The Israeli Journal of Aquaculture - Bamidgeh 62(4), 2010, 237-244

The IJA appears exclusively as a peerreviewed on-line Open Access journal at

http://www.siamb.org.il
Sale of IJA papers is strictly forbidden.

Evaluation of an Animal Protein Mixture as a Replacement

for Fishmeal in Practical Diets for Fingerlings of Clarias
Gariepinus (Burchell, 1822)
Morenike A. Adewolu1*, Nasfisat B. Ikenweiwe2, Sunday M. Mulero2
1

Department of Fisheries, Lagos State University, P.M.B. 001, LASU Post

Office, Ojo, Lagos, Nigeria
2

Department of Fisheries and Aquaculture, University of Agriculture,

Abeokuta, Nigeria
(Received 3.1.10, Accepted 16.2.10)

Key words: feather meal, chicken offal meal, maggot meal, Clarias gariepinus

Abstract
An alternative animal protein mixture was evaluated as a
replacement for fishmeal in diets for fingerlings of the catfish,
Clarias gariepinus. The mixture comprised hydrolyzed feather
meal, chicken offal meal, and maggot meal at a ratio of 4:3:2. Five
diets (36% crude protein), containing the mixture at repacement
levels of 0% (control), 25%, 50%, 75%, or 100%, were fed to
triplicate groups of ten C. gariepinus fingerlings (3.00.05 g) at
3% body weight per day for 56 days in 50-l plastic tanks. The
weight gain, specific growth rate, feed conversion ratio, and
protein efficiency ratio of fish fed the 25-50% diets did not
significantly differ (p>0.05) from those fed the control diet.
However, in fish fed the 75-100% diets, these indicators were
significantly lower. Carcass protein decreased as the level of the
mixture increased. Carcass lipid of fish fed the 75-100% diets was
lower than in fish fed the 0-50% diets. Results indicate that our
animal protein mixture can replace up to 50% of the fishmeal
component in diets for C. gariepinus fingerlings without causing
adverse effects on growth.
* Corresponding author. Tel.: +234-8030567600 , e-mail: madewolu@yahoo.com

238

Adewolu et al.

Introduction
The African catfish, Clarias gariepinus, is a major cultured food fish in Nigeria
because of its fast growth, good feed conversion, hardiness, and high market
value. However, one of the problems facing catfish production is the high cost
of fish feed caused by the escalating cost of fishmeal, the main protein source
in fish feeds. The sustainability of the catfish culture industry, therefore,
depends on reducing the fishmeal content of fish feeds by finding alternative
protein sources of good nutritional quality that are readily available and more
cost effective than fishmeal.
Feedstuffs of animal origin are generally considered alternative protein
sources because their protein context is higher and their complement of
indispensable amino acids is superior than those of plant origin (Robinson and
Li, 1998). Fishmeal has been replaced by single animal protein sources such
as maggot meal (Adewolu, 2001), black soldier fly pupae meal (St-Hilaire et
al., 2007), poultry by-product meal (Turker et al., 2005), poultry viscera meal
(Usman et al., 2007), and feather meal (Hasan et al., 1997). Most of these
single animal protein sources were unable to completely replace fishmeal
(Tacon and Jackson, 1985).
Future fish diets will include a wider range of alternative ingredients,
including combinations of ingredients from animal origin (Glencross et al.,
2007). Feather meal, chicken offal meal, and maggot meal are potential
alternative animal protein sources because of their availability, high protein
contents, and low price. These ingredients may contain a better amino acid
profile and improve fish performance when used in a mixture rather than as
single replacements of fishmeal. Poultry by-product meal mixed with
hydrolyzed feather meal replaced 80% of the total protein in trout diets
without growth retardation (Gouveia, 1992). Up to 80% of fishmeal protein
was replaced by a combination of processed meat meal and blood meal (4:1)
with no adverse effect on growth, survival, or feed efficiency in grouper
(Epinephelus coioides; Millamena, 2002).
In Nigeria, there are large quantities of feathers and chicken offal
(excluding gizzards, livers, and hearts) resulting from poultry processing and
housefly maggots are produced in large quantities from poultry droppings.
The combination of these three ingredients could replace fishmeal in fish
diets. This study was conducted to evaluate the potential of the combination
to partially or totally replace fishmeal in practical diets for C. gariepinus
fingerlings.

