CHICKEN FEED FORMULATION USING LOCUST BEANS IN PLACE OF FISH

 

CHAPTER ONE

1.0     INTRODUCTION

Feed formulation is an applied field of nutrition where nutritionists apply their knowledge to produce balanced diets in which many pieces of information are incorporated to maximize the efficiency of the formulation process (Rasheed, 2016).

 Ration can be defined as the total amount of feed given to the animals on daily basis while ration formulation is the process by which different feed ingredients are combined in a proportion necessary to provide the animal with proper amount of nutrients needed at a particular stage of production (Afolayan, 2008).

Ration formulation help to enhance adaptation of local feed stuff in compounding rations, thus, two basic concepts are put into consideration when formulating feed, the specific nutrient requirement of different animals and ingredients and cost of the feed itself. Nutrients are chemical substances found in food materials (feeds) which are required for the growth, maintenance, production and health of animals. Some specific requirements depend on the types of animals in question, whether it is a monogastric or ruminant, a ruminant animals is one that regurgitates food from its stomach and chews it again, ruminant are capable of digesting complex carbohydrate or cellulose.  Examples of ruminants include cow and sheep while monogastric animal is one that is capable of digesting complex carbohydrate, example of monogastric animal is poultry (Tayo, 2012).

The most important rules of animal production is to provide high quality protein for human consumption, and to achieve this, animals are to be feed with correct proportion of high quality protein in their diets (Araujo, Junqueira, Faria, Andreotti and Araujo, 2004).

Poultry are domesticated birds raised for meat or egg production poultry feeding is a major item of cost in poultry production in Nigeria, feed cost accounts for 70 – 75% of the total cost of producing eggs and broilers. Many commercial farms have collapsed while a good number out of them witness slow growth due to sudden increase in the cost of poultry feeds. In order to maintain a reasonable margin of profit despite the rising cost of raw materials and labour, there must be a design to reduce the cost of production and still maintain high level of performance in the birds, otherwise the prices of poultry product (eggs and meat) will increase significantly.

Furthermore, an ideal ration must contain the required level of nutrient at minimum cost, hence least cost ration formulation techniques have to be employed to obtain diets that meet specific requirements from readily available ingredients at lowest cost. Efficient ration formulation requires proper knowledge of feed stuffs nutrients contained in the feed stuff as well as the type of animal to be fed with such ration to ensure optimal production at a reasonable cost. The ration should be palatable enough to encourage adequate consumption by the animals and effort should be made to ensure that such ration will not cause any serious digestive disturbance or toxic effects on the animal.

Different species strains or classes of animals have different requirements for energy (carbohydrate and fats), proteins, minerals and vitamins in order to maintain its various functions like body maintenance, reproduction of egg, milk and meat production etc.

Feed formulation for poultry is a highly complex exercise it involves selecting a combination of feed ingredients that adequately meet stated nutrients and other requirements of livestock (Afolayan et al., 2008).

Poultry feed formulation was, until recently, based on the concept of crude protein which frequently resulted in diet containing amino acid levels higher than the actual requirements of birds, excess amino acid is poorly used by birds as it must be reduced to nitrogen and then excreted as uric acid. The commercial availability of synthetic amino acids has allowed nutritionist to formulate cheaper feeds that contain adequate level of amino acids, though birds do not have high crude protein requirements, but there should be sufficient protein to provide an adequate nitrogen supply for synthesis of non-essential amino acids (Araujo et al., 2004).

There are several methods in formulating ration (feeds) though all of them have the same objective of providing the required balanced nutrients at the least possible cost, some of these methods are:

1.     Person square method:

Some of the merits of this method of feed formulation include the fact that:

-         It is relatively simple, direct and easy to follow;

-         It is useful in balancing for the protein requirements.

Some of the limitations of Pearson square method are that:

-         It uses only two feed ingredients

-         Less consideration is given to other nutritive requirements, vitamins and minerals.

 

 

2.     Simultaneous equation method:

This is an alternative method for the Pearson square method using simple algebraic equation. The advantages of this over the Pearson square method is that:

-         One can balance for both the protein and the energy.

