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Summary The ability to utilise dietary components differs among fish species. Digestive enzymes may be used to determine the efficiency of the digestive process. In this study, the activities of the digestive enzymes in Tilapia rendalli, Oreochromis mossambicus and Clarias gariepinus were explored. Protease, amylase, lipase and cellulase activities were measured in different parts of the digestive tract of the three fish species. The pH dynamics along the digestive tract were monitored. In all fish species, the presence of food led to a reduction in stomach pH, whereby pH values of 1.54, 1.58 and 2.01 were recorded 12 h after feeding in O. mossambicus, T. rendalli and C. gariepinus, respectively. Protease and amylase activities were significantly higher (P < 0.05, anova) in the tilapias than in C. gariepinus. The tilapias may be pre‐adapted to produce more protease and amylase to digest plant material, which is more difficult to digest than animal matter. In all species amylase activity was significantly higher in the proximal intestine than in the other parts of the digestive tract (P < 0.05, anova). The highest protease activity was recorded in the distal intestines. This is because of the alkaline pH recorded in the proximal and distal intestines, which favours amylase and protease activity, respectively. Lipase activities were significantly higher (P > 0.05) in C. gariepinus than in both tilapias. Marginal cellulase activities were recorded in all species. It is inferred here that phylogeny and not diet may be the main factor influencing enzyme activities, as all fish were fed a similar diet.

The utilization of plant‐based diets in fish is limited by the presence of anti‐nutrients, which bind to dietary nutrients and reduce their bioavailability. Exogenous enzyme supplementation may alleviate the effects of anti‐nutrients and improve feed utilization. In this study, a commercial multi‐enzyme Natuzyme50® was added to a kikuyu‐based diet at a rate of 0 (control), 0.25, 0.5, 0.75 and 1.00 g kg−1 DM. Each diet was fed to triplicate groups of Oreochromis mossambicus for 60 days. All fish fed diets containing Natuzyme50® had higher (P < 0.05) growth performance compared with those fed the control diet. Fish fed the diet containing 0.50 g kg−1 had the best growth performance, highest protein digestibility and the highest levels of digestive enzyme activities. When Natuzyme50® was supplemented above 0.50 g kg−1 in the diet, growth performance and enzyme activities decreased. The improved growth performance observed with Natuzyme50® supplementation was attributed to the presence of enzymes such as cellulase, xylanase and phytase in the cocktail that are not naturally produced by fish. The presence of these enzymes released bound nutrients that would have not been available to the fish. Natuzyme50® supplementation also increased (P < 0.05) the activities of endogenous enzymes, improving the efficacy of the digestive process. The optimal dietary level of Natuzyme50® for optimal growth performance in O. mossambicus was 0.62 g kg−1 DM feed. Cost benefit analysis indicate that adding up to 0.5 g Natuzyme50® kg−1 in the diet results in higher profits as the increased growth attained offset the additional cost of Natuzyme50®.

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