R. Bras. Zootec.29/Oct/2026;55:e20250183.
Evaluation of jackfruit (Artocarpus heterophyllus Lam.) residues on performance, carcass characteristics, and meat quality of broiler chickens
Liliana Ortega-González
, Sergio Soto-Simental
, Roberto González-Tenorio
, Juan Ocampo-López
, Héctor Hernández-Domínguez
, Gerardo Manuel Nava-Morales
, Maricela Ayala-Martínez
ABSTRACT
The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of including different jackfruit fractions (seed, pulp, and peel) in broiler diets on productive performance, carcass and meat quality, and to assess their potential as feed ingredients. A total of 220 one-day-old commercial Cobb chicks were randomly divided into four treatments: Control, 5% pulp powder (PY), 5% seed powder (SY) and 1% peel (CY) powder with five replicates (n = 11 each), with a growth period of 56 days. The highest final weight and feed conversion ratio values were observed in the jackfruit peel group. There were similar results for carcass yield and histology for the small intestine. The skin colour obtained from the groups using jackfruit had higher yellowness values (SY = 23.68 ± 0.4; PY = 25.16 ± 0.5; CY = 24.76 ± 0.5). Meat flavour and overall acceptability were similar among treatments. It was concluded that the inclusion of 1% jackfruit peel in broiler diets can improve growth performance by increasing feed intake and body weight gain, without adversely affecting carcass yield, intestinal morphology, or consumer acceptance of the meat.