-         It is also useful in considering more than two feed ingredients at once when balancing more complex ration

3.     Trial and error method:

This is the most popular method of formulating rations for poultry.  As the name implies, the formulation is manipulated until the nutrient requirement of the birds is arrived at. Trial and error method can be done manually on paper or with the aid of a computer using programme like spreadsheet, e.g excel, lotus 123 and Quattro pro. This method makes possible the formulation of the ration that meets all the nutrient requirements of the birds.

The limitation of this method is that, it is laborious and takes more time before one will arrive at a fairly satisfactory result.

4.     Two-by-two matrix method:

This method solves two nutrient requirements using two different feed ingredients.

 

5.     Linear programming method:

This is the common method of least cost food formulation; this method determines the least-cost combination of ingredients using a series of mathematical equation.

6.     Stochastic method:

This is an alternative to Pearson square or simultaneous equation method. This method has been widely recommended for feed formulation.

Broilers are chickens reared for meat; broilers are bred to be very fast growing in order to gain weight quickly. Broilers require energy expressed in mega joules per kilogram (MJ/kg) or kilocalories per kilogram (kcal/kg) for growth of tissue, maintenance and activity. Broiler meals have to contain protein (plant and animal source) which are broken down by digestion into amino acids; these amino acids are absorbed and assembled in body proteins which are used in the construction of body tissue e.g muscles, nerves, skin and feathers. The broilers also needed vitamin and mineral supplement which depends on feed ingredients used, feed manufacturing practices and local circumstances (Dejong, Butterworth, Berg and Esteve, 2012).

Starter/brooding period (0 – 10  days of age) is to establish good appetite and maximum early growth in order to meet the seven-days body weight, the starter represents a small proportion of the total feed cost and decisions on starter formulation is based primarily on performance and profitability rather than purely on diet cost. For feeding broilers the recommended nutrient density will ensure optimal growth established during this critical period of the bird’s life. Broiler starter needs energy level of 3000 kcal ME/kg and crude protein of 22.5 – 23%. The feeds are usually in form of crumbs/mash or pellets of 1.8 – 2mm in size (Wiseman, 1994).

Fish meal and soya meal are still quite commonly used in poultry diets. One potential solution is the use of insects primarily as an alternative to fish meal and soy meal. Most edible insects are cheap, easily available and can provide a good source of protein and minerals needed to complement cereal-based foods consumed in the developing countries (Makkar, 2014).

Insect proteins are more valuable protein source for monogastric animals. Insect meal compared to fish meal contain a lower amount of methionine and calcium which has to be considered when formulating diets based on insect proteins (Jayaprakash, Sathiyabarathi and Robeth, 2016).

The most promising insects used in animal feeds are the larvae of the black soldier fly, maggot and pupae of common house fly, yellow meal worm, larvae of beetle, termites, flies and insect families belonging to the order Orthoptera which include locust (Grasshoppers) crickets and katydids. Hence this study will undergo the production of locust feed meal for broiler chicks.

1.2     Justification

The significance of this study is to formulate feed meal where by locust meal is used as a substitute for fish meal which can be an alternative animal protein source for broiler chicks, the effect of the meal on growth performance of the bird and which can serve as a point of reference for both poultry breeders and students.

1.3     Aim

To formulate starter feed meal for broiler Chicks using locust (Orthoptera acrididae) meal.

 1.4    Objectives

1.       To determine the feed in-take efficiency of Chicks.

2.       To determine the effect of the formulated meal on the Chicks.

3.       To compare the efficacy of the formulated feed with that of the commercial feed.

 

CHAPTER TWO

2.0       REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE

2.1       Sources of Protein for Poultry

Poultry and fish are the major animal protein sources for human consumption and their feed conversion efficiencies are higher than those of other organisms. However the success of rearing poultry and fish depends upon the feed given. The feed should be prepared based on the precise knowledge of their nutritional requirements so that the optimum growth can be achieved in a given time. The balanced diet to be given to these organisms should contain nutrients such as protein, carbohydrate, lipid, vitamins and minerals to meet based energy requirements and also to ensure healthy growth; of all the components of the formulated feed, protein plays an important role in the feed, it is also a costly component. The quality of any protein depends upon its amino acid configuration. Plant protein sources, though comparatively less expensive than animal protein sources, may not provide all the amino acid required by the animal, but when supplemented by animal protein sources will provide the required amount of essential amino acids and other growth promoting substances. In the feed of poultry the major source of animal protein is fishmeal, which does not only supply the appropriate amino acids but also acts as feed attractant besides being highly palatable. Since the demand for fishmeal is high which has lead to its cost steadily increasing, many non-conventional sources have been exploited by many workers.  Some such products include blood powder meal, insects, etc (Aimradha, 1999).

