A note on methionine supplementation of pig grower diets containing lupin-seed meal

Abstract

ABSTRACTForty entire male pigs, between 63 and 147 days of age, and weighing initially 21 kg, were given a basal diet containing 1·8 g methionine per kg, and based on wheat, sorghum and lupin-seed meal (Lupinus augustifolius cultivar Unicrop), supplemented with 0, 0·2, 0·4 or 0·6 g methionine per kg.Supplementing each kg of the basal diet with 0·2 g methionine per kg significantly increased growth rate by 105 g/day and improved efficiency of food conversion between 21 and 35 kg live weight. Increasing the supplementation of methionine to 0·6 g methionine per kg diet increased growth rate between 21 and 35 kg live weight by a further 26 g/day but did not affect efficiency of food conversion. Between 35 and 71 kg live weight, performance was not improved by supplementation of the basal diet with methionine.