Climatic Conditions Influence the Nutritive Value of Wheat as a Feedstuff for Broiler Chickens

Forty wheat samples of ten wheat varieties harvested from optimal or late sowings in 2019 and 2020 were evaluated for nutrient composition. This included crude protein (CP), starch, amino acids, minerals, phytate-phosphorus (phytate-P) and non-starch polysaccharides (NSPs). The objective was to investigate the impact of high temperature on wheat grain quality as a feedstuff for broiler chickens. Growth performance and economic impact of such changes were predicted by the Emmans, Fisher and Gous broiler growth model. On average, 2019 was 1 °C hotter than 2020 during the growing season (Narrabri, NSW 2390, Australia). The wheat harvested in 2019 had higher concentrations of CP, phytate-P, total P and calcium. In 2019, late sowing increased average protein concentrations from 166.6 to 190.2 g/kg, decreased starch concentration from 726 to 708 g/kg and increased total NSPs from 693 to 73.9 g/kg. Unlike the 2019 harvest, the late sowing in 2020 had no impact on CP concentrations in almost all wheat varieties. The 2019 varieties had higher concentrations of 16 assessed amino acids ( p < 0.001) compared to the 2020 harvest. The largest difference was in lysine (19.2%), and the smallest difference was in proline (11.1%). It was predicted that broiler diets formulated from 2019 wheat varieties would have better efficiency of feed conversion with an advantage of 2.53% (1.539 versus 1.579) than 2020 varieties to 35 days post-hatch. This would translate to a cost saving of approximately AUD 16.45 per tonne of feed, much of which would represent additional profit.