 

 

2.2       Importance of Edible Insects in Nutrition and Economy

Insect consumption is a traditional alimentary habit that comes from ancient times; it varies from group to group according to the ecosystem. In many cases they are a vital dietary element providing nutrients of high biological value including energy. Fats provide the majority with energy necessary for sustaining life, the energy contents of edible insects varies according to the species and region they are found. Energetic values of the livestock are 165 -705 kcal/100g and vegetable 308 – 352 kcal/100g (Julieta and Elourduy, 2008).

Many species of insects have been identified as sustainable and suitable food for human; out of the species of insects included: 31% are beetles (coleoptera), 14% are bees, wasp and ants (Hymenoptera), 10% are cicadas leaf hoppers, scale insects, planthoppers and true bugs (Hemiptera), 3% are dragon flies (odonata) and 13% and grasshoppers, locust, katydid, cicadas (Orthoptera). One of the most benefits of edible insects are the large amount of protein found in them. For example 1kg of termites provides roughly 350g of protein whereas the some amount of beef contains 320g, caterpillars contain 280g of protein that is 20g more than salmon, 30g more than pork and 263g more than tofu (Lyon, 2015).

2.2.1    Nutritional Value of Insects

Numerous studies have been conducted on the nutritive value and nutrient composition of different species of insects confirming that insects are good source of protein, fat, energy, vitamins and minerals. For example, the consumption of 100g caterpillars provides 76% of the daily required amount of proteins and almost 100% of daily required amount of vitamins for humans and animals and also dried silk worm pupae are composed of about 50% proteins and 30% lipids (Amza and Tanimu, 2017).

2.2.2    Chemical Composition of Insects in Dry Matter (DM)%

TYPES OF INSECT
	CP	CF	EE	ASH	GE(MJ/kg)
Black soldier fly Larvae	42.1±1	7	26.0±8.3	20.6±6	22.1
Housefly maggot Meal	50.4±5.3	5.7±2.4	18.9±5.6	10.1±3.3	22.9±1.4
Housefly pupae meal	70.8±5.8	15.7	15.5±1	7.7±2.1	24.3
Meal worm	52.8±4.2	-	36.1±4.1	3.1±0.9	26.8±0.4
Locust/grasshopper Meal	57.3±11.8	8.5±4.1	8.5±3.1	6.6±2.5	21.8±2
House cricket	63.3 ±5.7		17.3 ±6.3	5.6 ±2.4
Silk worm pupae Meal (non defatted)	60.7±7	3.9±1.1	25.7±9	5.8±2.4	25.8

Source: Amza and Tamiru (2017).

            A research conducted by Amza and Tamiru (2017) on using insect as an optional conventional protein source in animal feeds found out that the chemical composition of insects varies between species, growth stage and management conditions. They also found out that the crude protein (CP%), crude fiber (CF%), gross energy (GE) varies between species of insects. The protein content of insect meals varies considerably from around 41.1 – 76.1 even when the meals are based on the same insect species, the same holds true for fat content based on the table above.

2.3       Insect Meals as a Substitute for Fish Meal in Poultry

            Insects can be a suitable alternative source of protein in poultry diet due to the high percentage of protein (55% - 70%) they contain, along with a high quality profile of amino acids. In addition, insect greatly improve chicken meat quality and decrease the cost of production (AL-Qazzaz and Ismail, 2016).

            Most of the experiments published to date that carried out experiment comparing the performance of broiler chicks that are fed with diets containing soybeans meal, fishmeal or black soldier fly (BSF) meal produced similar growth rates to fish meal in the starter period and same as soy in the grower phase. Housefly maggot meal 25% in diet used to fed broiler yielded better live weights, a 25% fishmeal diet (Jozefiak, Kieronczyk, Rawski, Swiatkiewicz, Dlugosz and Engberg, 2016).

