Effect of inclusion level of chicory (Cichorium intybus L) and ribwort (Plantago lanceolata L) forage in a cereal-based diet on dietary fibre digestibility in weaned piglets of different age

Twenty-five weaned (35 days old) castrated male piglets from five different litters were used to evaluate the effect of chicory (C) and ribwort (R) forage inclusion in a cereal-based diet on the coefficient of total tract apparent digestibility (CTTAD) of organic matter (OM) and the dietary fibre fraction at 3 and 5 weeks post-weaning.Inclusion of chicory and ribwort had a negative impact on the CTTAD of OM (P<0.05), while diet had no effect (P>0.05) on the CTTAD of NDF and total non-starch polysaccharides (NSP). In contrast, the CTTAD of uronic acid increased (P<0.05) with inclusion of both chicory and ribwort. The CTTAD of OM, total NSP, arabinoxylans, arabinose, xylose and uronic acid was higher at 5 than at 3 weeks after weaning (P<0.01). (C) 2010 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.