THE EFFECT OF DIETARY ENZYME SUPPLEMENTATION OF RYE-BASED AND BARLEY-BASED DIETS ON DIGESTION AND SUBSEQUENT PERFORMANCE IN WEANLING PIGS

Two experiments were conducted to determine the effect of xylanase (850 U g-1) supplementation of a rye and soybean meal-based diet (exp. 1) and beta-glucanase (1086 U g-1) supplementation of a barley- and soybean-meal-based diet (exp. 2) on the progress of protein and starch digestion throughout the small intestine, In each experiment, 12 weanling pigs per treatment were fed the experimental diet for a 10-d period, at the end of which feed intake and weight gain were recorded and samples of digesta were collected from the small intestine, colon and rectum. Xylanase supplementation did not result in any improvement in rate or efficiency of gain, feed intake, starch or protein digestibility (P > 0.05). Digesta viscosity was increased by enzyme supplementation in some sections of the small intestine. Beta-glucanase supplementation resulted in a significant (P < 0.05) increase in rate of gain and improved protein digestibility in the colon and in the last three-quarters of the small intestine, but had no effect on starch digestibility. In conclusion, beta-glucanase supplementation of barley/SBM-based diets for young weanling pigs was of benefit whereas pentosanase supplementation of rye/SBM-based diets was not.