Parimalendu Haldar
Visva-Bharati University, India
Title: Acridid grasshoppers: An imperative unconventional protein source in poultry diets
Biography
Biography: Parimalendu Haldar
Abstract
On the quest of alternative protein sources, researchers have found insects to be nutritionally rich and among insects acridid grasshoppers have a good future. In this context the present work concentrated to formulate various protein rich conventional and acridid supplemented diets to feed the Japanese quail Coturnix japonica. The experiments were divided into two phases. In the first phase various diets were prepared where fish meal was gradually replaced by acridid meal (i.e. 0%, 25%, 50%, 75%, and 100% replacement). Consumption of the diet having 50% replacement of fish meal with acridid meal resulted higher feed utilization and weight gain of the quails, however egg laying performance and meat quality was slightly better in the birds feeding on the diet having 75% acridid inclusion level than the one having 50% acridid inclusion level. This proved that at least 50% fish meal could be replaced by acridid meal. In the second phase fish meal based, soybean meal based and acridid meal based diets were prepared. All of them had three different inclusion levels of the major ingredients (i.e. 5%, 10%, and 15% of the diet). The growth and egg laying performance of C. Japonica was better in most of the cases for 10% acridid meal added diet. This particular diet also gave better results compared to the fish meal based and soybean meal based conventional diets without showing deleterious effect on flesh and egg quality. These encouraging results successfully established acridid grasshoppers as an alternative protein source for poultry birds.