Abstract
Canna edulis roots grown in Guadeloupe were analyzed by proximate composition. The in vitro α-amylolysis of the canna starch was evaluated by the quantitative determination of the enzymatic hydrolysis products of starch with piglet pancreatic juice. The digestibility and the digestible energy content of canna roots for 55-kg pigs were determined by the addition method in a study using four pigs individually fed in metabolism crates. The studies were made on roots either raw or cooked in boiling water for 30 minutes. Raw and cooked canna roots were found to contain (on dry weight basis) 81.0 and 75.6% starch, 6.0 and 13.9% alcohol soluble sugars and 3.7 and 3.4% crude protein, respectively. In vitro, less than 2% of raw canna starch was digested within two hours by the piglet pancreatic juice vs. more than 90% when cooked. In the pigs, the apparent digestibility of raw and cooked canna roots was 79.2 and 88.9% for dry matter and 76.0 and 87.6% for gross energy, respectively. Raw and cooked canna roots supplied 2,940 and 3,467 kcal digestible energy per kg (dry-matter basis), respectively.