creased growth rates and feed intake of chicks (Jenkins and Atwal, 1994). This inclusion level is significantly
higher than that used in the present study, which was a maximum of 750 mg/kg. High doses of saponin are known to cause damage to the villi tips of the intestinal epithelium (Gee et al., 1996); this would impair the digestive capability of the pig as the absorptive area is decreased and mucosal enzyme production suppressed.