Effect of anise (Pimpinella anisum), ginger (Zingiber officinale roscoe) and fennel (foeniculum vulgare) and their mixture on performance of broilers

The objective of this preliminary work was to evaluate the impact of anise (Pimpinella anisum), ginger (Zingiber officinale roscoe) and fennel (Foeniculum vulgare) fed at 0.05% in trial 1, and at 0.1% in trial 2 and at 0.1% mixtures of each two or three species in trial 3, as compared to the unsupplemented control group on growth performance of broilers. In trial 1 anise at 0.05% improved weight gains significantly by 19.1% and feed conversion ratio (FCR) by 10.9% compared to the control group, and only FCR by 1.92% in trial 2. Supplementations with anise, ginger and fennel at levels of 0.05% or 0.1%, singly or as a mixture, had no significant effect on dressing and percentage of body organs in trials 1 to 3. Fat content of broiler meats was significantly decreased when anise was supplemented at 0.1% in trial 2. In trial 3, colour intensity was significantly improved when a mixture of 0.1% of anise plus fennel was supplemented to broiler diets. In conclusion, the effects of anise as an alternative environmental friendly feed additive in broiler diets should be retested in middle- or large-scale experiments.