Michael Boateng

Kwame Nkrumah University Of Science and Technology | KNUST · Department of Animal Science

A study was conducted in two phases simultaneously in a commercial poultry farm to ascertain whether egg weight, temperature variation in pens, and proximity of birds to a noise source had an influence on the incidence of blood and meat spots in chicken eggs. Phase one involved the random sampling of 60 eggs per week for 15 weeks, making a total of...

An experiment was conducted to ascertain the nutrient composition of dried cashew apple meal (DCAM) and the effect of diets containing varying levels of the DCAM on the growth performance, economics of production and the internal organs of albino rats. Sixteen rats with a mean initial weight of 64.7 g were randomly allotted to four isoproteic and i...

The high prices of the major conventional feed ingredients have led farmers to resort to the use of waste and by-products which are relatively cheaper. It is observed that some pig farmers collect and feed their pigs with feed mill waste (FMW) from an actively operating commercial feed mill at Atonsu in the Asokwa Municipality of the Ashanti Region...

An experiment was conducted to determine the effects of Feed mill waste (FMW) on the growth performance, economics of production and the absolute and relative weights of some internal organs of albino rats. Twenty-five albino rats (15 males and 10 females) with average initial weight of 48.44 g (±11.54) were randomly allotted to five dietary treatm...

A study was undertaken to investigate the status of pig production in the Greater Accra Region of Ghana. Five (5) out of the twenty-six (26) districts in the Greater Accra region were purposively selected for this study. Ten farmers were selected from each of the five districts employing snowballing. Semi-structured questionnaires were used to inte...

A 11-week experiment was conducted to determine the growth performance and carcass characteristics of pigs fed diets containing cocoa pod husks that have been fermented using Indigenous microorganisms. Twenty-five female Large White grower pigs of an initial weight of 17.06 kg were allotted to five dietary treatments which were made of a Control di...

The harmful effects of in-feed antibiotics have called for studies into possible alternative growth promoters which include probiotics. Thus, this study sought to find out the responses of albino rats to three different probiotic/ direct-fed microbial (DFM) products. Twenty albino rats with an average initial weight of 99.3g were allocated to four...

A two-day rodent control study was carried out in a poultry and livestock farm. The various species of rats, their demography, morphometric characteristics and the economic implications were studied. A gram of rodenticide (Fumigant) was ground and spread over two chopped average-sized oranges and the baits were set at vantage points, late in the ev...

Preliminary research focused on the production and nutrient composition of local Gari and Garico (a by-product of Gari production) proved that these food/feed resources are potential energy sources. This current study, sought to ascertain the effect of total replacement of dietary maize with Gari and Garico on the growth performance and weights of...

A study was undertaken to examine the potentials of Garico, a by-product of Gari production, from cassava as a new food or feed resource. The procedures for the preparation of Garico, the nutrient composition, its utilization, its particle size distribution compared to that of Gari and the comparative prices of Garico, Gari and maize were determine...

Despite the enormous contribution of the poultry industry to the Ghanaian economy, it is faced with a lot of challenges. Among these challenges is the erratic nature of the egg market. Blood and meat spots in chicken eggs may seem to affect the marketing of eggs. Structured questionnaires were administered to 39 fried egg (chibom) sellers in 3 loca...

This study was conducted to assess the production practices, nutrient composition and mineral elements status of corn mill sweeping (CMS). Twenty semi-structured questionnaires were administered to corn mill operators in the Oforikrom Municipality of the Ashanti Region. Data on their socioeconomic characteristics, types of mills used, and managemen...

A study was carried out to ascertain the effects of three probiotic products (RE3, RE3 PLUS and a combination of RE3 and P3) on the growth performance, blood profile and gut E. coli count of growing-finishing gilts. Sixteen Large White gilts of an average initial weight of 41.66 ± 4.55kg were randomly allocated to 4 dietary treatments (T1- Control,...

Abstract A nineteen-week experiment was conducted to establish the effects of an enzyme supplementation on growth performance, economics of production, carcass components and blood profile of pigs fed diets containing different levels of cocoa placenta meal (CPM). Twenty-five Large White grower pigs with mean initial live weight of 15.4 kg were ra...

A 4-week study was conducted to evaluate the effects of diets of three different feed particle sizes obtained using two, four and six-millimetre (mm) hammer mill sieves, on the growth performance, economics of production and the absolute and relative weights of some internal organs of albino rats. Eighteen (18) albino rats with an average initial w...

Soybean meal is an important component of monogastric livestock feed worldwide. There are several variations in its composition, however, Ghanaian farmers generally use literature values in diet formulations; in this regard, efforts must be made to address this issue. A study was therefore conducted in the Ejisu Municipality and the Kumasi Metropol...

A four-week feeding trial was conducted to determine the growth performance, economics of production and the absolute and relative weights of some internal organs of albino rats fed diets containing varying levels of dried yam peel meal (DYPM) as a partial replacement for maize. The sun-dried yam peel meal partially replaced the maize portion of th...

An experiment was conducted to determine the nutrient composition and effects of cockroach (Periplaneta americana) meal on the growth performance, economics of production and the absolute and relative weights of some internal organs of albino rats. Twelve (12) male albino rats with an average weight of 67.5g were randomly allotted three dietary tre...

