ARTICLE Alternative Proteins Magazine April 2024 59 nificant trends in growth parameters, resulting in bigger and healthier Koi Carp. KEY TAKE-AWAYS FROM ACADEMIC RESEARCH These studies demonstrate that incorporating black soldier fly larvae into different fish diets can lead to improved overall performance, or at worst, no significant changes. These findings, and many more, are supported by quantitative data and statistical analysis that is available online should anyone want to read more about the different experimental protocols and results. The transition from fishmeal to insect-based ingredients in aquaculture nutrition represent a huge shift in the industry. The availability of fishmeal has reached its limit and cannot support this rate of overfishing, positively leading to much more sustainable solutions such as BSF meal. Insects additionally offer enhanced performance leaving them as one of the top choices to meet consumer demand for sustainable protein sources. UNDERSTANDING DIFFERENCES IN MARKET OFFERINGS As mentioned above, the nutritional profile and quality of BSF meal will vary depending on feed source and supplier, and can even be tailored for specific markets and individual species’ needs. For example, BSF meal can range in crude protein content from 37 to over 60%, each of which will have different amino-acid composition depending on the initial diet of the insects. The performance of insect-based ingredients will need to be further tested and compared between different key industry stakeholders in order to offer consistent products over time. At Flylab, we see premium insect-based ingredients in aquaculture nutrition being a key factor in improving performance in the coming years, while also bringing more sustainable products to impact our future. Usually, nature comes at a cost, we believe that we can achieve both increasing performance in aquaculture and reducing overfishing, offering a win-win solution for all parties, including our planet. References: 1. Internal test results by Kasetsart University, 2023 2. Rawski, M.; Mazurkiewicz, J.; Kierończyk, B.; Józefiak, D. Black Soldier Fly Full-Fat Larvae Meal Is More Profitable Than Fish Meal and Fish Oil in Siberian Sturgeon Farming: The Effects on Aquaculture Sustainability, Economy and Fish GIT Development. Animals 2021, 11, 604. https://doi.org/10.3390/ani11030604 3. Ikram Belghit, Nina S. Liland, Rune Waagbø, Irene Biancarosa, Nicole Pelusio, Yanxian Li, Åshild Krogdahl, Erik-Jan Lock. Potential of insect-based diets for Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar), Aquaculture, Volume 491, 2018, Pages 72-81, ISSN 0044-8486, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.aquaculture.2018.03.016. 4. Linh, N.V.; Wannavijit, S.; Tayyamath, K.; Dinh-Hung, N.; Nititanarapee, T.; Sumon, M.A.A.; Srinual, O.; Permpoonpattana, P.; Doan, H.V.; Brown, C.L. Black Soldier Fly (Hermetia illucens) Larvae Meal: A Sustainable Alternative to Fish Meal Proven to Promote Growth and Immunity in Koi Carp (Cyprinus carpiovar. koi). Fishes 2024, 9, 53. https:// doi.org/10.3390/fishes9020053 About Aubin Bernard With more than 5 years of insect rearing experience in laboratories and industrial set-ups, Aubin is passionate about insects and nature conservation. Having kept over 200 total different species, Aubin Bernard now focuses solely on black soldier flies. Currently based in Bangkok, Aubin is a French self-taught entomologist who chose hands-on experience over academia.
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