Dietary chromium picolinate additions improve gain:feed and carcass characteristics in growing-finishing pigs and increase litter size in reproducing sows.

Growth trials were conducted to determine the effects of Cr as chromium picolinate at various protein levels on performance of growing pigs. The effects of continued supplementation on sow fecundity and body weight changes through two parities also were examined. In Trial 1, 48 crossbred pigs (40.9 kg initial weight) were assigned to one of three diets (0, 250, or 500 ppb of added Cr). The only observed difference was an overall trend for an improvement in gain:feed when Cr was added to the diet (P < .10). In Trial 2, 105 crossbred pigs (14.5 kg initial weight) were assigned to one of seven treatments involving a combination of two factors: 1) lysine level at 100 or 120% of NRC (1988) requirement estimate and 2) added Cr level (0, 100, 200, 500, or 1,000 ppb). A Cr x lysine interaction (P < .02) for gain:feed existed that demonstrated that the addition of 200 ppb of Cr resulted in improved gain:feed at the 100% of requirement lysine level but not at the 120% of requirement lysine level. The addition of 200 ppb Cr also reduced backfat (P < .04) and increased longissimus muscle area (P < .04) regardless of lysine level in the diet.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)