Effect of Substituting Soybean Meal with Moringa oleifera Meal on the Growth and Body Composition of Labeo rohita Fingerlings

Abstract

The present study was conducted to examine the effect of replacing soybean meal in fish diets with the cheaper alternative plant protein moringa meal (Moringa oleifera) on growth and body composition of Labeo rohita fingerlings. L. rohita (average weight 190.25±00g) were stocked randomly in glass aquaria for a 90 day feeding trial. Fish were fed twice daily with four different iso-nitrogenous diets at a feeding level of 3% of total biomass. The diets contained 26% crude protein in which moringa meal substituted soybean meal at 0% (control), 10%, 20% and 30%, with the groups fed these diets designated as T 0 , T 1 , T 2 and T 3 , respectively. The highest weight gain (254.00±4.24 g) was recorded in T 3 and lowest in T 0 (80.97±17.80 g). Significant differences (P < 0.01) were observed in the feed conversion ratio (FCR) between T 3 (1.81±0.06) and T 1 (2.70±0.13) and specific growth rate (SGR) of T 3 (0.42±00) and T 1 (0.25±0.01). These findings indicated that M. oleifera meal has good potential to substitute soybean meal as a relatively cheap and good quality plant protein source without any harmful effects on fish body composition.

Potential Use of the Miracle Tree (Moringa oleifera) Leaves in Aquaculture: A Recent Update

“…In Labeo rohita, body composition could be unaffected by the substitution of moringa leaves for soybean meal as a cost-effective source of high-quality plant protein (Masood et al, 2020). This statement has been supported by the findings of Arsalan et al (2016), who demonstrated that fishmeal could be supplemented with moringa leaf meal up to 10% to boost the nutritional value of L. rohita fingerlings.…”

Quality evaluation of moringa (Moringa oleifera) leaves fermented by various dosages of Aspergillus niger as ingredients for fish feeds

“…Using Aspergillus niger during fermentation is one method for reducing the content of crude and neutralize antinutritional substances in moringa leaves. A. niger produces enzymes such as protease, amylase and cellulase that aid in improving the digestibility of feeds [15]. The addition of A. niger in the fermentation process is expected to enhance the nutritional value of moringa leave meal so that it can be utilized as an alternative raw material for the production of fish feed.…”