NUTRIENT COMPOSITION OF SPENT HEN MEALS PRODUCED BY RENDERING

To obtain information on the nutrient content and variability of spent hen meal, we examined meal produced from end-of-lay hens by three ren derers using conventional rendering procedures. Meal from three render ers varied considerably in nutrient content. Amino acid content as per centage of sample varied among renderers, but when expressed as percen tage of protein less variability was observed, especially for amino ac id of practical concern. Although amino acid digestibility varied some what among sources, overall agreement was good; values in the present study should provide guidelines for estimating digestible amino acid c ontent of spent hen meals produced by conventional rendering. Mean ami no acid digestibility among sources was not directly associated with d igestibility in 0.2 or 0.002% pepsin. Nutrient content of samples prod uced by a commercial renderer over a 27-wk period appeared reasonably consistent.