STUDIES OF QUALITY PARAMETERS OF VARIETY ENSILED BROILER LITTER

Various mixtures were tested in separate experiments with the aim of i mproving the conservation of broiler litter (BL) by ensiling. BL was m ixed with orange peels (OF), molasses, potatoes and water, in various proportions, to determine the best combinations for conserving BL and the seasonal by-products. The results obtained with the mixtures BL-OP and BL-potatoes indicated that each ingredient retained some of its o wn fermentation characteristics, but there was also mutual interaction between the components of the mixture which improved preservation. Re sults indicated that such mixtures should not contain more than 50% (o n FW basis) of the by-product (OF or potatoes). It was hard to reduce the pH of BL below pH 5.0, and the addition of 8% molasses was the onl y treatment which reduced the pH to 4.9. Probably the high nitrogen an d mineral contents of the BL prevent pH reduction, owing to their high buffer capacity.