2.1. Animals, diet and slaughter
Forty-four Red Norte young bulls, with an average initial age of 20months and an average initial liveweight of 368±4kg,were allotted in a completely randomized design,with four treatments and 11 repetitions.
The animals were housed in group pens, according to the diets, with 30m2 per animal, and each animal was the experimental unit.
The experimental period lasted 84 days and was preceded by an adaption period of 14 days, during which the animals received the same diet.