EFFECT OF A PLANT EXTRACT MIXTURE AS AN ALTERNATIVE TO RACTOPAMINE HYDROCHLORIDE ON GROWTH PERFORMANCE AND CARCASS CHARACTERISTICS OF FINISHING PIGS

Abstract

A plant extract mixture (PEM) composed of garlic (Allium sativum), licorice (Glycyrrhiza glabra), ginger (Zingiber officinale), and myrobalan (Terminalia chebula) was evaluated as an alternative to ractopamine-HCl (RAC) in finishing pigs. Thirty growing pigs (initial BW=46.8±4.6 kg; PIC 337×C24) were allotted to five treatments using a randomized complete block design. Diets were fed on a 3-phase diet series (grower, d 0 to 21; finisher 1, d 22 to 42; and finisher 2, d 43 to 65). The treatments were: 1) negative control, 2) diets with 0.20% PEM, 3) diets with 0.20% PEM from finisher 1 to finisher 2, 4) diet with 0.20% PEM in finisher 2, and 5) diet with 0.05% RAC in finisher 2. Each treatment had 6 replicates. From d 43 to 65, RAC or PEM tended (P=0.09) to improve F/G compared with PEM fed for the entire 65 d. Overall (d 0 to 65), growth performance and carcass characteristics did not significantly differ among the treatments. In conclusion, 0.20% PEM does not improve the carcass quality of finishing pigs; however, PEM in the late finisher phase may replace the feed efficiency effects of RAC.