Energy content, nutrient digestibility coefficient, growth performance and serum parameters of pigs fed diets containing tomato pomace

This study designed was to evaluate energy content and apparent total tract digestibility (ATTD) of nutrients in tomato pomace (TP), and to determine the effects of TP on the performance of growing pigs. In Exp.1, 12 barrows were allocated to 2 treatments, a basal diet or a diet containing 194.6 g/kg TP. Exp.2, growing pigs (n=180) were allocated to 5 treatments: T1 was a basal diet. T2 and T3 were diets containing 50 or 100 g/kg TP, respectively. T4 and T5 were based on T2 or T3 except that soybean oil (SBO) was added. Soybean oil was added such that digestible energy content was equivalent to basal diet. In Exp.1, the DE and ME content of TP were 7.01 and 6.59MJ/kg, respectively. The ATTD of DM, CP, GE, OM and NDF were 0.45, 0.54, 0.35, 0.46 and 0.39, respectively. In Exp.2, TP addition linearly increased (P<.05) G:F and decreased (P<.05) ADG, ATTD of DM, EE, NDF, GE and OM. In 50 g/kg TP diet, SBO addition increased (P<.05) ATTD of DM, EE, NDF, GE and OM. Optimal supplementation of TP in diets is 50 g/kg for growing pigs, but increasing dietary energy density can largely eliminate the negative effects of fibre in TP.