Digestibility, Apparent Amino Acid Availability and Waste Generation Potential of Soybean Flour-Poultry Meat Meal Blend Diets for the Sharp-Toothed Catfish, Clarias gariepinus, Fingerlings

Abstract

ABSTRACT Nutrient digestibility and amino acid availability were assessed in sharp-toothed catfish, Clarias gariepinus, fingerlings fed diets containing soybean flour (SF): poultry meat meal (PMM) blends (25:75, 50:50, and 75:25) and 0.5 or 1.0% Cr2O3. There was agreement between the pattern of overall protein digestibility and average amino acid availability, despite the variability in individual amino acid availability. The best dry matter, lipid, and protein digestibility coefficients and amino acid availability values were obtained with diets containing 0.5%. Chromic oxide inclusion level appeared to affect nutrient availability. Increased marker level resulted in decreased nutrient digestibility coefficients. Similarly, these diets generated lower fecal crude protein than those with 1.0% 0203. However, the latter group recorded higher protein retention efficiency. Dry matter and lipid of diets containing more soybean flour seemed to be more digestible than those of poultry meat meal. A similar trend was observed for the apparent availability of the amino acids. This investigation has indicated that low level of marker was better in digestibility study. Utilization of more SF than PMM in the diets of this catfish was more beneficial and should be encouraged in the feed industries producing catfish diets.