Materials and Methods

Experimental diets. Fresh wet feathers from healthy broilers were collected
from the processing unit of Obasanjo Farms Ltd., Ota, Ogun State, Nigeria.
The feathers were washed thoroughly with clean tap water, pressed to reduce
the water, boiled in a pressure cooker at 140C for 120 min, squeezed to
drain excess water, air cooled, oven-dried at 60C for 48 h, and milled. The
resulting feather meal was stored in bottles. Fresh broiler viscera (excluding
gizzards, livers, and hearts) were collected from the processing unit of

Animal protein mixture replaces fishmeal in catfish diets

239

Obasanjo Farms, washed, parboiled at 100C for 35 min, evacuated, screwpressed, air cooled, oven-dried at 60C for 48 h, and finely ground with a
kitchen blender. The resulting offal meal was stored in a dry covered bottle.
Live fresh housefly maggots were collected from the poultry house of
Obasanjo Farms, thoroughly washed, oven-dried at 60C for 48 h, milled and
stored in dry covered bottles. Other ingredients were purchased from a
reputable feed manufacturer, ACT Feeds, Agbara, Lagos, Nigeria (Table 1).
Table 1. Proximate composition of feed ingredients.
Ingredient

Dry
matter
(%)

Crude
protein
(%)

Crude
lipid
(%)

Crude
fiber
(%)

Total
ash
(%)

NFE
(%)1

Gross
energy
(Kcal/kg)2

Feather meal

95.24

73.76

10.30

10.60

2.43

2.91

5260.1

Fishmeal

94.70

65.00

3.65

1.03

12.56

17.76

4745.59

Chicken offal meal

90.14

56.62

2.70

5.84

6.80

28.04

4603.82

Maggot meal

90.00

51.25

3.48

9.20

17.30

18.77

3994.06

APM

92.10

63.20

8.60

10.50

7.0

10.7

4822.2

Soybean

90.00

48.00

6.8

7.0

6.5

31.7

4654.3

Groundnut cake

90.56

52.45

10.56

4.80

5.50

26.69

5055.64

Palm kernel cake

90.40

20.00

8.00

10.00

5.8

56.2

2980.29

Maize

90.85

9.50

4.00

1.40

3.90

81.2

4243.95

Nitrogen free extract = 100 - (crude protein + crude lipid + crude fiber + total ash)
Calculated using gross calorific values of 5.65, 4.1, and 9.45 Kcal/g for protein,
carbohydrate, and fat, respectively Brett (1973)
3
Animal protein mixture = feather meal, chicken offal meal, and maggot meal (4:3:2)
2

An animal protein mixture (APM) of feather meal, chicken offal meal, and
maggot meal (4:3:2) was included as an alternative to fishmeal in five
experimental diets (36% crude protein) at replacement levels of 0 (control),
25%, 50%, 75%, and 100% (Table 2). The ingredients were mixed in a
Kenwood food mixer until homogenous. Water was added to the mixture to
produce dough. The diets were made into 1.5 mm pellets using an improvised
pelleting machine, oven-dried at 60C for 48 h, cooled, crushed into
crumbles, and stored in dry covered bottles.
The poultry by-products were collected from healthy birds. There were no
reported incidences of avian flu or other disease at Obasanjo Farms before or
during this study. All ingredients were in good condition and processed under
sanitary conditions in accordance with EU and USDA regulations on health and
consumer protection. They did not contain any form of growth hormone or
porcine.
Feeding trial. Clarias gariepinus were obtained from a commercial fish
hatchery (Chi farms Ltd., Lagos, Nigeria) and stocked in 50-l plastic tanks
(0.5 m deep) for 14 days acclimation prior to commencement of the
experiment. During acclimation, fish were fed a commercial diet (40% crude
protein). Fingerlings (3.00.5 g) were randomly stocked into 15 tanks at ten
fish per tank. Each diet was randomly assigned to triplicate tanks. Fish were

240

Adewolu et al.
Table 2. Ingredients and proximate compositions of test diets.
0%

Diet (replacement level)

25%
50%
75%

100%

Ingredient (%)
Maize

20

20

20

20

20

Soy meal

17

17

17

17

17

Fishmeal

30

22.5

15

7.5

7.5

15

22.5

30

Palm kernel cake

10

10

10

10

10

Ground nut cake

10

10

10

10

10

Carboxymethyl cellulose

12

12

12

12

12

Premix2

0.5

0.5

0.5

0.5

0.5

Vitamin C

0.2

0.2

0.2

0.2

0.2

Salt (NaCl)

