Size-fractionated fish hydrolysate as feed ingredient for rainbow trout ( Oncorhynchus mykiss) fed high plant protein diets. I: Growth, growth regulation and feed utilization

Abstract

Six experimental diets were fed to rainbow trout to examine the effect of fish hydrolysate and ultra filtered fish hydrolysate on growth performance, feed utilization and growth regulation using diets low in dietary fish meal inclusion. One diet contained a high level of plant protein sources (90.6% of total dietary protein) and a low level of fish meal (9.4% of dietary protein). Two diets contained different levels of hydrolysate in exchange for the plant protein sources, reducing the plant protein level to 73.9% and 57.2%, respectively. Two further diets were identical in composition except that the hydrolysate was ultra filtered to remove low molecular weight compounds. A moderate level of fish meal was used in the sixth diet which had a dietary plant protein level of 57.0%. All diets were made equal in protein, lipid, energy and lysine. The feeding trial lasted for 90 days and for the fastest growing group, fed moderate level of fish meal, the fish increased in weight from 149 g at start to a final weight of 443 g. All groups showed significant differences in growth and feed utilizations. Specific growth rates were; 0.30% day − 1 for the plant protein diet, 0.98% day − 1 for the high hydrolysate diet, 0.72% day − 1 for the group containing the high level of ultra filtered hydrolysate, and 1.21% day − 1 for the moderate fish meal diet. Feed efficiencies (g fish weight gain per g feed intake) were found to be 0.57 for plant protein diet, 0.97 for high level of hydrolysate, 0.83 for ultra filtered hydrolysate and 1.03 for the moderate fish meal diet. Half dietary inclusions of hydrolysate and ultra filtered hydrolysate revealed values between the plant protein diets and high levels of these ingredients, respectively. Feed consumption in percentage of average fish weight per day, correlated with the feed efficiency for all groups. PER, PPV and BV correlated with the differences in growth. Protein digestibilities were equal for all groups, while the moderate fish meal diet showed higher lipid and energy digestibilities than the plant protein diets. Although some of the differences may be due to growth inhibitors in plant resources other explanations may be relevant. Plasma growth hormone (GH) levels were significantly higher in fish fed the plant protein diet than fish fed the fish meal or high hydrolysate diet, which is most likely a result of their poor feeding status. Plasma IGF-I levels were not affected by diet. Comparisons of groups with similar inclusion of plant ingredients, and thus equal level of growth inhibitors, show that in removing small molecular weight compounds from fish hydrolysate, the growth and feed efficiency were significantly reduced. Some of these small compounds in fish hydrolysate thus seem to be essential for biological performance. Further, as fish meal revealed the best performance, fish muscle protein is not the only nutrient that makes fish meal an essential ingredient in aqua feed for carnivorous fish. This information is important in the work to find replacement of fish meal in a sustainable growing global aquaculture industry.