Evaluating Broiler Chickens’ Acceptance of Dried Hermetia illucens Larvae as an Alternative Feed Ingredient

Abstract

The current study was conducted to assess the acceptability of dried Black Soldier Fly (BSF) larvae by broiler chickens. One hundred fifty chickens, 75 from the control group, fed with a free-BSF larvae meal diet, and 75 from the experimental group, fed with a diet containing BSF larvae meal, were used to evaluate their preference for dried BSF larvae offered with corn and compound feed twice daily ( at 9 a.m. and 3 p.m.) for 30 minutes during 20 days, from the age of 16 to 35 days, the slaughter age. During the first week of the trial, broilers, both from the control and experimental group, acted as if they were discovering this feed; they only picked it for a few seconds without ingesting it, and moved frequently to corn or the compound feed, more rarely. After one-week adaptation period, the chickens showed higher larval consumption, especially in the morning. The average amount of dried larvae consumed by the experimental group at 9 a.m. and 3 p.m. and by the control group at 9 a.m. and 3 p.m. was 137.42 g, 105.58 g, 131.37 g, and 106.00 g, respectively. While there were no significant differences in the amount of dried BSF consumed between the control and the experimental group. There was no significant difference in the quantities of larvae consumed between the control and experimental groups, indicating that the inclusion of larvae meal in the compound feed did not influence the acceptability of dried larvae. However, in both the control and experimental groups, chickens consumed more larvae during the 9 a.m. feeding compared to the 3 p.m.  These findings suggest that dried BSF larvae, a viable and sustainable alternative protein source, are well accepted and may promote animal health through the improvement of litter quality when distributed on the litter, and welfare by allowing chickens to express their natural foraging behavior.