Complete replacement of soybean meal with defatted black soldier fly larvae meal in Shaver White hens feeding program (28–43 wks of age): impact on egg production, egg quality, organ weight, and apparent retention of components

Abstract

Effects of total replacement of soybean meal ( SBM ) with defatted black soldier fly larvae meal ( BSFLM ) on egg production and quality, organ weight, and apparent retention ( AR ) of components were investigated in Shaver White hens from 28 to 43 wk of age. A total of 108 birds, (6 birds/cage) were assigned to three diets (6 replicates/diet). Diets were control corn–SBM diet and two additional diets made with the addition of either 10 or 15% BSFLM. Diets met or exceeded breeder specifications, contained TiO 2 as an indigestible marker, and were prepared in pellet form. Birds had free access to feed and water throughout the experiment. Hen-day egg production ( HDEP ) was monitored daily. Feed intake ( FI ) and body weight ( BW ) were monitored in 4-wk intervals. All eggs laid on the sixth day of wks 31, 35, 39, and 43 were used for egg weight ( EW ), Haugh units ( HU ), yolk color ( YC ), shell breaking strength ( SBS ), and shell thickness ( ST ). Excreta samples were collected for 3 consecutive days on wk 33 for AR and two birds/cage were necropsied at the end. There were no ( P > 0.05) diet effects on HDEP, FI, and HU. Inclusion of BSFLM linearly decreased ( P < 0.05) egg mass and feed conversion ratio ( FCR ) and quadratically increased ( P < 0.05) BW. There was no ( P > 0.05) interaction between diet and sampling time point on egg quality parameters. Inclusion of BSFLM increased SBF and YC linearly ( P < 0.05) and ST quadratically ( P = 0.028). Inclusion of BSFLM quadratically ( P ≤ 0.01) reduced empty ceca weight and increased liver weight and had no effect ( P > 0.05) on gizzard, small intestine, and pancreas weights. Feeding BSFLM linearly ( P = 0.001) and quadratically ( P = 0.007) increased apparent metabolizable energy ( AME ). Data showed that defatted BSFLM resulted in deeper orange yolks and improved eggshell quality; however, unfavorable FCR linked to lighter eggs as well as heavier birds and liver warrants further investigations.

Effects of different levels of Hermetia illucens larvae meal on performance, egg quality, yolk fatty acid composition and oxidative status of laying hens

“…These results contradict the findings of Secci et al (2019), Mwaniki et al (2018), andStar et al (2020) who found that HILM had no adverse effect on shell weights, yolk diameter, and Haugh unit in laying hens. However, Mwaniki et al (2020) showed that defatted HILM improved eggshell strength and eggshell thickness. Marono et al (2017) found that feeding laying hens 17% black soldier fly larvae meal (BSFLM) increased circulating plasma Ca levels relative to the control, despite the two diets having similar Ca concentration.…”

“…This suggested that improved calcium absorption and metabolism in HILM-fed birds could also have contributed to the stronger eggshells. Besides, some research found that HILM can improve the colour of yolk, which was related to be rich in b-carotene and lutein in HILM, pigments responsible for an orange-yellow colour (Secci et al 2019;Mwaniki et al 2020). Therefore, egg yolk colour is an important index that we need to focus on in the next experiments.…”

Evaluation of the Low Inclusion of Full-Fatted Hermetia illucens Larvae Meal for Layer Chickens: Growth Performance, Nutrient Digestibility, and Gut Health

“…The potential use of BSF as a promising insect species that is able to replace dietary fish meal and soybean meal either partially or completely has already been evaluated in poultry. For layers, two recent studies found that using defatted BSF larvae as feed source can increase egg quality, such as eggshell thickness, egg yolk, and egg albumin, in hens at the laying period (4,22). However, little information was available for layer chickens at the starter growth period.…”

“…The nutritional components in black soldier fly larvae meal (BSFM), characterized by balanced amino acid composition and a large amount of mono-and poly-unsaturated fatty acids, have been the most appealing for the feed industry (3). The potential use of BSFM as a promising insect meal has been well-studied to evaluate the possibility of substitution for soybean meal in hens (4,5), broilers (6), and ducks (7). So far, the utilization of BSFM has been evaluated in layer hens at the middle and the late laying periods (8), but limited knowledge is available for layer chickens at the starter period.…”

“…Therefore, more efforts are still required to ensure the scientific and rational use of BSFM for poultry species at different growth phases. In addition, most studies have focused on the potential use of defatted BSFM in feed formulation of poultry (4,6,9,10), whereas information about full-fatted BSFM is still very limited. However, high-level addition of full-fatted BSFM in the diet could cause oxidative rancidity of feed due to the high content of fat and unsaturated fatty acid.…”