Abstract
A 28-day feeding trial assessed the effects of high-fiber diets with honey on the growth performance, nutrient digestibility, and production costs of broiler chicks. One hundred and fifty a day-old Abor acre plus chicks were randomly assigned to five dietary treatments, each with three replicates of ten chicks. The control diet (T1) included 3 kg of rice offal (RO) with a crude fiber (CF) content of 4.64%. The other treatments varied in RO content: T2 (4 kg, 4.96% CF), T3 (5 kg, 5.24% CF), T4 (6 kg, 5.55% CF), and T5 (7 kg, 5.82% CF). Results showed a significant (p<0.05) reduction in final body weight, daily feed intake, and feed conversion ratio with increasing fiber levels. Nutrient digestibility was not significantly (p>0.05) affected by the diets, but feed costs per kilogram decreased with higher fiber. The birds in T1 group had the highest feed costs per weight gain, while T4 had the lowest. In conclusion, rice offal with honey can be included up to 4 % of the diet, with 150 g/kg of honey for optimal growth. Notably, including 6% rice offal improved feed costs per weight gain compared to the control.