An experiment was conducted to evaluate the effect of heat drying temperature on the nutritive value of corn for roosters and pigs. Two batches of a French cultivar grown in two consecutive years were treated by a two-step drying process. The first temperature was used to remove approximately two-thirds of the moisture, and the second was applied in order to obtain a final grain moisture of approximately 15%. Six treatments each year were compared: for Corn 1, control, 80-80, 100-90, 120-100, 140-110 and 160-120°C; for Corn 2, control, 100-90, 120-100, 130-105, 140-110 and 160-120°C. True metabolizable energy and true digestibility of protein and amino acids of both corns, and digestibility of starch in Corn 2 only, were measured with six intact 1-year old (Isa Brown) roosters per treatment. Apparent ileal digestibility of protein and amino acids of Corn 2 was determined with four castrated male (Large White) pigs weighing between 60 and 80 kg and fitted with an end-to-end ileo-rectal anastomosis. The heat drying processing had no effect on the chemical composition of the corns. In digestibility experiments with roosters, the optimal heat drying temperature to obtain the best nutritive value (true metabolizable energy and digestibility of protein and lysine) was at 120-100°C. However, treatment temperature had no effect on the digestibility of starch. In digestibility experiments with pigs, the apparent ileal digestibility of protein decreased regularly with temperature from the first treatment (100-90°C). For roosters and pigs, artificial drying at high temperatures had detrimental effects on the nutrient value of grain, especially for lysine. In our experimental conditions, the inlet air temperature during drying should never exceed 130°C.