review · Poultry Science
Moringa oleifera is a hardy plant cultivated across tropical and subtropical regions due to its resilience to dry and cold conditions. The entire plant has potential commercial and nutritional value, with the leaves being particularly abundant in minerals, vitamins, and beneficial phytochemicals. Extracts from the leaves exhibit antioxidant, antibacterial, anti-inflammatory, antidiabetic, and anticancer properties, and can help alleviate malnutrition. In poultry production, incorporating moringa into chicken diets can improve bird growth and overall productivity. However, the plant also contains antinutritional factors, including tannins, phytates, oxalates, cyanide, saponins, and trypsin inhibitors, which interfere with mineral and protein metabolism. Assessing both the nutritional benefits and the potential toxic risks of moringa leaf meal is therefore essential when evaluating its viability and safety as an alternative component in poultry feeding rations.
Poultry producers in developing countries increasingly seek innovative and resilient feed alternatives. Moringa oleifera offers high nutritional value and health-promoting properties that can enhance chicken growth and reduce malnutrition. However, understanding its antinutritional compounds is critical to ensure that feed formulations support animal health and metabolism without causing toxicity or reducing performance.
This work informs feed manufacturers and poultry farmers seeking innovative, resilient ingredients for chicken rations. Moringa leaf meal represents an applied feed additive that enhances growth, but formulation strategies must manage antinutritional factors like tannins and phytates. Given existing evidence of productivity gains in chickens alongside the need to mitigate antinutritional risks, the application appears intermediate to near-market for animal nutrition businesses optimising feed blends.
AI-generated from the published abstract. Always read the original work before citing.
Recently, developing countries have focused on using innovative feed in poultry nutrition. The plant Moringa oleifera is native to India but grows worldwide in tropical and subtropical climates. Moringa is planted on a large scale as it can tolerate severe dry and cold conditions. All parts of this plant can be used for commercial or nutritional purposes, and it has a favorable nutritional profile. Beneficial phytochemicals, minerals, and vitamins are abundant in the leaves. The leaf extracts can be used to treat malnutrition; they also possess anticancer, antioxidant, antidiabetic, antibacterial, and anti-inflammatory properties. Further, moringa contains antinutritional substances, such as trypsin inhibitors, phytates, tannins, oxalates, cyanide, and saponins, which have a harmful effect on mineral and protein metabolism. Previous research suggested that including moringa in chicken diets boosts their growth and productivity. Therefore, this review focuses on the characterization and application of M. oleifera in poultry nutrition and its potential toxicity. Furthermore, we discuss the nutritional content, phytochemicals, and antioxidants of M. oleifera leaf meal and its applicability in poultry rations.
This page summarises published work. The authoritative version sits with the publisher.
DOI: 10.1016/j.psj.2022.102031
Is something wrong with this record? Report it or request removal.
Discussion
Have you built on this work, tried to replicate it, or seen it applied in practice? Share what you know. Verified researchers and MARATTO™ domain experts can open a discussion, and any member can reply. Contributions are reviewed before they appear.
No discussion yet. Open the first thread.
New to MARATTO™? Create a free account.
