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The Comprehensive Utilization of Edible Insects and Fish By-Products in...
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The Comprehensive Utilization of Edible Insects and Fish By-Products in Animal Feeding

A special issue of Animals (ISSN 2076-2615). This special issue belongs to the section "Animal Nutrition".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 10 July 2025 | Viewed by 7103

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Pier Paolo Danieli

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Agriculture and Forest Sciences (DAFNE), University of Tuscia, Via S. C. de Lellis snc, 01100 Viterbo, Italy
Interests: animal feeding and nutrition; alternative protein sources; animal food quality and safety; beekeeping; insects for feed; circularity and sustainability; prevision livestock farming; precision beekeeping; in vitro models; agro-environmental contaminants
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. Alessandra Roncarati

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
School of Biosciences and Veterinary Medicine, University of Camerino, Viale Circonvallazione 93-95, 62024 Matelica, Italy
Interests: aquaculture; small animal production; animal welfare (aquatic organisms and poultry); biosecurity in animal farming; alternative protein sources; alternative lipid sources; essential oils; circular economy; growth performances; quality of products

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The expected growth of the global population is one of the greatest challenges mankind has to face in the future. This growth is also expected to be paralleled by a steady increase in the demand for high-quality and nutritive animal food products. It is thus pivotal for livestock systems to rely on alternative animal protein sources to remain sustainable in the medium–long term. In this context, animal protein sources such as insects and fish by-products are promising alternatives to conventional ones, especially in circular economy systems which are driven and evaluated by life cycle thinking. New feeding strategies can be applied to transform food waste biomasses and streams, such as insects and fish by-products, into valuable feed materials. This Special Issue aims to gather valuable scientific contributions on this topic, which, being multifaceted by nature, requires a comprehensive view to tackle, as it concerns, for example, dedicated producing systems, animal nutrition, health and welfare issues, circularity, and the social economic and environmental sustainability of feed production based on insects and/or fish by-products, as well as other novel and emerging issues. The submission of ground-breaking research in the form of regular papers, short communications, and systematic reviews is thus invited for this Special Issue.

Dr. Pier Paolo Danieli
Dr. Alessandra Roncarati
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Animals is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • insects for feed
  • sustainability
  • fish by-products
  • socio-economic assessment
  • environmental impacts
  • food waste management
  • circular economy
  • antioxidant activity
  • growth performances
  • quality of products
  • valuable compounds
  • feed safety

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Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

