Productive performance lambs on grazing supplemented with concentrates containing fruit processing by-products

Abstract

The objective of this study was to evaluate the productive performance of sheep kept in irrigated Tifton 85 pastures receiving concentrate supplementation containing different fruits processing by-products. The pasture area corresponded to 0.58 ha, divided in 24 paddocks, under rotational grazing with 20 days of interval of grazing and four days of grazing. 24 male sheep, castrated with 26.9±2.4 of initial body weight and ten months like testers animals, were used. Three fruit processing by-products (guava, barbados cherry and grape wine industry) including in 30% of dry matter basis in supplements, besides the treatment "control" containing traditional ingredients (dry ground corn, soybean meal and wheat bran), were compared. The experimental design was a completely randomized with six replicates by treatments. The concentrates evaluated containing fruit processing by-products did not affect the daily weight gain, the total weight gain and the final body weight of sheep kept in irrigated pastures. The stoking rate of pastures, an average was 90.96 lambs/ha and estimative of meat production by area of 2,756.50 kg/ha/year. Thus, guava, barbados cherry and grape wine industry by-products may substitute 30% of dry matter the traditional ingredients in concentrate without harming the productive performance of animals and area.