USE OF COCONUT AND SAFFLOWER OIL CAPSULES IN THE FEEDING OF SWINE IN TERMINATION II
Additives, Carcasses, Vegetable Oils, Pig Industry, Economic Viability
The objective of this study was to evaluate the replacement of ractopamine by safflower and coconut oil capsules in the finishing diet of pigs. Twenty - four mestizo castrated male pigs with a mean weight of 98.70 ± 1.63 kg were distributed in a randomized complete block design with four treatments and six replicates. The treatments were divided into: T1 - Basal ration (RB); T2-RB + 10 ppm ractopamine; T3 - RB + 6g of safflower oil and T4 - RB + 6g of coconut oil. The parameters of performance, economic viability, organ weights, meat quality and carcass characteristics were evaluated. Safflower oil had the highest values of meat in the carcass and perch weight, while the coconut oil had the highest loin eye area and lower fat area, resulting in a meat: fat ratio higher than too much. The control diet presented lower cost in comparison to all treatments, however among the other treatments the ractopamine diet presented lower value. The vegetable oils obtained the lowest results for the Economic Efficiency Index, this also reflected in the Cost Index where these oils had the highest values. Therefore, it is recommended to use coconut and safflower oils in substitution of ractopamine for improvements in carcass characteristics, however, the use will be conditioned to the commercialization of the product, as the diets become more expensive.