0.3

0.3

0.3

0.3

0.3

APM1

Proximate composition
Dry matter

90.3

90.41

90.40

91.20

91.40

38.36

37.84

37.31

36.79

36

Ether extract

5.53

6.08

6.68

6.79

6.90

Crude fiber

3.10

3.20

3.15

5.20

6.00

Ash

5.20

5.40

6.10

5.4

5.6

NFE

47.81

47.48

46.76

45.82

45.5

4649.7

4659.2

4653.98

4548.01

4551.55

Crude protein

Gross energy (Kcal/kg)

1

Animal protein mixture = feather meal, chicken offal meal, maggot meal (4:3:2)
Contains: thiamine (B1) 2.5 mg, riboflavin (B2) 2.5 mg, pyridoxine 2.0 mg, pantothenic
acid 5.0 mg, inositol 3 mg, folic acid 0.75 mg, para-amino benzoic 2.5 mg, choline 200
mg, niacin 10.0 mg, cycobalamin (B12) 10.0 mg, menadione (k) 2.0 mg, CaHP04 727.8
mg, mgS04 1275 mg, KCL 60 mg, FeS04 50.0 mg, ZnS04 250 mg, Mn2S04 5.5 mg, CuS04
2.5 mg, CoS04 0.79 mg, CaClO3 0.48 mg, CrCl3 0.3 mg
2

fed twice daily (09:00 and 18:00) for 56 days at 3% body weight/day. Fish
were weighed every two weeks and the quantity of feed was adjusted
accordingly. There was 50% exchange of water in all tanks daily and
continuous aeration to each tank using air stones connected to an air
compressor. Water temperature, pH, and dissolved oxygen were monitored
daily; ammonia was monitored weekly. Temperature was measured using a
mercury glass thermometer, pH with a pH meter (Jenway model 9060),
dissolved oxygen with an oxygen meter (Hanna model H1-9142), and
ammonia according to APHA (1985). Water temperature varied 26-28C, pH
6.5-7.5, dissolved oxygen 4.5-5.5 mg/l, and ammonia 0.03-0.05 mg/l.
Chemical analyses. Proximate analyses of fish samples, feed ingredients,
the animal protein mixture, and experimental diets were performed according
to the methods of AOAC (1995). Moisture was determined after drying
samples in an oven at 60C until a constant weight was obtained, crude
protein (N 6.25) by the Kjeldahl method, crude fiber after acid/base
digestion, crude lipid by ether extraction using soxhlet, and ash content in a

Animal protein mixture replaces fishmeal in catfish diets

241

muffle furnace at 600C for 12 h. Nitrogen free extract (NFE) was computed
by subtracting the sum of crude protein, crude lipid, crude fiber, and moisture
from 100.
Statistical analyses. Data were subjected to one-way analysis of variance
(ANOVA) to determine significance between means using SPSS version II
(Statistical Package for Social Sciences Version II). Duncans multiple range
test (Duncan, 1955) was used to compare differences among means.
Differences were considered significant when p<0.05. Values are expressed as
meansSD.

Results
Weight gains and SGR in fish fed the 0-50% replacement diets were
significantly higher than in fish fed the 75-100% replacement diets (Table 3).
Weight steadily increased in all fish, inversely related to the decrease in
fishmeal (Fig. 1). Feed intake was significantly lower in fish fed the 100%
replacement diet and FCR and PER were significantly lower in fish fed the 75100% replacement diets. Survival was high in all treatments and not
dependent on replacement level. There was a steady but insignificant
decrease in body protein as the level of replacement increased. Lipid was
significantly higher in fish fed the 75-100% replacement diets.
Table 3. Growth, feed utilization, and body composition of Clarias gariepinus fed diets
with graded levels of animal protein mixture.
0%

Diet
50%

25%

75%

100%

3.300.17a

3.030.02a

2.980.02a

3.020.03a

2.980.04a

10.000.12a

9.310.10a

9.340.13a

8.340.14b

7.450.11c

6.690.17a

6.280.09a

6.350.12a

5.310.13b

4.470.13c

202.7316.89

207.1090

213.0112.5

149.9511.0c

3.400.05

3.280.03

3.300.04

ab

2.670.05b

8.960.17

8.540.30

9.320.03

8.560.04

7.430.03c

Protein intake (g)

3.230.10

3.070.16

3.350.20

3.080.15

2.670.20a

FCR2

1.340.06a

1.360.03a

1.440.03a

1.610.02b

1.670.01c

1.670.0c

Initial wt (g)
Final wt (g)
Weight gain (g)
% wt gain
1

SGR

Feed intake (g)

PER

2.070.25

Survival (%)

2.040.05

1.900.0

175.7912.93
2.980.04

1.720.09

93

90

93

90

90

75.200.30a

74.700.25a

74.500.40a

73.900.5a

73.500.40a

14.500.20

14.300.40

14.200.25

13.506.26a

4.800.05

5.30003

5.400.06

7.200.04b

4.300.02

4.40.04

4.200.05

4.00.05a

Proximate composition (%)

Moisture
Protein
Lipid
Ash

13.800.25
6.600.05

4.30.04

Values in a row with different superscripts significantly differ (p<0.05).