            An investigation was carried out on three days old broiler chicks, they were allocated to five dietary treatments of silk worm pupae meal at different percentage, the energy budget was prepared form calculated proximate analysis and growth performance of broiler chicks, the result showed that the silk worm meal is the cheapest and has potential to replace the cost and sometime contaminated fish meal as the protein source used in poultry (Dutta, Dutta and Kumari, 2012).

            A research was carried out on 3-week old broiler chickens that were feed with maggot meal (MGM) which was first subjected to proximate analysis replaced 25, 50, 75 and 100% fishmeal (FM). The proximate analysis showed that MGM had 55.1% crude protein, 20.7% fat and 0.2% NFE. The data analysis showed that weight gain, feed consumption and feed efficiency for the chicken between 3-6 weeks of age were not significantly influenced by the dietary treatment whereas the weight gain feed consumption and feed efficiency, the nitrogen retention and protein efficiency ratio for the 3-9 week old were significantly influenced by dietary treatment. The diet with 25% of FM replaced with MGM was the most efficient in terms of average week by weight growth and protein efficiency ratio, the live, dressed and eviscerated weight as well as the relative length, breadth and weight of the pectoral and gastrocnemium   muscles of the chicken at 9 weeks were not significantly influenced by the diets. It was concluded that MGM is an inexpensive replacement for fish meal in broiler chick meal (Awoniyi, Aletor, Aina, 2003).

            Pretorius (2011) also conducted an experiment in which he used 25% housefly larvae meal in the diet of broiler chickens which resulted in a better growth performance in comparison with the same amount of fish meal. Similar results were found by Awoniyi et al., (2003) that the substitution of 25% fish meal with insect meal showed the most efficient result in the case of average weekly weight gain and protein efficiency ratio. Contratry to the submission of Awoniyi et al., (2003) Okah and Onwujiariri (2012) observed that 50% of fish meal replaced with maggot meal has a superior performance in broiler chicken. Adeniji (2007) opined that housefly maggot could completely replace groundnut cake in the diets of broiler chicken. Though the proximate composition of 3 dietary treatments expressed as dry matter basis are summarized, the crude protein (53.43%) and lipid (17.82%) contents obtained for housefly larvae are well consistence with findings of Aniebo and Owen (2010), Awoniyi et al., (2003) and they also observed that increase dietary levels of maggot meal reduced weight gain and that maggot meal can only replace 33% of dietary fish meal 50 as to obtained comparable results to those of the control diet with fish meal. In a similar experiment, Awoniyi et al., (2003) used a control diet with 4% fish meal and the diet treatments were formulated with maggot meal replacing 0,25,50,75 and 100% of the fish meal, they reported that production rates tends to decrease with increasing levels of maggot meal (3% fish meal and 1.17% maggot meal) was the best replacement level (Awoniyi et al., 2003).

            Oluokon (2000) compared black soldier fly larvae (BSF) meal with soybean meal and fishmeal in broiler, because the nutritional profile of BSF meal is similar to fishmealor soybean meal ,the author suggested that BSF meal could replace fishmeal or soybean meal in the broiler ration without any adverse effect regarding weight gain, feed consumption or feed ratio.

2.4       Nutritive Diet Required by Broilers

            Birds tends to eat feeds mainly to satisfy their energy requirement and once this is meant, they will not consume any more feeds, even if the requirement of other nutrient like protein, vitamins and minerals has not been met (Singh and Panda, 1992).

            Most of the dietary energy comes from plant sources in the form of starch from cereals grains which provide the energy component of about 60 to 70 percent of nutrient required by poultry. Protein is supplied by plant and animal sources though, plant sources are safer than animal sources but the formal often lack nutrient balance: which may affect the utilization of nutrient and growth of birds or such diet (Olukosi, Cowieson and Adeola, 2008).

            A study was conducted on broiler chickens and revealed out that the nutrient digestively and overall performance of the chickens fed on vegetable protein diets were comparatively poorer than those of birds fed on conventional diets (Hossain, Islam and Iji, 2012).

