Abstract
Fall armyworm (FAW) Spodoptera frugiperda is a devastating pest of over 350 plant species especially the cereal crops such as, maize, sorghum and rice. The pest is currently posing threats to food security in Africa. FAW could be potential animal feed that can supplement chicken feed. However, there is little information on its nutritional profile as poultry feed. The aim of the study was to compare the nutrient content of FAW larvae to other chicken feeds. Proximate analysis was performed on air-dried samples of fall armyworm larvae in order to determine the crude fibre, crude protein, ash, ether extract and carbohydrate contents. Experimental data was compared to secondary data of other chicken feeds to determine the quality of fall armyworm as poultry feed. The results indicated that FAW had crude protein content of (36.9 - 63.54)%, crude fibre (9.1 - 9.6)%, fat (17.8 - 22.9)%, ash (5.6 - 7.4)% and carbohydrates (1.65 - 3.3)%. From the findings, FAW larvae have nutrients in sufficient quantities to be considered as an alternative source of protein for chicken diets. Therefore, the study recommends use of FAW for chicken feeding. Key words: Chicken feed, fall armyworm larvae, proximate composition
Highlights
Fall armyworm (FAW) Spodoptera frugiperda is a polyphagous pest which is widely accepted as the most damaging pest in the American continent (Day et al, 2017; Goergen et al, 2016)
The results are presented in figures and tables showing visualization and analysis of the data for the proximate composition of the fall armyworm samples, black soldier fly, the common house fly and soya bean
The study revealed that FAW larvae has higher amount of crude protein (%) than Black soldier fly (BSF) larvae but low amount of fat compared to BSF larvae (Figure 2)
Summary
Fall armyworm (FAW) Spodoptera frugiperda is a polyphagous pest which is widely accepted as the most damaging pest in the American continent (Day et al, 2017; Goergen et al, 2016). According to Day et al (2017), the potential impact of FAW on maize in Africa is between 8.3 and 20.6 million tonnes per year of the total expected production of 39 m tonnes per year and with losses ranging between USD 2,481 m and USD 6,187 m per year of total expected value of USD 11,590.5 m per year.
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