Composition and Nutritive Value of Meals From Alewife, Sheepshead, Maria, and Tullibee

Abstract

The composition and nutritive value of meals manufactured from four species of freshwater fish, alewife (Alosa pseudoharengus), sheepshead (Aplodinotus grunniens), maria (Lota lota), and tullibee (Coregonus artedii), were determined and compared with meals of marine origin (herring and white fish). The meals from freshwater fish contained 62–68% protein, 7–13% fat, and 14–20% ash. Sodium, potassium, and magnesium levels were lower than in the marine fish meals but iron and copper were higher. Riboflavin, pantothenic acid, niacin, and cobalamin were present in lesser amounts in freshwater fish meals than in herring meal but at similar or higher levels than in white fish meal. There were no consistent differences between the amino acid compositions of the freshwater fish and the marine fish meals. Biological tests with chicks indicated that the freshwater fish meals were similar in supplementary protein value to marine fish meals. The pepsin digestibility values for proteins were 95.5–97.7% which compare favourably with the values for marine fish meals. Metabolizable energy values ranged from 2630 to 3680 Kcal/kg dry weight.