            Hossain et al., (2011, 2012) suggested that the reduced performance of broilers on vegetable protein diet which reflected on lower feed intake of the birds may be due to deficiency of essential amino acids, poor nutrient digestibility, lower palatability and anti-nutritive effects of the vegetable protein diets fed to the birds.              

2.5       Common Insects in Poultry Diet

Grasshopper (Othorptera acrididae) are insects of order Orthoptera, more than 80 species of grasshoppers are consumed worldwide by human in Asia, South America and Africa both in rural and urban areas.  The nutritional composition of grasshopper is characterized by high level of protein (52.1 – 77.1%) and is favourable compared to soya bean (48%) or fish meal (50 – 55%).  The crude fibre is between 2.4 – 14.0, the fat is quite variable and ranges from relatively low (< 5%) to high values (> 14%) and the gross energy is 19.5 - 23.7 MJ/kg.  The essential amino acid composition is reasonably high, the level of cysteine (1.1) and methionine (2.3) are higher than other insects such as BSF, maggots and housefly, while the lysine level is lower according to the table below (Al-Qazzaz and Ismail, 2016).

 

 

 

 

 

 

Table 2.1: Chemical Composition of Locust/Grasshopper Meal

NUTRIENTS	PERCNTAGES
Crude Protein (% in Dm), n = 9	57.3 ±18  (29.2, 65.9)
Crude fibre  n = 7	8.5 ±4.1 (2.4, 14.0)
Ether extract (% in Dm), n = 9	8.5 ±3.1 (4.2, 14.1)
Ash (% in Dm), n = 8	6.6 ±2.5 (4.3, 9.1)
Gross energy (MJ/kg  in Dm), n = 4	21.8 ±2.0  (19.5, 27.7)

Sources: Alengbeleye, Olude, Otubu and Jimoh (2012), Anand, Ganguly and Haldar (2008) and Ojewola and Udom (2005). Values are mean ± standard deviation; DM (Dry Matter), values in parenthese are minimum and maximum values.

           

Table 2.2 Amino Acid Composition of Grasshopper Meal

AMINO ACIDS	G/16g nitrogen
Cystine (n = 2)	1.1 (0.5, 1.7)
Methionine (n = 2)	2.3 (2.3, 2.3)
Lysine (n = 2)	4.7 (3.4, 5.9)
Alanine (n = 2)	4.6 (4.1, 5.1)
Tryptophan (n = 1)	0.8

            Sources: Alegbelege et al., (2012) and Balogun (2011)

 

 

 

            Table 2.3 Chemical Composition of Black Soldier Fly Larvae

NUTRIENTS	CONTENT
Crude protein (% in DM), n = 5	42.1 ± 1.0 (41.1, 43.6)
Crude fibre (% in DM), n = 1	7.0
Ethu extract (% in DM), n = 5	26.0 ± 8.3 (± 15.0, 34.8)
Ash (% in DM), n = 5	20.6 ± 6.0 (14.6, 28.4)

            Sources: Arango, Vergara and Mejia (2004) and Newton, Sheppard, Watson, Birtle, Dove, Tomberlin and Thelin (1977).

 

Table 2.4 Amino Acid Composition of Black Soldier Fly

AMINO ACIDS	G/16g nitrogen
Cystine (n = 1)	0.1
Methionine (n = 4)	2.1 ± 0.3 (1.7, 2.4)
Lysine (n = 4)	6.6 ± 0.9 (6.0, 8.0)
Tryptophan (n = 1)	0.5

Source: Newton et al., (1977)

A study was conducted using 140 day old broiler birds in a feeding trial which lasted for 5 weeks. The chicks were divided into three treatments and each treatment was replicated twice with 22 chicks per replicate. Three broiler – starter diets were formulated; grasshopper meal was included at 0%, 50% and 100% in the diets a replacement for fishmeal. The 100% fishmeal (0% grasshopper meal) served as control. The results of the analysis indicated that 100% grasshopper meal diet resulted in higher weight gain (1.02kg) and feed intake (1.48) but lower feed conversion efficiency (69%) the treatment containing 100% fish meal has the feed conversion efficiency (92%). The result of this study shows that whole grasshopper meal diet (100% grasshopper meal) was more expensive N 46.65 per kg of feed than the 50% grasshopper meal (44.62/kg) and 100% fish meal diet (42.60/kg of feed) the cost and return analysis shows that whole grasshopper meal ration gave the highest return (N5,905.08) followed by 50% grasshopper meal (N4,346.02) and N2,380.20 for the control treatment (Hassan, Sani, Maiangwa and Rahman, 2009).

