Trusted information & resources for animal nutrition.

Technical Resources

Soybean Meal Composition – Bioavailability of-Amino Acid Availability

Gonzalez-Vega, J.C., B.G. Kim, J.K. Htoo, A. Lemme and H.H. Stein
2011

Heat treatment of soybean meal (SBM) is necessary to reduce the concentration of trypsin inhibitors, but excessive heat treatment may reduce amino acid (AA) concentration and digestibility because AA can be destroyed by the Maillard reaction. The objective of this experiment was to determine the effects of heat treatment of SBM on apparent ileal digestibility and standardized ileal digestibility (SID) of AA by growing pigs. A source of conventional dehulled SBM (48.5% CP) was divided into four batches. One batch was not additionally heated, one batch was autoclaved at 125°C for 15 min, one batch was autoclaved at 125°C for 30 min, and forth batch was oven-dried at 125°C for 30 min. Four SBM-cornstarch diets were formulated, and each of the fourth batches of SBM was used as the sole source of dietary AA in the experimental diets. An N-free diet was used to estimate basal endogenous losses of AA. Ten growing barrows with an initial weight of about 25kg were individually fitted with a T-cannula in the distal ileum. Pigs were allotted to treatments in a replicated 5 × 5 balanced Latin square design with five diets and five periods. Each period lasted seven days, and ileal digesta were collected on day six and seven of each period. Results of the experiment indicated that the apparent ileal digestibility and SID of CP and all AA decreased linearly (P < 0.01) as the time of autoclaving increased from 0 to 30 min. The concentration of furosine and the color of samples of SBM indicated that autoclaving resulted in a Maillard reaction in the SBM. However, oven drying at 125°C for 30 min did not change (P > 0.10) the SID of CP and AA in the SBM or the furosine concentration, and the color in the oven-dried sample indicated that this sample was not heat damaged. In conclusion, the digestibility of all AA in autoclaved SBM is linearly reduced as the autoclaving time increases from 0 to 30 min. The reason for these changes is most likely that autoclaving at 125°C results in Maillard reactions in SBM. 

Gonzalez-Vega, J.C., B.G. Kim, J.K. Htoo, A. Lemme and H.H. Stein. 2011. Amino acid digestibility in heated soybean meal fed to growing pigs. J. Animal Sci. 89(11):3617-3625.