Growth, productivity, and meat quality of Mnụ Buon chickens raised in Vietnam

This study was conducted to evaluate the growth, carcass characteristics, and meat quality of the Mnu Buon chicken breed (a native breed) raised in Dak Lak province. A total of 200 one-day-old chicks were raised in confinement with a sports field to monitor cumulative growth, absolute growth (ADG), survival rate, feed efficiency, carcass characteristics, and meat quality. The Mnu Buon chickens adapted well to household farming conditions in Dak Lak, with a high survival rate of 91.5%. On Mnu Buon chickens belong to a group of native chicken breeds with small size and medium weight. At 1 day old, the chickens weigh 23.1g/chick, and at 24 weeks old, they reach a weight of 1572.8g (males) and 1233.8g (females). The absolute growth of the chickens gradually increases from week 1 to week 16 and then gradually decreased, absolute growth from 1-24 weeks old reaches 9.2g/day (males) and 7.2g/day (females). Feed intake of Mnu Buon chickens was at an average of 45.4g/day (males) and 39.7g/day (females). Feed consumption per kg of weight gain was 4.9kg (males) and 5.4kg (females). The carcass yield, thigh meat, and breast meat yield of Mnu Buôn broiler chickens were average compared to other native chicken breeds in Vietnam. The breast meat color (CIE L*, a*, and b*) of the chickens was higher than some other native Vietnamese chicken breeds. The breast meat of the chickens has an average shrinkage rate during cooking compared to other native chicken breeds. In summary, the Mnụ Buôn chicken breed has several unique characteristics and many advantages in meat quality, high adaptability to the rearing conditions in Dak Lak, and this information can be helpful for breeders and consumers who prefer high-quality and healthy chicken meat.