The finding of Hassan et al., (2009) agrees with that of (Rosenfield, Gernat, Marcano, Murillo, Lopez and Flores 1997) who reported that grasshopper meal constitutes a high protein-rich concentrate that can be used as a protein supplement for broilers and that the weight gain is as a result of feed digestibility and palatability which (Oluyemi and Robeth, 1979) indicated that adequate nutrients intake like protein and energy level in the diets enhance proper growth and weight gain (Hassan et al., 2009).

A study was conducted by Adeyemo, Longe and Lawal (2008), they reported that proximate analysis (Dry matter basis) of desert locust meal was found as 52.3% of CP, 12% of EE, 19% of CF and 10% of ash, they also suggested that variation in results of different studies could be attributed to differences in locust species, stages of their development and the season of the year during which sample were collected. Their study showed that partial substitution of fish meal (FM) with locust meal is usually suitable, they replaced 50% FM with desert locust meal (i.e. 1.7% in the diet) in broiler starter diets and found better body weight gain.

A study conducted on 360 one day old broiler chicks, where fish meal was replaced with grasshopper meal on a kg/kg basis at 0% (control), 25% (25 GM + 75% FM), 50%  (50%GM + 50%FM) and (100% GM + 0%FM) in the broilers’ diets.  The result showed that the daily feed intake, body weight significantly decrease with increasing substitution weight of FM with GM, feed conversion ratios increase with highest performance observed in broilers fed with the control diet.  The body weight, feed conversion ratio, economic feed efficiency and carcass yield of broilers fed with GM 0%, 25% and 50% were similar (Brah, Houndonougbo and Issa 2018).

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

2.5.1    The Role of Insects in Broiler Report Authors     

Class of animal	Insect type	Feeding purpose	Result obtained	Recommendation	References
Broilers	Housefly maggot meal	Replacement for conventional protein sources and fish meal	Have no distinctive organoleptic qualities and to be accepted by consumers	Inclusion rate is ≤ 10% in the diet >10% result lower intake due to darker colour of the meal	Awoniyi 2007
120 day broiler	Maggot meal	Mixture of dried cassava peels and maggot meal for replacing 0-100% maize grain	Cassava peels maggots, mixture could replace 50% maize (29%) diet as feed in to save cost	With 4:1 ration	Adesina et al., 2011
Broiler	Meal worm	For replacing soy meal or fish meal	Protein quality is like that of soy meal based broilers. But low methionine and Ca content for poultry	The additional of 8% CaCO3 was found to be suitable to increase Ca.	Klasinget 2000 and Anderson 2000
	Dried meal worm	Inclusion of broiler starter diet based on sorghum and soy bean	Without negative effects on feed consumption, weight gain, feed efficiency, texture, palatability or inclusion level	Inclusion level is 25% meal worm as a substitution of the basal diet	Ramous elordry et al., 2002. Schiavone et al., 2014
Broilers 1-28 days	Grasshopper	As a substitute for fish meal	Resulted in higher body weight gain feed intake and feed conversion	Replacement 50% fish meal protein with low at meal 7% in the diet	Adeyem O. et al., 2008

            Source: Amza and Tamiru (2017).

According to different studies conducted in the above table, insect meal is an interesting and important substitute of poultry diet potentially substituting wide range of feed stuff like cassava peels, sorghum, fish meal, maize and soy meal. However some insect species have no distinctive organoleptic quality which leads to lack of consumer acceptance. Generally when insects were included in poultry feed, the carcass quality, breast muscle portions, feed consumption, weight gain, feed efficiency, texture palatability and higher egg-laying ration was found to be better at a recommended levels of inclusion than other conventional good quality feed (Amza and Tamiru 2017).