Specific growth rate = (logeW2 - logeW1 100)/T2 - T1, where W2 = weight of fish at time T2 in days,
W1 = weight of fish at time T1 in days, and loge = natural log to base e
2
Feed conversion ratio = wt dry feed fed (g)/live wt gain of fish (g)
3
Protein efficiency rate = wt gain of fish (g)/protein intake (g)
1

242

Adewolu et al.

Discussion
The fish appeared healthy and there
were no outbreaks of disease
10
throughout the experiment. All diets
were accepted by the C. gariepinus
8
fingerlings. Similarly, a combination
of rendered animal feed ingredients
was accepted by the cuneate drum
6
0%
(Nibea miichthoides; Guo et al.,
25%
2007) and poultry by-product meal
4
50%
was an acceptable ingredient for
partial replacement of fishmeal
75%
2
protein in practical diets for C.
100%
gariepinus (Goda et al., 2007).
0
There
were
no
significant
differences in growth performance or
0
2
4
6
8
feed utilization in fish fed the control
Week
diet
and
the
25%
or
50%
replacement diets, indicating that
Fig. 1. Weight increases of African
the animal protein mixture was well
catfish (Clarias gariepinus) fed diets
utilized for optimal growth, that
containing different levels of an animal
essential amino acids were available
protein mixture as replacement for
to support growth, and that the
fishmeal.
mixture can replace up to 50% of
fishmeal protein in diets for C.
gariepinus fingerlings. Likewise, about 50% fishmeal was replaced by poultry
by-product meal in rainbow trout diets (Steffens, 1994) and aquafeeds for
prawns (Yang et al., 2004) without affecting growth. Up to 80% of fishmeal
protein was replaced by a mixture of processed animal by-product, and meat
and blood meal (4:1) without adverse effect on growth or survival of juvenile
grouper (Millamena, 2002).
Combining two or more animal protein sources can improve fish
performance as opposed to single protein source (Phonekhampheng, 2008).
This is probably due to a more favorable essential amino acid balance. Maggot
meal contains a very similar amino acid profile as fishmeal, and might have
complemented the feather and poultry offal meals that are deficient in
methoinine and lysine. The nutritional benefits of using combinations of
various animal ingredients such as poultry by-product, meat and bone, and
blood meals (Millamena, 2002), poultry, poultry by-product, meat and bone,
feather, and blood meals (Guo et al., 2007), blood, feather, meat and bone,
and poultry by-product meals (El-Haroun, 2009) have been reported for many
cultivated fish species. In this study, the combination of feather, chicken offal,
and maggot meals (4:3:2) had a protein content similar to that of fishmeal
and supported growth up to 50% replacement. Thus, our mixture can replace
fishmeal up to 50% because of its nutrient blend, amino acid content,
palatability, or combination of these factors.
Weight (g)

12

Animal protein mixture replaces fishmeal in catfish diets

243

Replacement of 75-100% fishmeal resulted in reduced growth and feed

utilization. Poor growth of fish has been attributed to the presence of chitin in
maggot meal and keratin in feather meal, which might be difficult for fish to
digest (Emre et al., 2003). African catfish cannot digest crude fiber well
(Phonekhampheng, 2008). According to Phonekhampheng (2008), the crude
fiber content of commercial catfish feeds is usually <5%. The fiber content in
our 0-50% diets was 3.10-3.20%, but it exceeded 5% in the 75-100% diets.
This probably explains the poor performance of the fish fed the 75-100%
diets.
This study clearly demonstrates the potential of our animal protein
mixture to replace up to 50% of the fishmeal in diets for C. gariepinus
fingerlings without affecting growth performance, feed utilization, or body
protein content. Thus, feed costs can substantially be reduced and profits
increased. This might enhance the expansion of the catfish industry in Africa.
Apart from this economic benefit, poultry wastes and maggots which would
otherwise be a nuisance to the environment can now be recycled into an
acceptable source of protein for catfish diets.