The study determined the growth performance and physiological parameters of laboratory rats fed variously processed rubber seed meals (RSM). Thirty six growing rats (18 males and 18 females) were randomly allotted into 6 groups and were fed a control diet with no RSM and 5 other diets containing 100 g of the raw RSM and 4 processed rubber seed m...

A study was carried out to ascertain the effects some new maize varieties : Obatanpa (OB), Opeaburoo (OP) , Honampa ( HO), Aseda (AS) , Tintim (TT), Owanwa (OW) and Odomfo (OD) on the growth performance and carcass traits of albino rats. Aseda, Opeaburoo and Tintim are all white varieties and have been described as being moderately tolerant to drou...

A ten-week experiment was conducted to evaluate discarded biscuits (DB) as an alternative to maize in pig diets. Proximate composition, pest and microbial status of the DB and its effects on growth performance, economics of production and carcass characteristics of growing-finishing pigs were determined. Twenty Large White starter pigs aged 9-10 we...

A survey was conducted to obtain information on the acquisition, usage and problems associated with the use of wet brewers’ spent grains (WBSG) and wet brewers’ spent yeast (WBSY), in the Ejisu-Juaben Municipality of the Ashanti Region of Ghana and also to suggest possible solutions to the problems. Semi-structured questionnaires were administered...

This study sought to determine the effects of the traditional system of processing on proximate components, minerals and microbial composition of African Locust Bean seeds (Parkia biglobosa). Six batches of African locust bean seeds (ALBS) were purchased from the open market in Kumasi and each batch was halved. One part was kept in its raw state an...

Abstract This study sought to determine the effects of the traditional system of processing on proximate components, minerals and microbial composition of African Locust Bean seeds (Parkia biglobosa). Six batches of African locust bean seeds (ALBS) were purchased from the open market in Kumasi and each batch was halved. One part was kept in its raw...

The experiment was conducted to determine the effects of high (60%) rice bran-based diets with rice brans of different qualities (Type A-poor and Type B-good) and 2 levels of X-zyme TM (an exogenous enzymes+probiotics feed additive) on the growth performance and carcass characteristics of albino rats. Thirty albino rats were randomly allotted to fi...

The feed value of palm kernel cake (PKC) from two expeller sites and two hydrothermal production facilities were assessed using 30 laboratory rats as a model. Following chemical analysis, the PKC were incorporated at 0% (control, CON) or 35% (w/w) into isonitrogenous maize-based diets (2.9% N, DM basis) and fed to individually caged albino rats...

Grower pigs (n=32) with mean initial weight of about 15.38kg were randomly allocated to four dietary treatments based on sex and live weight in a Randomized Complete Block Design. Each treatment had four (4) replicates of a castrate and gilt in one replicate. The diets were designated as T 0 (Control), T 10 , T 20 and T 30 containing DBSG at 0,...

The experiment was conducted to determine the effects of varying levels of rice bran supplemented with Xzyme™ (an exogenous enzyme-probiotic complex) on the growth performance and carcass traits of albino rats. Thirty weanling albino rats with average initial liveweight of 66.9±0.3g were randomly allotted to six dietary treatments in a 3 x 2 fac...

A combination of questionnaires and face-to-face interviews were used to obtain information on the perception of students of agriculture and allied sciences with regard to organic agricul- ture and organic food products. A total of 348 students spanning all the degree programmes in the Faculty of Agriculture of the Kwame Nkrumah University of Sci...

The experiment was conducted to determine growth performance and organ characteristics of weanling rats fed diets containing four different varieties of maize. Twenty individually-housed, Wistar rats (12 males and 8 females) were allotted to four dietary treatments labelled, Local Normal (LN), Imported Normal Yellow (INY), Golden Jubilee (GJ) and E...

The experiment was conducted to determine growth performance and organ characteristics of weanling rats fed diets containing four different varieties of maize. Twenty individually-housed, Wistar rats (12 males and 8 females) were allotted to four dietary treatments labelled, Local Normal (LN), Imported Normal Yellow (INY), Golden Jubilee (GJ) an...

A comparative study of local Ghanaian maize, imported yellow maize and two new quality protein maize (QPM) varieties – Etubi and Golden Jubilee – Effects on growth performance and carcass characteristics of pigs. Online J. Anim. Feed Res., 2 (3): 218-223. Scienceline/Journal homepages: ABSTRACT: The experiment was conducted to determine growth perf...

The President’s Special Initiative on oil palm has spurred oil palm cultivation and processing and would subsequently lead to an increase in the production of palm kernel cake which is the by-product obtained after the extraction of the oil. A review was therefore carried out to investigate the various methods of extracting palm kernel oil and palm...

The President's Special Initiative on oil palm has spurred oil palm cultivation and processing and would subsequently lead to an increase in the production of palm kernel cake which is the by-product obtained after the extraction of the oil. A review was therefore carried out to investigate the various methods of extracting palm kernel oil and palm...

This study was undertaken to determine the incidence, volume and types of plastics found in rumi- nant livestock slaughtered at the Kumasi Abattoir Company Limited at Kaase, Kumasi. The project was carried out in two phases (1e. Phase 1 and 2). During the first phase over a three week period, the rumens from a total of 315 cattle, 503 sheep and 962...