 

CHAPTER THREE

3.0       MATERIALS AND METHODS

3.1       Collection of Raw Materials for the Feed

The feed was compounded using the following raw materials; maize (yellow), groundnut cake, soya fulfat, bone meal, limestone, salt, lysine, methionine, premix, enzyme and locust (Orthoptera acrididae). 

3.2       Modified Feed Formulae

Table 3.1 give the amount of each feed component and their quantities used for each 25 kg (i.e 1bag) of starter feed meal produced.

Table 3.1: Amount of Each Feed Component and Their Quantities Using Pearson Square Method.

Feed components	Quantities (kg)
Maize	12.50
Groundnut cake	5.00
Soya fulfat	4.50
Bone meal	1.00
Limestone	0.75
Locust	1.20
Lysine	0.04
Methionine	0.65
Salt	0.09
Premix	0.06
Enzyme	0.03

 

3.3       Experimental Birds

25 Cobb breed broiler Chicks day old were fed with the self formulated locust meal. The birds were subjected to the experimental feed and management conditions and water were provided ad-libitum. The experiment lasted for 4 weeks.

3.4       Experimental Sites

The experiment was carried out at the poultry house in the Biological garden of Applied Science Department, College of Science and Technology main campus, Kaduna Polytechnic.

3.5       Feed Compounding

The ingredients intended for compounding the feed meal were first of all cleaned from foreign matter and adulterants like sands, husk, cobs, damaged and immature seeds were picked from the grains as much as possible so as to limit the aflatoxin level. The ingredient such as maize, groundnut cake, soya bean, locust meal were weighed accordingly based on the quantity provided in table 3.1, the ingredients were ground in to a coarse form (i.e a size small enough for easy access to the chicks) using a dry milling machine, the premix is a mixture of mineral for poultry, it contains (28 – 32% of calcium, 5-6% of phosphorus, 0.3% of iron, 0.27% of manganese, 0.005% of copper, 0.03% of fluorine and 50mg per kg of lodine) were then added to the grounded ingredients and mixed thoroughly is an horizontal mixer.  The ingredients (feed) was packed into 5 bags, each bags weighing 25kg.

 

3.6       Feed Analysis

When formulating feed for broilers chicks, the amount of crude protein required by the broiler chicks is between 23-24% with energy level of 1800 – 2000kJ/kg, though energy is not a nutritive substance, rather it is a product which exists in nutritive food and is released by oxidation. There must be an appropriate balance between energy level and amount of protein in a meal regardless of the energy level of the meal. The amount of crude protein present in the locust starter feed formulated can be calculated by:

Amount of crude protein        =           x 100

Firstly the crude protein of ingredients is summed up as this

-          12.5kg of maize x 8.2% cp = 1.03

-          5.0kg of groundnut cake x 45% cp = 2.25

-          4.5kg of soya bean x 44% cp = 1.98

-          1.2kg of locust x 52% cp = 0.625

Total    =       5.89%

Using the above formula:   Amount of crude protein   =      x 100 = 23.56 %

(i.e The amount of crude protein in the formulated locust meal is 23.56%).

While the metabolized energy level in the formulated meal is calculated using:

ME = x crude protein of ingredient

ME == 13.83mj/kg or 3305.45kcal/kg

 

 

 

Table 3.2: Nutritive Values (CP and ME) Present in the Experimental Diets

Feed	Crude protein (cp)	Metabolized energy (ME)
Locust meal	23.56%	3305.45kcal/kg
Commercial meal	21%	2800kcal/kg

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

CHAPTER FOUR

4.0       RESULTS

Table 4.1 shows that the mean feed intake of broiler chicks fed with locust/grasshopper feed is 1.67kg with a standard deviation of ± 0.41.

Table 4.2 shows the mean body weight of broiler chicks fed with locust feed to be 0.36kg with a standard deviation of ±0.09

Table 4.3 shows that the mean body height and breadth length of the Chicks fed with locust feed is 8.13cm with standard deviation ±1.11 and 15.22 with standard deviation ±7.23 respectively.