References
Adewolu M.A., 2001. The use of maggot meal as a protein source in the diet
of Clarias gariepinus fingerlings. Res. Comm. Fish., 1(1):11-20.
AOAC, 1995. Official Methods of Analysis, 16th ed. Association of Official
Analytical Chemists, Arlington, VA. 1263 pp.
APHA, 1985. Standard Methods for the Examination of Water and
Wastewater, 19th ed. American Water Works Association and Water Pollution
Control Federation, Am. Public Health Assoc., Washington, DC. 1268 pp.
Brett J.R., 1973. Energy expenditure of sockeye salmon Oncorhynchus
nerka, during sustained performance. J. Fish. Res. Can., 30:1799-1809.
Duncan D.B., 1955. Multiple ranges and multiple T-test. Biometrics, 11:1-42.
El-Haroun E.R., Avevedo P.A. and D.P. Bureau, 2009. High dietary
incorporation levels of rendered animal protein ingredients on performance of
rainbow trout Oncorhynchus mykiss (Walbaum, 1972). Aquaculture, 290:269274.
Emre Y., Sevgilis H. and I. Diler, 2003. Replacing fish meal with poultry
by-product meal in practical diets for mirror carp (Cyprinus carpio) fingerlings.
Turkish J. Fish. Aquat. Sci., 3:81-85.
Glencross B.D., Booth M. and G.L. Allan, 2007. A feed is only as good as
its ingredients a review of ingredient evaluation strategies for aquaculture
feeds. Aquacult. Nutr., 13:17-34.
Goda A.M., El-Haroun E.R. and M.A. Kabir Chowdhury, 2007. Effect of
totally or partially replacing fish meal by alternative protein sources on growth
of African catfish Clarias gariepinus (Burchell, 1822) reared in concrete tanks.
Aquacult. Res., 38(3):279-287.

244

Adewolu et al.

Gouveia A.J.R., 1992. The use of poultry byproduct and hydrolysed feather
meal as a feed for rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss). Publicacoes do
Instituto de Zoologia, no. 227, 24 pp.
Guo J., Wang Y. and D.P. Bureau, 2007. Inclusion of rendered animal
ingredients as fish meal substitutes in practical diets for cuneate drum, Nibea
miichthioides. Aquacult. Nutr., 13:18-87.
Hasan M.R., Haq M.S., Das P.M. and G. Mowlah, 1997. Evaluation of
poultry-feather meal as a dietary protein source for Indian major carp, Labeo
rohita fry. Aquaculture, 151:47-54.
Millamena O.M., 2002. Replacement of fishmeal by animal by-product meals
in a practical diet for grow-out culture of grouper Epinephelus coioides.
Aquaculture, 204:75-84.
Phonekhampheng O., 2008. On-Farm Feed Resources for Catfish (Clarias
gariepinus) Production in Laos: Evaluation of Some Local Feed Resources.
Ph.D. thesis, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, Uppsala. 65 pp.
Robinson E.H. and M.H. Li, 1998. Comparison of practical diets with and
without animal protein at various concentrations of dietary protein for
performance of channel catfish, Ictalurus punctatus, raised in earthen ponds.
J. World. Aquacult. Soc., 29:273-280.
Steffens W., 1994. Replacing fish meal with poultry by-product meal in diets
for rainbow trout Oncorhynchus mykiss. Aquaculture, 124:27-34.
St-Hilaire S., Sheppard C., Tomberlin J.K., Irving S., Newton L.,
McGuire M.A., Mosley E.E., Hardy R.W. and W. Sealey, 2007. Fly
prepupae as a feedstuff for rainbow trout, Oncorhynchus mykiss. J. World
Aquacult. Soc., 38(1):59-67.
Tacon A.G.J. and A.J. Jackson, 1985. Utilization of conventional and
unconventional protein sources in practical fish feeds. pp. 119-145. In: C.B.
Cowey, A.M. Mackie, J.G. Bell (eds.). Nutrition and Feeding in Fish. Academic
Press, London.
Turker A., Yigit M., Ergun S., Karaali B. and A. Erteken, 2005. Potential
of poultry by-product meal as a substitute for fishmeal in diets for Black Sea
turbot Scophthalmus maeoticus: Growth and nutrient utilization in winter. Isr.
J. Aquacult. - Bamidgeh, 57(1):49-61.
Usman R., Palingi N.N. and T. Ahmad, 2007. Utilization of local feed
ingredients in tiger grouper grow out moist diets. Aquacult. Asia Mag., AprilJune:33-36.
Yang Y., Xie S., Lei W., Zhu X. and Y. Yang, 2004. Effect of replacement of
fish meal by meat and bone meal and poultry by-product meal in diets on the
growth and immune response of Macrobrachium nipponense. Fish Shellfish
Immunol., 17:105-114.