Novel formulated fortified blended foods result in improved protein efficiency and hepatic iron concentrations compared with corn-soy blend plus in broiler chickens

Abstract

Background: Corn- and soybean-based fortified blended foods (FBFs) have been the primary food aid product provided by the United States. Sorghum and cowpea have been suggested as alternative FBF commodities because they are drought-tolerant, grown in food aid-receiving areas, and not genetically modified. Extrusion processing has also been suggested to improve the quality of these FBFs. Objectives: The aim of this study was to determine the protein quality and iron and vitamin A bioavailability of novel FBFs in broiler chickens. Methods: Whey protein concentrate (WPC)-containing FBFs corn-soy blend 14, sorghum-soy, and sorghum-cowpea (SC); a soy protein isolate (SPI)-containing SC FBF (SC+SP..