The feeding value of spent coffee grounds for ruminants

For up to 26 days mature wethers were given a diet with 25% spent coffee grounds, a by-product of the instant-coffee industry. The coffee grounds had crude protein 10, crude fibre 44, ether extract 26, ash 0.75, moisture 8 and tannic acid 0.9%. The diet was mixed 50:50 (by weight) with water to overcome adverse organoleptic properties. Protein digestibility was 14% percentage units lower in sheep given coffee grounds than in controls given oat husks and maize oil instead but fibre digestibility was 19 units higher for those given coffee grounds. Digestible energy of the diet with coffee was 2.99 and of the control diet 2.80 kcal/g. The coffee grounds were calculated to have 76% total digestible nutrients..