According to some shrimp-feed trial results announced by Nutrition Technologies; shrimp fed with diets using the Black Soldier Fly meal, had better results and was more cost effective than traditional diets.
Nutrition Technologies announced the results of their recent shrimp-feed trial using Black Soldier Fly Meal (“BSF meal”) to replace Anchovy Premium Fishmeal in whiteleg shrimp diets. The trial found that shrimp fed with diets using the BSF meal, had better results and was more cost effective than traditional diets. This demonstrates clear potential for commercially-farmed insects to replace traditional animal feed ingredients, such as fishmeal, which are commonly seen as unsustainable.
In recent years, the global fishmeal supply has stagnated due to the strict quotas now in place to maintain critical ocean fish stocks. This, combined with rising demand for livestock and seafood, has left the animal feed industry facing a significant deficit in high-grade proteins as ingredients in feed. The insect protein sector has gathered increasing attention over the past few years. The sector has seen investments totaling nearly US$1bn to date, to accelerate the replacement of fishmeal with insect meals such as BSF meal.
Insect meal is increasingly seen as more sustainable than competing fishmeal sources, as insects can be raised on food waste and has a far lower impact on the environment. This is particularly the case with BSF meal produced in the tropics, which requires far less energy than BSF meal produced in temperate climates.
Nutrition Technologies’ recent trial was conducted at the ShrimpVet research center in Vietnam from July 2021 to September 2021, using 1,400 whiteleg shrimp. The purpose of this trial was to find the optimum inclusion rate of BSF meal, to replace Anchovy Premium Fishmeal with minimal impact to cost.
All the trial treatments using BSF meal had more desirable results than the control. The best result came from a diet which had a 25% fishmeal replacement inclusion (a total 6.6% BSF meal). This led to a 14% higher survival rate, 17% higher live yield and a better feed conversion rate of 20%, when compared to the control diet. The inclusion of Nutrition Technologies’ BSF meal in this treatment increased the total cost of the diet by 3.3%, but due to the improved performance, resulted in an overall shrimp feed that was 14.4% better value for money.
The BSF meal used in this trial (Hi.Protein®) was made in Nutrition Technologies’ new industrial production facility in Iskandar Puteri, Johor, Malaysia. The insects were reared on 100% fruit and vegetable food wastes, which otherwise would have been disposed of in landfills. The insects were reared and processed in just over a week.
“By replacing one-quarter of fishmeal with black soldier fly meal in shrimp diets, we could observe the greatest performance gain which represents a 24:1 ROI over commercial feeds”, said Rafael Hermes, Animal Nutrition Director at Nutrition Technologies.
“There’s a big gap for products and solutions in the aquaculture market that represents big opportunities to fulfil, and that is exactly where our insect meal fits in”, declared Nick Piggott, Co-CEO of Nutrition Technologies.
Tom Berry, Co-CEO at Nutrition Technologies explained that “it is important to take into consideration what all these results mean to the new insect-sector as a whole – the excellent FCR and survival rates show that insect meal is not just an alternative protein, but a better protein in terms of performance and environmental benefits”.
