Effects Of Aronia Melanocarpa Elliot Pomace On Production Performance,Egg Quality,and Cecal Microflora Of Laying Hens In The Early Peak Of Egg Production

Aronia melanocarpa Elliot is a plant that integrates edible,medicinal,and ornamental value.Its fruit contains polysaccharides,polyphenols,flavonoids,anthocyanins,and other active substances.At present,Aronia melanocarpa Elliot is mostly used in the preparation of fruit juice,fruit wine,and other products.These production processes produce a large amount of pomace,which can cause environmental pollution and waste of resources if discarded arbitrarily.Therefore,in this experiment,the pomace of Aronia melanocarpa Elliot was added to the diet to study its effects on the production performance,egg quality,and cecal microflora of laying hens,which provided a certain basis for the development and utilization of the Aronia melanocarpa Elliot pomace.A total of 240 Hy-line brown laying hens(28 weeks old)were randomly divided into 4 treatments,each treatment had 6 replicates,and per replicate had 10 chickens.Four levels(0%,1%,2%,and 3%)of Aronia melanocarpa Elliot pomace were added to the diet,and the trial lasted for 18 weeks.The effects of pomace on production performance,egg quality,and nutrient metabolic rate and cecal content p H,shortchain fatty acid contents,and microflora composition of laying hens were evaluated.The experimental results showed that the 3% Aronia melanocarpa Elliot pomace addition group significantly increased the egg production rate of laying hens and significantly reduced the feed conversion rate(P<0.05).The addition of 1% Aronia melanocarpa Elliot pomace significantly improved the yolk color(P<0.05).The addition of 2% Aronia melanocarpa Elliot pomace significantly increased the crude fat metabolic rate of laying hens(P<0.05),and the addition of 1% and 2% Aronia melanocarpa Elliot pomace significantly improved the energy utilization rate of laying hens(P<0.05).The ratio of jejunal villi and crypt depth in laying hens were significantly increased in the 3% Aronia melanocarpa Elliot pomace addition group(P<0.05).The contents of cecum acetic acid,butyric acid,valeric acid,and total shortchain fatty acids of laying hens in 3% Aronia melanocarpa Elliot pomace addition group were significantly increased(P<0.05).The addition of pomace to the diet significantly increased the relative abundance of Lactobacillus and Olsenella(P<0.05)and decreased the relative abundance of Clostridia(P<0.05).In summary,the addition of Aronia melanocarpa Elliot pomace to the diet of laying hens could significantly increase the relative abundance of Lactobacillus and Eurlosenella in cecum of laying hens.Aronia melanocarpa Elliot pomace could promote the production of short-chain fatty acids,improve the morphological structure of jejunum,and might affect the absorption of nutrients by laying hens.In this way,the metabolic rate of nutrientsand was increased,which had a positive impact on the production performance of laying hens.This study can provide technical support for the development of the feed value of Aronia melanocarpa Elliot pomace.