Skin pigmentation in broilers fed natural and synthetic pigments

Skin pigmentation is an important attribute of broilers in some countries. This represents an expense for the broiler producer, because of high pigmentation costs and the losses in market value when product pigmentation is poor. Therefore, the objectives of this project were to determine the utilization efficiency of natural and synthetic pigments in broiler diets at high levels similar to those used for Latino-American markets and to determine if there is any effect of sex or light in the absorption and deposition of pigments. In three experiments, birds were fed high levels of natural and synthetic pigments. Body weight, feed consumption, blood and skin xanthophyll concentration during growth, and skin color during live production and during processing were measured.; This study suggests although the synthetic pigments may be absorbed better, the natural pigments were more efficient than synthetic at increasing skin yellowness. There were only small differences in skin color between the high and low levels which suggests that feed costs can be reduced by using natural pigments at lower levels. The removal of interference factors when the birds are alive can be an important element in the changes of skin color from live birds to carcasses. The difference in body weight and fat deposition among males and females during growth plays a role in the skin pigmentation. Higher levels of pigments used in this study, particularly the combination of natural and synthetic pigments, possibly inhibit the negative effect of darkness on skin color. Although synthetic pigments are more expensive than natural, the addition of synthetic pigments may allow Mexican poultry producers to reap the economic benefits of dark houses while also achieving the skin color demanded by their customers. Research on ways to achieve this intense color in a dark house with only natural pigments would save even more feed costs and should be continued.