Feeding peanuts and their coproducts show potential as feed ingredients for pigs. They provide energy, protein, and fiber while offering cost advantages compared with traditional grains.
Research presented by Dr Eduardo Beltranena, Assistant Professor at North Carolina State University (NCSU), at the 2025 NCSU Swine Forum highlighted both opportunities and challenges in swine diets.
Eduardo Beltranena
Peanuts in weaned pig diets: Gains and trade-offs
A university trial with 240 crossbred pigs tested feeding raw, unblanched peanuts at increasing inclusion levels of 0, 4, 8, 12, and 16%. Peanuts replaced corn and soybean meal, with soy oil and lysine added to balance nutrients.
Results showed that higher peanut inclusion reduced daily weight gain and final trial body weight. At 16% peanut inclusion, belly fat contained more oleic acid but less of other fatty acids.
Key points included:
- ✅ Each 4% inclusion reduced daily gain by about half a pound.
- ✅ Inclusion of peanuts spared added fat and some soybean protein, but inclusion may be limited to around 10%.
- ✅ Digestibility data are pending, and processing challenges remain as peanuts are a high fat (45%) ingredient that requires more specialized equipment to reduce particle size before mixing in diets.
Peanut skins drive piglet growth
Sixty-four second-parity sows were fed diets with either 15% peanut skins, 10% skins plus 5% soy hulls, or a control with potassium and magnesium sulphate added to reduce constipation. Peanut skins provided protein, fat, and fiber, improving piglet performance.
Piglets from sows fed 15% skins had higher birth, mid, and weaning weights compared with sows fed the soy hull blend. Litter weaning weights also increased significantly.
Additional findings included:
- ✅ Piglet average daily gain improved across all stages with feeding 15% skins.
- ✅ Sow backfat decreased slightly, but overall sow body condition remained stable.
- ✅ Peanut skins cost about one-fifth of corn grain, making them economically attractive.
Economic edge to peanut coproducts
Peanut coproducts offer nutritional and economic benefits but require careful handling. Skins are bulky and light, needing particle size reduction to prevent separation. For producers, the trials highlight both opportunities and limitations in integrating peanuts into swine diets.