Effect of Dietary Replacement of Fishmeal by Insect Meal on Growth Performance, Blood Profiles and Economics of Growing Pigs in Kenya

Abstract

Simple SummaryPig keeping is an important source of income but the high cost of fishmeal (FM), which is the main protein source in animal feeds, has hindered the sector from realizing its full potential. As an alternative, we investigated the suitability of a meal derived from black soldier fly larvae (BSFLM) as a protein source. Pigs were fed different diet types: Control (no BSFLM: 0% (T0)), 25% (T25), 50% (T50), 75% (T75) and 100% (T100) replacement of FM by BSFLM. Average daily feed intake, body weight gain and feed conversion ratio were not affected by the replacement of FM by BSFLM. Red or white blood cell parameters did not differ among diets, except for neutrophil counts, which were higher at T75 and T100 compared to T0. At T25, T75 and T100, pigs had lower platelet counts compared to pigs fed T0 and T50. Dietary BSFLM inclusion did not influence blood cholesterol levels. The cost–benefit ratio and return on investment were similar across diets. Our study shows that BSFLM is a suitable and cost-effective alternative to FM in pig feeds.AbstractPig production is one of the fastest growing livestock sectors. Development of this sector is hampered by rapidly increasing costs of fishmeal (FM), which is a common protein source in animal feeds. Here, we explored the potential of substituting FM with black soldier fly larval meal (BSFLM) on growth and blood parameters of pigs as well as economic aspects. At weaning, 40 hybrid pigs, i.e., crossbreeds of purebred Large White and Landrace were randomly assigned to five iso-nitrogenous and iso-energetic dietary treatments: Control (0% BSFLM and 100% FM (T0)), and FM replaced at 25% (T25), 50% (T50), 75% (T75) and 100% (T100) with BSFLM. Average daily feed intake (ADFI), average daily gain (ADG), body weight gain (BWG) and feed conversion ratio (FCR) were calculated for the whole trial. Hematological and serum biochemical parameters, the cost–benefit ratio (CBR) and return on investment (RoI) were evaluated. No significant effect of diet type was observed on feed intake and daily weight gain. Red or white blood cell indices did not differ among diets. Pigs fed T25, T75 and T100, had lower platelet counts compared to T0 and T50. Dietary inclusion of BSFLM did not affect blood total cholesterol, triglycerides, low-density lipoprotein and high-density lipoprotein. CBR and RoI were similar for the various diets. In conclusion, BSFLM is a suitable and cost-effective alternative to fishmeal in feed for growing pigs.

Providing live black soldier fly larvae (Hermetia illucens) improves welfare while maintaining performance of piglets post-weaning

“…In a previous study in which a range of dietary options were available pre-weaning, consumption of the more palatable feed items was preferred 22 , and the high palatability of BSFL likely caused a similar preference and high consumption. Including BSFL meal in pig diets has previously had positive 56 or neutral 57 , 58 effects on pig growth, while the impact of consuming whole, live BSFL on piglet performance has, to our knowledge, not been studied. The absence of any effect of whole live BSFL consumption on total dry matter intake, net energy intake, feed efficiency, energy efficiency and average daily gain illustrates the nutritional equivalence of BSFL to feed on a dry matter basis in the current experimental setting.…”

South-south inspiration to connect SDG2 and SDG16 in former conflict areas : Promoting sustainable livelihoods of ex-insurgents in Colombia by insect farming

“…On the other hand, they assessed the effects of replacing fishmeal as feed component by BSF meal on pig and poultry production which resulted in good livestock performance and, because of lower costs of BSF meal as compared to fishmeal, in a better return on investment (Chia et al, 2020a;Chia et al, 2018a;Chia et al, 2019a;Chia et al, 2020b;Chia et al, 2018b;Chia et al, 2019b;Onsongo et al, 2018). They determined that, as long as the fly larvae can be reared on substrates that are a true waste stream, the production of fly larvae as feed will not interfere with food production and will provide a sustainable alternative for fishmeal.…”

Análise da viabilidade econômica do uso de farinha do inseto >i<Tenebrio molitor>/i< na dieta de frangos de corte

“…Embora a relação custo-benefício de 0,38 indique que a inclusão de 4% da farinha de inseto possa ser mais interessante economicamente, quando comparada às inclusões de 8 e 12%, a margem bruta é negativa, devido ao custo de R$ 135,00/Kg da farinha de inseto. A relação entre a receita e o custo de produção representam o custo-benefício, e o valor superior a 1 (um) sugere que os benefícios da produção excederam o valor dos custos e vice-versa (CHIA et al, 2019a). Ainda assim, esses resultados indicam a necessidade de estudar a viabilidade econômica da farinha de inseto na ração de aves.…”

“…Desse modo, uma alimentação a base de insetos, portanto, pode substituir ingredientes convencionais, como farinha de peixe ou farelo de soja, que estão associados ao alto impacto ambiental ( VAN HUIS et al, 2013;VELDKAMP et al, 2012). Além disso, a implementação dos insetos na cadeia produtiva pode reduzir custos e iniciar um sistema produtivo inovador na produção de farinha de insetos na alimentação animal (CHIA et al, 2019a).…”

“…No conceito da economia circular, a implementação dos insetos na cadeia produtiva pode favorecer pequenos produtores fornecendo uma solução na gestão de resíduos orgânicos gerados na própria granja (CHAALALA; LEPLAT; MAKKAR, 2018), além de reduzir custos (CHIA et al, 2019a) quando produzidos em maior escala no caso de grandes produtores. Neste contexto, estudos recentes vêm apresentando bons resultados e encorajando a produção de insetos em escala industrial assim como seu uso na alimentação animal (BIASATO et al, 2018;CAPPELLOZZA et al, 2019;BOSCH, 2015).…”