Pellet die thickness (PDT), mixer-added water (MAW), and Azomite® (AZM) were recently evaluated for their influence on feed manufacturing when utilizing low-moisture corn. Further testing is required to understand the effect of these factors on broiler production. Therefore, the objective of this experiment was to evaluate the impact of PDT (32, 38, or 45 mm), AZM (0.0% or 0.25%), and MAW (0.0%, 1.50%) on Ross 308 male broiler performance and tibia mineralization from 7 to 21 days of age. The interaction of PDT, AZM, and MAW affected FCR (P = 0.049), wherein the 45 mm Control treatment had a 5-point decrease in mortality-corrected feed conversion ratio relative to the 45 mm + MAW treatment (P 0.05). The interaction of AZM and MAW influenced feed intake per bird (FI; P = 0.010), wherein including MAW in the control feed increased FI by 32 g (P 0.05). Increasing PDT from 32 to 38 mm decreased FI by 31 g (P 0.05). Therefore, the top-dress addition of 1.50% MAW may decrease broiler performance, and utilizing larger PDT, in the absence of throughput agents, may increase broiler productive efficiency when consuming feed manufactured with low-moisture corn.
Knarr et al. (Wed,) studied this question.