24 pages, 8721 KiB  
Article
Impacts of Black Soldier Fly (Hermetia illucens) Larval Meal on Intestinal Histopathology and Microbiome Responses in Hybrid Grouper (Epinephelus fuscoguttatus ♀ × E. lanceolatus ♂): A Comprehensive Analysis
by Yan Chen, Jun Ma, Yoong-Soon Yong, Yonggan Chen, Bing Chen, Junming Cao, Kai Peng, Guaxia Wang, Hai Huang and Jiun-Yan Loh
Animals 2024, 14(24), 3596; https://doi.org/10.3390/ani14243596 - 12 Dec 2024
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1326
Abstract
This study examined the diversity and responses of intestinal microbiota in hybrid grouper (Epinephelus fuscoguttatus ♀ × E. lanceolatus ♂) fed diets with varying levels of fishmeal replaced by black soldier fly larvae (BSFL). The 10% BSFL substitution (BSFL10) group showed the [...] Read more.
This study examined the diversity and responses of intestinal microbiota in hybrid grouper (Epinephelus fuscoguttatus ♀ × E. lanceolatus ♂) fed diets with varying levels of fishmeal replaced by black soldier fly larvae (BSFL). The 10% BSFL substitution (BSFL10) group showed the highest levels of trypsin and amylase. Substituting fishmeal with 30% and 50% BSFL weakened the intestinal wall, resulting in vacuoles, sparse striatal boundaries, and fewer villi. Microbiota diversity, measured through Shannon’s index, was higher in the BSFL10 and BSFL50 groups than in the control. 16S rRNA amplicon data revealed the dominance of Firmicutes, Proteobacteria, Bacteroidetes, Spirochaetota, and Verrucomicrobia phyla. The BSFL-replacement groups showed an increase in Proteobacteria, Bacteroidetes, and Spirochaetota compared to the control, but fewer Firmicutes. PICRUSt analysis indicated significant alterations in microbial function, particularly enhanced protein, carbohydrate, lipid, and energy metabolisms in the BSFL-fed group. Substituting 10% fishmeal with BSFL enhanced nutrient metabolism and gut microbiota in juvenile hybrid grouper. Further research is needed to explore factors affecting the efficacy of insect feed as a sustainable aquaculture diet. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue The Comprehensive Utilization of Edible Insects and Fish By-Products in Animal Feeding)
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12 pages, 580 KiB  
Article
Assessing Substrate Utilization and Bioconversion Efficiency of Black Soldier Fly (Hermetia illucens) Larvae: Effect of Diet Composition on Growth and Development Temperature
by Simona Belperio, Arianna Cattaneo, Eleonora Nannoni, Luca Sardi, Giovanna Martelli, Sihem Dabbou and Marco Meneguz
Animals 2024, 14(9), 1340; https://doi.org/10.3390/ani14091340 - 29 Apr 2024
Cited by 8 | Viewed by 3567
Abstract
Black soldier fly larvae (BSFL) can utilize food by-products or residues for growth, benefiting farm animal’s diets’ production sustainability. The experiment aimed to assess the effect of different substrate compositions on larval growth, chemical composition, and substrate temperature. BSFL were allocated to one [...] Read more.
Black soldier fly larvae (BSFL) can utilize food by-products or residues for growth, benefiting farm animal’s diets’ production sustainability. The experiment aimed to assess the effect of different substrate compositions on larval growth, chemical composition, and substrate temperature. BSFL were allocated to one of the four diets (control, vegetable, carnivorous, and omnivorous) for the entire experiment (8 days). The temperature was measured twice daily using a thermal-imaging camera, and the accumulated degree hours (ADH) was calculated. The results showed that the larvae fed the vegetable diet exhibited a significantly reduced growth performance, with a biomass reduction of 26.3% compared to the control diet; furthermore, vegetable-fed larvae showed a lower dry matter content (−30% compared to the average of other diets) due to lower fat content (−65% compared to average of other diets). The nutritional composition of larvae fed an omnivorous diet was similar to larvae fed a high-quality substrate diet (control diet-chicken feed), indicating that the omnivorous diet could be an ideal solution for rearing BSFL larvae; however, the current European legislation prohibits the use of animal meal. The study also revealed that substrate temperatures did not have a discernible influence on larval growth, further emphasizing the importance of diet in BSFL rearing strategies. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue The Comprehensive Utilization of Edible Insects and Fish By-Products in Animal Feeding)
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12 pages, 1924 KiB  
Article
Bean Sprouts, Lettuce, and Milk as Water Sources in Tenebrio molitor Larval Growth
by Seokhyun Lee, Andrew Wange Bugenyi, Hakkyo Lee and Jaeyoung Heo
Animals 2024, 14(6), 895; https://doi.org/10.3390/ani14060895 - 14 Mar 2024
Viewed by 1470
Abstract
The Tenebrio molitor larva (yellow mealworm) holds great potential as a sustainable ingredient in food and feed. Optimizing its growth under mass farming requires careful water management. However, the availability and cost of fresh fruit and vegetables, which are the most widely used [...] Read more.
The Tenebrio molitor larva (yellow mealworm) holds great potential as a sustainable ingredient in food and feed. Optimizing its growth under mass farming requires careful water management. However, the availability and cost of fresh fruit and vegetables, which are the most widely used sources of water, can vary geographically, which calls for the search for relatively affordable, effective, and readily available alternatives. We evaluated the effect of three water sources (bean sprouts, lettuce leaves, and milk) as well as their quantity on weights and nutrient profiles of reared T. molitor larvae. Newly hatched mealworm larvae were maintained in controlled conditions of 25 °C and 60% relative humidity under a 12-h light–dark cycle for 15 weeks. When provided as sole-supplements, bean sprouts induced the highest larval weight gains compared to fresh lettuce leaves, which in turn performed better than milk and water. However, the addition of milk to the vegetable supplements enhanced growth. Furthermore, doubling the level of water supply resulted in 70% higher larval weights by week 14 post hatching. Moreover, water sources did not change the nutrient content of the harvested larvae. These findings suggest that mealworm productivity can be enhanced by increasing water feed levels and that bean sprouts may be a superior alternative to lettuce. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue The Comprehensive Utilization of Edible Insects and Fish By-Products in Animal Feeding)
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