Meat and bone meal as partial replacement for fish meal in diets for gilthead seabream (Sparus aurata) juveniles: Growth, feed efficiency, amino acid utilization, and economic efficiency

Abstract

Abstract A trial was conducted to evaluate fish meal (FM) replacement with meat and bone meal (MBM; 53% CP, 15% CL, 27% Ash) in diets for gilthead seabream (Sparus aurata) juveniles. Three extruded experimental diets were formulated (45% CP; 20% CL) to include 0, 50 and 75% of protein from MBM (diets MBM0; MBM50; MBM75). Triplicate groups of seabream (IBW = 25 g) were fed these diets to satiety for 12 weeks. Growth performance and feed efficiency were similar with the diets MBM0 and MBM50, but were lower with diet MBM75, while the opposite was true for feed intake. Whole-body composition was not affected by diets composition except for crude lipid and energy content, which were lower with the diet MBM75. Protein and essential amino acids retention were unaffected by diet composition, while energy retention was lower with the diet MBM75. In terms of economic efficiency, diets with MBM resulted in a lower production costs, with the lowest economic conversion ratio (€ kg− 1 fish produced) being obtained for the MBM diets while the maximum economic profit (€ kg fish− 1) was obtained for diet MBM50. Overall, up to 50% of FM protein can be replaced by MBM protein in diets for gilthead seabream juveniles, without compromising growth performance, feed utilization, and nutrient retention. Statement of relevance Replacing 50% of fishmeal protein improved economic return.