Dietary Oil Type and Late Feed Restriction Elicit Synergistic Effects on Growth, Caeca Bacteria, Carcass, Fat Accretion, and Muscle Lipids in Female Broilers

Abstract The influence of dietary oil type (OT) and late feed restriction (FR) on growth, caeca bacteria count, carcass, separable fat depots, serum and muscle lipids, and meat quality in broilers is examined. In total, 224, 21‐day‐old female Arbor acres broilers are randomly allotted to either PN, Unrestricted+50 g kg −1 palm oil (PO); PR, 25%‐FR+PO; SN, Unrestricted+50 g kg −1 soybean oil (SO); or SR, 25%‐FR+SO for 21 d. The SN and PR birds have the heaviest and lightest body weight gain (BWG), respectively. Feed conversion ratio (FCR) is poorer in the PN birds. Feed‐restricted birds have more caeca Lactobacillus and lower Salmonella , serum cholesterol, and triglycerides. Carcass yield is higher in SR birds and lower in PN birds. The FR‐OT interaction is significant for muscle lipids and weight of fat depots. The PN birds deposit more abdominal, intramuscular, sartorial, mesentery and neck fats, muscle saturated fatty acids, and C18:1n‐9 and lower C18:3n‐3 and C20:5n‐3 than other birds. Neither OT nor FR affects the pH, color, water holding capacity, and oxidative stability of breast meat. The changes elicited by 25%‐FR on BWG, FCR, carcass yield, depot fats, and muscle lipids in female broilers are dependent on dietary OT. Practical Application : Fast growth rate and unrestricted access to feed can predispose broiler chickens to excessive fat accretion, which is counterproductive. Producing high‐quality carcasses that meet consumers’ expectation is crucial for sustainable and efficient broiler production. The possible interaction between dietary OT and late quantitative FR in mitigating excessive fat accretion and altering production indices in female broilers is explored. Late quantitative FR reduces BWG, FCR, serum lipids, caeca pH and Salmonella spp. and fat accretion in fat depots, and enhances carcass yield and caeca Lactobacillus spp. However, the impacts are more pronounced in the PO birds than the SO birds. Late FR improves the C18:3n‐3 and C18:2n‐6 contents in PO meat while reducing the C14:0 and C16:0 contents in SO meat. These findings explicate that dietary OT and late quantitative FR can be synergistically used to mitigate excessive fat accretion and alter growth, caeca microflora, and muscle lipids in broilers.