anti-nutritional factors of cashew nut ... 12

2.8.6 Cashew nut as livestock feed ... 12

2.8.7 Cashew nut as layers ration ... 13

CHAPTER THREE

3.0 Materials and method ... 15

3.1 Experimental diets ... 15

3.2 Experimental birds and their management ... 15

3.3 Experimental design ... 17

3.4 Gross margin analysis ... 17

3.4 Statistical Analysis ... 17

CHAPTER FOUR

4. 0 Results and discussion ... 18

CHAPTER FIVE

5.1 Conclusion ... 23

REFERENCES 24