The effect of corn or beet pulp silage supplemented diet on production parameters, oxidative stability of muscles and fatty acid composition of abdominal fat in geese

The aim of this study was to assess the production parameters of White Koluda^® geese fed with a corn or beet pulp silage supplemented diet. The oxidative stability of breast and thigh muscles during frozen storage and the fatty acid composition of abdominal fat were also investigated. Measurements were carried out on a total of 42 geese of the White Koluda^® W31 strain that were divided into three experimental groups: group I (control) - basal diet, group II - basal diet with corn silage addition, group III - basal diet with pressed beet pulp silage addition. Diets containing ad libitum maize silage or sugar beet pulp silage supplemented with a limited amount of commercial diets, significantly reduced BW (about 9%) and ADG (about 27%) of birds compared to the control group in the 14th week of rearing. Feeding corn or sugar beet pulp silage to geese did not affect pH values, heme iron content, colour parameters but decreased lipid oxidation values in muscles 3 days after slaughter. The abdominal fat of geese fed with the pressed beet pulp silage supplemented diet was characterized by a significantly higher content of myristic and linoleic acid and a lower content of oleic acid. In conclusion, feeding geese with limited amount of commercial mixtures supplemented with maize or sugar beet pulp silages may be recommended primarily for increasing financial efficiency in White Koluda^® geese farms but also for improving the quality of goose carcasses, due to their low fat and high quality of meat.