Background -- Grain legumes are potential substitutes for soybean meal in poultry feed formulations, but their utilisation is limited due to uncertainty about their nutritional quality. Limited data are available on the nutritive value of grain legumes grown under New Zealand conditions. Objective -- To determine nutritional quality of four grain legumes for poultry. Design -- A total of 68 samples representing narrow leaf lupin, white lupin, chickpeas and peas were analysed for protein and amino acids. In addition, the protein quality was determined in studies with broiler chickens from day 1 to 12 post-hatching. Semi-purified diets containing raw legumes and a control soybean meal were fed to broiler chickens for 10 days. Weight gain and feed intake were recorded, and the protein efficiency ratio (PER) was calculated. The effects on organ weights (heart, liver and pancreas) were also recorded. Outcomes -- PER values and amino acid scores suggested that the protein quality of the test ingredients was in the following order: soybean meal > chickpeas > peas > lupins. Mortality was not increased by feeding of raw forms of legumes, suggesting that these do not contain significant levels of any anti-nutritive factors. The lack of effects (P >0.05) on the relative organ weights indicated that the levels of anti-nutrients in these legumes were low. Conclusion -- The protein quality of the tested legumes for poultry was poorer compared to soybean meal, which is related to the deficiency of key limiting amino acids, rather than to the presence of anti-nutrients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]