Chickpeas (Cicer arietinum L.) in animal nutrition: A review

Chickpeas can be used as a high energy and protein feed in animal diets to support milk, meat and/or egg production. In common with other grain legumes, chickpeas may contain secondary compounds such as trypsin and chymotrypsin inhibitors which can impair utilization of the nutrients by non-ruminants. Heat treatment is an effective method to increase the amount of protein available for intestinal digestibility. Moreover, chickpea straw can be used as an alternative forage in ruminant diets. This review evaluates chickpeas relative to their nutrient composition, content of secondary compounds, and their impact on animal performance. Possible reasons and implications of these results to use chickpeas as a feed are discussed. (C) 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.