Studies on the Role of Enzyme Supplements and Water Treatment for Improving the Nutritional Value of Barley

RECENTLY it was found that the nutritive value of barley could be improved by either a simple water treatment (Fry et al., 1957) or supplementation with enzymes (Jensen et al., 1957). These observations have been confirmed and extended by Anderson (1958), Arscott (1958), Wharton et al. (1958), and Fry et al. (1958a). The experiments reported herein were conducted to determine the effect on chick growth and feed efficiency of (1) various enzyme preparations; (2) enzyme supplementation and water treatment of several varieties of barley; and (3) autoclaving barley in the presence of added moisture. In addition, the effect of enzyme supplementation and various treatments of barley on feed and water consumption and ash and moisture content of feces was studied. EXPERIMENTAL PROCEDURE New Hampshire chicks from dams maintained on a practical breeder diet were used in these experiments. Essentially the same procedures were followed in all experiments. Three groups of …