Are Muscadine Grapes Good for Chickens?

Muscadine Grapes

• Muscadine grapes, also known as scuppernongs, are native to Southeast United States. Although a few wild varieties remain green through maturity, muscadine grapes generally range in color from bronze to purple to black. You can eat them fresh or use them in wines, juices, jellies and jams. However, for each ton of muscadine grapes processed, about 900 to 1,000 lb. of skins, pulp and seeds are leftover.

Muscadine Grapes and Good Health

• Researchers at the USDA, in conjunction with scientists from Mississippi State University, found that muscadine grapes are exceptionally high in dietary fiber and that powdered muscadine puree has more dietary fiber than oat or rice bran. Muscadine grapes also contain reversatrol, an antioxidant. Research suggests that reversatrol in red wines counteracts the coronary effects of a high-fat diet.

Muscadine Grape and Chicken Immunity

• To discard the waste produced by the processing of muscadine grapes, a significant amount is fed to livestock and used as fertilizer. During a study at the University of Florida, chickens received a pomace of muscadine grapes for 42 days. The pomace was a mixture of muscadine grape skins, seeds and pulp. At the end of the 42 days, the researcher tested the chickens for resistance to bacterial infection, protective immunity after vaccination and resistance to necrotic enteritis. She concluded that the chicks receiving the pomace experienced improved immunity because they had fewer lesions when challenged with bacteria, greater resistance to infection after vaccination, and reduced mortality in necrotic enteritis.

Good Diet

• During the study at the University of Florida, the researcher added the muscadine grape pomace to the chickens' feed but didn't give it as the chickens' entire nutrition. Muscadine grapes provide dietary fiber and some vitamins and minerals, but it contains no protein, which is essential to growth and egg production. Depending on their age and variety, chickens need 15 to 24 percent protein in their daily diets. Muscadine grapes are a healthy fresh addition to your chicken's diet but are not nutritionally sufficient to be the main ingredient.