Effects of dietary synbiotic and cinnamon (Cinnamomum verum) supplementation on growth performance and meat quality in Japanese quail

The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of dietary supplementation with cinnamon powder, cinnamon oil, and synbiotic as growth promoter agents on growth performance and thigh meat quality in Japanese quail. A total of 420 one-d-old Japanese quail were randomly allocated to seven treatments with four cages per treatment and 15 quail chicks per cage. The dietary treatments consisted of the basal control without any added compounds, 200 mg virginiamycin/kg, 100 or 200 mg cinnamon oil, 1 or 2 g cinnamon powder/kg, and 500 mg synbiotic/kg. Birds were provided feed and water ad libitum. Body weight and feed intake of quails were determined at d 0, 21, and 35, and feed conversion ratio was calculated. On d 35, two birds from each cage were slaughtered and the thighs were collected for meat quality measurements. Supplementing 200 mg cinnamon oil/kg and virginiamycin increased body weight gain of quails at d 21-35 (P=0.003). Feeding 200 mg cinnamon oil/kg and virginiamycin improved feed conversion ratio compared to control group at d 21-35 and 0-35 (P<0.05). Feed intake was not affected by dietary treatments. In this experiment, 2-thiobarbituric acid-reactive substances of Japanese quails fed 200 mg cinnamon oil/kg was lower than the control, virginiamycin, and synbiotic treatments (P<0.001). Water holding capacity was increased in quail fed 200 mg cinnamon oil/kg (P<0.05). Cooking loss, dripping loss, and pH of the meat were not affected by treatments. In conclusion, 200 mg cinnamon oil/kg can be applied as an alternative to antibiotic for Japanese quail diets to maintain growth performance, and it can also improve meat quality.