Guar meal and its feeding value for broiler chicken

In recent years the cost of major conventional protein sources for broilers and layers like soybean meal has been increased by 60 per cent resulting in an increased cost of broiler meat production. Hence guar meal is an alternative cheap protein sources need to be explored for broilers. Guar or cluster bean (Cyamopsis tetragonoloba) originated from Africa but it has been grown throughout southern Asia. India and Pakistan have the distinct advantage of agro-climatic conditions for the cultivation of guar. Guar is a drought-tolerant annual legume predominantly grown in India. India is the largest producer of guar and contributes 80 per cent of total guar production in the world. The annual production of guar seed in India is 5.0 to 10 lakh tonnes.