Table 4.4 compares the mean growth parameters (feed intake, body weight, height and breath length) of broiler Chicks fed with locust and commercial feeds.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Table 4.1: Effect of Locust feed on feed intake of Chicks fed for 4 weeks

Parameter	No of birds	Mean (kg)	Standard Deviation
Feed intake	25	1.67	±0.41

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Table 4.2: Effect of locust feed on growth performance of broiler Chicks

Parameter	No of birds	Mean (kg)	Standard Deviation
Weight	25	0.36	±0.09
Height	25	8.13	±1.11
Breadth	25	15.2	±7..23

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Table 4.3: The Mean Difference on Growth Performance of Broiler Chicks Fed with Locust Feed and Commercial Feed

Parameter	Feed	No of birds	Mean (kg/cm)		Standard Deviation
Feed intake	Locust feed	25	1.64	±0.41
	Commercial feed	25	1.79	±.025
Weight	Locust feed	25	0.36	±0.09
	Commercial feed	25	0.45	±0.11
Height	Locust feed	25	8.13	±1.11
	Commercial feed	25	10.21	±1.13
Breadth	Locust feed	25	15.22	±7.12
	Commercial feed	25	18.23	±7.23

 

 

 

 

 

CHAPTER FIVE

5.0       DISCUSSION, CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS

5.1       Discussion

The metabolized energy (ME) of the self formulated feed (Locust feed) and commercial  feed is 3305.45kcal/kg and 2800kcal/kg respectively while the crude protein [CP] present in the self formulated feed is 23.56% and 21% for the commercial feed.

Table 4.1 shows that the mean feed intake for self formulated feed (locust feed) is 1.67kg with standard deviation ±0.41 which is in agreement with Hassan et al., (2009) that 100% grasshopper meal diet resulted with in higher feed intake.

Table 4.2 shows that the mean body weight of Chicks fed with self formulated feed (locust feed) is 0.36kg with standard deviation of ±0.09. This is in contrary with the findings of Hassan et al., (2009) that 100% grasshopper meal diet resulted to higher weight gain, thus, this is in agreement with Brah et al., (2018) that there was significantly decreased in body weight of Chicks with increasing weight of grasshopper meal in the diet. The height of the Chicks fed with self formulated feed (locust feed) is 8.13cm with a standard deviation of ±1.11 and the breadth length is 15.22cm with a standard deviation of ±7.23. This observation is not in agreement with the result reported by Brah et al., (2018) that high level of locust meal in broiler feeds leads to decreased in growth performance of broiler Chicks. This is because the self formulated meal gave an increase in growth performance with broiler Chicks. However, when there is partial substitution of fish meal with locust meal (25% or 50%) in the field yields a better growth performance as reported by Adeyemo et al., (2008).

Table 4.3 Compared the feed intake of Chicks feed with self formulated feed as 1.67kg with standard deviation of ±0.41, the body weight is 0.36kg with standard deviation of ±0.09, the height is 8.13cm with standard deviation of ±1.11 and breadth length is 15.22cm with standard deviation of ±7.23 while the feed intake of Chicks fed with commercial feed is 1.79kg with standard deviation of ±0.25, the body weight is 0.45kg with standard deviation of ±0.11, the height is 10.21cm with standard deviation of 1.13 and the breadth length is 18.23cm with standard deviation of 7.23, based on the feed intake, the Chicks feed with self formulated feed consumed less meal compared with those fed with commercial feed. This findings is in agreement with Singh and Panda, (1992) that birds tend to eat feeds mainly to satisfy their energy requirement and once this is met, they will not consumed any more even if the requirement of other nutrients like protein, vitamins or minerals have not been met.

5.2       Conclusion

The result of the study showed that the self formulation feed had reasonable effect on the feed intake efficiency of the Chicks, the Chicks feed is 1.67kg with increase in body weight of 0.6kg. The commercial feed gave a significant positive effect as feed intake of 1.79kg given 0.45kg body weight. However, commercial feed produce a more desirable result compared to self formulated feed which might be due to high level of metabolized energy present in the self formulated feed, thereby making the feed unpalatable and less efficacy for the Chicks.     

5.3       Recommendations

        i.            This study could be replicated in a wider scope.

      ii.            Feed manufacturer need to include insects as a source of animal protein while formulating feeds.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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