Response of laying hens fed typical corn-soy diets to supplements of methionine and lysine.

Abstract IN STUDIES conducted at this station over the past 10 years, it has not been possible to show significant responses from methionine or lysine additions to layer diets, unless the dietary protein level was below 13.4%. (Stangeland and Carlson, 1961; Britzman and Carlson, 1965). Calculations demonstrate that when methionine did not show a response, either in egg numbers, egg weight or feed conversion, that protein intake was generally in excess of 16 gm./hen/day with a methionine intake in excess of 300 mg./hen/day. Combs (1960) has reported on a method for calculating the methionine requirements of laying hens and it is interesting to note from his data that a 2 kg. hen producing 40 gm. of egg per day would require 302 mg. of methionine per day. Among numerous groups of workers who have shown methionine to be a limiting amino acid and related to energy level in corn-soybean type diets,…