Dietary Digestible Protein Requirement in Finishing Pigs: A Study for Experimental Determination and Verification

Shengkai Li, Hui Ma, Jianliang Wu, Jihe Lu, Shiyan Qiao, Xiangfang Zeng and Junyan Zhou ()
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Shengkai Li: College of Animal Science and Technology, Beijing University of Agriculture, Beijing 102206, China
Hui Ma: Beijing Sanyuan Seed Industry Technology Co., Ltd., Beijing 102600, China
Jianliang Wu: Beijing Sanyuan Seed Industry Technology Co., Ltd., Beijing 102600, China
Jihe Lu: Beijing Zhongyu Breeding Pig Co., Ltd., Beijing 100194, China
Shiyan Qiao: College of Animal Science and Technology, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100193, China
Xiangfang Zeng: College of Animal Science and Technology, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100193, China
Junyan Zhou: College of Animal Science and Technology, Beijing University of Agriculture, Beijing 102206, China

Agriculture, 2025, vol. 15, issue 12, 1-17

Abstract: Crude protein, as a traditional standard for characterizing dietary nitrogen content, fails to reflect protein bioavailability. Digestible protein (DP) emphasizes the importance of total available proteins and offers better adaptability in low-protein diversified diets. The objective of this study was to establish and validate the digestible protein (DP) requirement for 80–110 kg finishing pigs (Duroc × Yorkshire × Landrace). In Experiment 1, 450 pigs were fed diets with graded DP levels (8.82–11.26%). Linear and quadratic regression models identified 9.55% DP as the optimal level, optimizing average daily gain and feed efficiency (R 2 ≥ 0.94). Experiment 2 validated this requirement using three diet treatments and 270 pigs: high-protein traditional, low-protein traditional, and low-protein diversified. No significant differences were observed in growth performance, carcass traits, or meat quality among diets, confirming the robustness of 9.55% DP across formulations. Plasma urea nitrogen and total amino acids increased linearly with DP ( p < 0.05), while hepatic transcriptomics revealed immune and metabolic partial impairments in high-protein traditional diet pigs, which may be linked to nitrogen overload. Muscle tissues from different treatment groups showed minimal transcriptional differences, emphasizing efficient protein utilization when amino acid requirements are met. This study demonstrates that 9.55% DP, combined with balanced amino acids, supports productivity in both traditional and diversified diets, reducing reliance on resource-intensive feed ingredients. These findings advocate for DP as a precise metric in swine production, thereby promoting sustainable development.

Keywords: amino acids; digestible protein; feed ingredient; finishing pigs; low-protein diets (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q1 Q10 Q11 Q12 Q13 Q14 Q15 Q16 Q17 Q18 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
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