Adding a byproduct of the button mushroom industry to broiler diets could boost sustainability efforts and save on production costs, reveals research published in The Journal of Applied Poultry Research.
“We’ve been able to successfully take a waste stream and turn it into a nutrient stream,” said John Boney, Vernon E. Norris Faculty Fellow of Poultry Nutrition in the College of Agricultural Sciences, Pennsylvania State University.
Benefiting broilers, mushroom growers
Feed accounts for nearly two-thirds of total broiler production costs, with feed formulation responsible for nearly half of the greenhouse gas emissions linked to monogastric animal protein production.
Comparatively, stump waste produced by the button mushroom industry comprises nearly 30% of total mushroom weight. Mushroom caps are a popular consumer foodstuff; however the mushroom industry currently has no use for the stumps, paying to dispose of them.
Finding a new use for this waste byproduct boosts sustainability for both industries and cuts the feed costs associated with broiler production, Boney said.
Safety in poultry diets
In a 21-day trial, broiler chickens fed up to 3% mushroom stump waste achieved the same performance metrics as the control group of birds. The researchers also noted that the mushroom diet supplementation appeared to have no negative effects on digestion.
Upping the mushroom stump waste to a higher dietary percentage slowed bird growth and negatively impacted how the broilers digested amino acids.
Boney hopes to continue the use of mushroom stumps as an alternative feed ingredient in broiler diets.
Mushroom waste may help improve the pellet binding process used to create animal feeds in the future, although more work is needed.
The American Mushroom Institute helped fund this research project.
