MOSCOW, 11 Oct. DSTU scientists proposed a method for replacing expensive components of fish feed with cheap insect processing products. According to them, feed with the additive they developed will help reduce farm costs, while increasing the weight gain and survival rate of fish. The results were presented at the international Aquaculture conference.
Feed is one of the main factors in determining the cost of fish farming products, experts said. The quality of nutrition directly affects the growth, development and health of fish.
Compound feeds for aquaculture contain a lot of protein and fat, the main sources of which are expensive imported fishmeal and fish oil. To reduce the cost of feed while maintaining quality, according to scientists, additives from accessible and reproducible raw materials are being actively researched today.
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One of the optimal candidates for this role is the larvae of the black soldier fly, often used as a source of protein. Scientists from the Don State Technical University (DSTU) proposed a method for obtaining from them the fats needed in fish feed, and were able to build a complete mathematical model of the processing process.
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“The production of fat and oil from traditional raw materials has been well studied, in contrast to the methods of processing larvae. Our comprehensive modeling of squeezing fat out of them in a screw press allows us to select optimal process parameters,” said Tatyana Maltseva, associate professor of the Department of Technologies and Equipment for Processing Agro-Industrial Products, and the Faculty of Agro-Industrial Affairs of DSTU.
According to the authors, the proposed model makes it possible to theoretically calculate the productivity and energy intensity of the press, as well as determine the influence of its design and the properties of the larvae on the final product. Experiments confirmed the obtained equations, scientists reported.
“Preliminary calculations have shown that savings due to the use of feed containing the fat of black soldier fly larvae and a probiotic feed additive will average 10%, or about 650 thousand rubles per year for small and medium-sized farms producing up to 20 tons of trout per year. This is achieved including by increasing survival rate and increasing the weight gain of fish with the same amount of feed,” noted Maltseva.
As the university emphasized, the new model is universal and can be used not only to study the process of pressing larvae, but also for similar processing of other raw materials.
Further research by the scientific team is aimed at creating feed additives for plant and animal production with probiotic activity using resource-saving, waste-free technologies. The goal of these works is to ensure food security and technological sovereignty of the country, the scientists emphasized.
DSTU is a participant in the state support program for universities of the Russian Federation «Priority-2030» of the national project «Science and Universities».