High oleic soybean meal (SBM) may positively affect broiler meat quality. This experiment evaluated the effects of normal-oleic extruded expeller (NO-EE) and full-fat soybean meal (NO-FF), and high-oleic full-fat (HO-FF) soybean meal (SBM) on broiler live performance, carcass and cut-up parts yield, and meat fatty acid composition. These extruded SBM were produced in the same location under similar processing conditions. Nutrient and energy content of SBM were obtained by NIRS and wet chemistry. Diets were formulated to be isoenergetic, isonitrogenous, and had identical digestible Lys, TSAA, Thr, Val, Ca, and available P in the three feeding phases. Five hundred and forty Ross-708 male broilers were raised on floor pens, with 18 birds per pen and 10 replicates per treatment in a completely randomized design. Chickens were fed starter diets in crumbles up to 14 d of age, while grower (15 – 35 d) and finisher diets (36 – 47 d) were fed in pellets. Chickens were weighed at 7, 14, 35, and 47 d. At d 48, four broilers per pen were processed, and cut-up in parts. Breast samples were collected and evaluated for quality and fatty acid content. Broilers fed diets with NO-EE were heavier (P<0.05) than chickens fed diets with full-fat SBM at d 7 (176 g), 14 (526 g), and 35 d (2,494 g), but no treatment effect (P>0.05) was observed at 47 d of age. NO-EE had better FCR (P<0.05) than HO-FF at 7 d and 47 d, while NO-FF had intermediate results. At d 35, broilers fed NO-FF had similar FCR than NO-EE and better than those fed HO-FF SBM. Carcass yield was also higher for broilers fed NO-EE than HO-FF, while NO-FF was intermediate. No effects of dietary treatments were detected (P>0.05) on cut-up part yields. After 24h, breast pH was lower for HO-FF than NO-EE and NO-FF. Breast meat color, cooking, and dripping loss were not affected (P>0.05) by treatments. Breast fillets without wooden breast (score 1) were higher (P<0.05) for NO-FF than the other two treatments. There were no significant effects (P>0.05) of SBM source on white stripping or spaghetti muscle. The breast meat fatty acid profile (g fatty acid/ 100 g of all fatty acids) was affected (P<0.001) by the SBM source. Broilers fed diets containing HO-FF SBM had 54 to 86% more oleic acid in the breast muscles than NO-FF and NO-EE. In contrast, the linoleic acid was reduced by 42 to 57% in broilers fed HO-FF. Saturated fatty acids like palmitic and stearic had the lowest concentration in meat from HO-FF broilers.
In conclusion, broilers fed HO-FF enriched oleic acid content of breast meat while reducing the saturated fatty acid content, but had lower live performance and carcass yield than NO-EE SBM. High oleic full-fat SBM may enhance the quality of broiler meat.