Biology (Sep 2020)

Hummingbird-Leaves-Reared Black Soldier Fly Prepupae: Assessment of Nutritional and Heavy Metal Compositions

  • Giva Kuppusamy,
  • Chee Kei Kong,
  • Ganeswaran Chandra Segaran,
  • Eliyarajan Tarmalingam,
  • Max Herriman,
  • Mohd Fathil Ismail,
  • Tahir Mehmood Khan,
  • Liang Ee Low,
  • Bey-Hing Goh

DOI
https://doi.org/10.3390/biology9090274
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 9, no. 9
p. 274

Abstract

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Black soldier fly (BSF) larva is an attractive animal feed replacer due to its noticeable nutritional content. However, the conventional rearing method often resulted in BSF with undesirably high heavy metal residues that are harmful to animals. In this work, putrefied Sesbania grandiflora (S. Grandiflora) leaves were employed as feed to rear BSF larvae. The resultant BSF prepupae were found to contain 43.5% protein and 16.7% fat, reflecting a comparable protein content and a 2-fold reduction in crude fat than those reared using conventional kitchen waste. Moreover, high quantities of arginine (25.4 g/kg dry matter basis (DM)), carnitine (32.9 g/kg DM), and short-chain fatty acids, including lauric (40.00%), palmitic (19.20%), and oleic (12.10%) acids, have also been noticed in the BSF prepupae. Furthermore, the BSF larvae have been recorded with 0.185 mg/kg chromium, 0.380 mg/kg selenium, and mercury below the detection limit, which is far lower than those reared using conventional kitchen and agricultural wastes (≈1.7 mg/kg chromium, 1.2 mg/kg selenium, and 0.2 mg/kg mercury). Overall, the study shows that the nutritional quality of BSF prepupae is extensively improved when using S. Grandiflora as their feed. The resultant BSF prepupae may serve as an alternative feed for animal rearing.

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