Aquaculture America 2023

February 23 - 26, 2023

New Orleans, Louisiana USA

DIETARY BLACK SOLDIER FLY LARVAL Hermetia illucens L. OIL IMPROVES FEED CONVERSION RATIO AND DISTINCTIVELY ALTERS THE FILLET FATTY ACID PROFILE OF NILE TILAPIA Oreochromis niloticus

Michele N. Jones*, Rudy Nugroho, and Rebecca T. Lochmann

University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff

1200 University Ave

Pine Bluff, Arkansas 71601

thompsonm@uapb.edu

 



Black soldier fly larvae Hermetia illucens L. (BSFL) oil is being explored as a dietary lipid source in aquaculture. It is a valuable source of energy, as well as characteristic fatty acids such as lauric acid (12:0) with health-promoting properties. Overall, the oil has a desirable balance of saturated and unsaturated fatty acids. In a feeding trial, juvenile Nile tilapia Oreochromis niloticus were fed diets top-coated with 2% of one of the following oils: fish oil, soybean oil, coconut oil, poultry fat, or BSFL oil. The tilapia (initial weight ~5.55 g) were fed twice daily to satiation for 10 weeks and had a mean overall survival rate of 98%. The total weight gain was similar across diets. The FCR was lowest in the tilapia fed the BSFL-oil diet and highest in those fed the poultry-fat diet. Fatty acid analysis was conducted on the fillet and liver samples. The results were analyzed using one-way ANOVA and Canonical Discriminate Analysis (CDA). The fatty acid profiles of the livers had many differences, mostly among the individual saturated fatty acids (SFA). Tilapia fed the diet with BSFL oil had lower SFA concentrations than fish fed the other diets. The fillets of the tilapia fed the diets with BSFL oil had the lowest concentration of monounsaturated fatty acids. The tilapia fed the diets with BSFL also had a higher concentration of lauric acid (12:0), which can be beneficial for the health of the fish and human consumers. While we did not measure any immunological parameters, the literature suggests that lauric acid may have antibacterial and antiviral properties even at low inclusion levels (2-5%). Further studies are warranted to identify specific effects of BSFL oil on tilapia health, and to determine the cost-of-gain of diets with this oil relative to other dietary lipids.