Black Soldier Fly Larva Fat in Broiler Chicken Diets Affects Breast Meat Quality

Abstract

This study aimed to evaluate the dose-dependent effect of black soldier fly (BFL) larvae fat inclusion in broiler chicken diets on breast meat quality. Four hundred 1-day-old male birds (Ross 308) were assigned to the following four treatments (10 replicates with 10 birds each): HI0, a basal diet without dietary fat inclusion, and HI03, HI06, and HI09, basal diets enriched with 30 g/kg, 60 g/kg, and 90 g/kg of BSF larvae fat, respectively. Principal component analysis showed noticeable differentiation between the selected plant, animal, and insect-origin dietary fats. The BSF fat exhibits a strong relationship with saturated fatty acids (SFAs), resulting in a high concentration of C12:0 and C14:0. The fatty acid (FA) profile in breast muscle obtained from broilers fed diets with increasing insect fat inclusion showed a significant linear effect in terms of C12:0, C15:0, C18:2, C18:3n6, and total FAs. The proportion of dietary insect fat had a quadratic effect on meat color. The water-holding capacity indices have stayed consistent with the meat color changes. Throughout the experiment, favorable growth performance results were noticed in HI06. The present study confirmed that BSF larvae fat negatively affects the n3 level in meat. However, the physicochemical indices related to consumer acceptance were not altered to negatively limit their final decision, even when a relatively high inclusion of insect fat was used.

Effect supplementation of black soldier fly larvae oil (Hermetia illucens L.) calcium salt on performance, blood biochemical profile, carcass characteristic, meat quality, and gene expression in fat metabolism broilers

“…In addition, a* (redness) and b* (yellowness) values increased with dietary supplementation of BSFLO-Sca. In agreement with these findings, dietary BSFLO increased the L*, a*, and b* values of the breast meat broiler ( Schiavone et al, 2019 ; Kierończyk et al, 2023 ). Increased breast meat color results from an accumulation of xanthophyll pigments from BSF larvae.…”

“…In the present study, supplementation of BSFLO-SCa affected the FA profiles of broiler. The available literature observed the same in broiler ( Cullere et al, 2019 ; Kim et al, 2020 ; Kierończyk et al, 2023 ). BSFLO-SCa significantly increased MCFA (lauric and myristic) and MUFA in meat.…”

Flight toward Sustainability in Poultry Nutrition with Black Soldier Fly Larvae

“…Research also points to the possibility of BSFL meal and fat completely replacing soybean cake and oil in diets for laying hens, indicating a substantial shift in traditional poultry feeding practices [71]. The impact of BSFL larva fat on broiler diets extends to the quality of the chicken meat itself, particularly affecting breast meat quality [72]. Furthermore, modified BSF larva fat in broiler diets has been examined for its effects on performance, carcass traits, blood parameters, histomorphological features, and gut microbiota, demonstrating its comprehensive impact on poultry health and product quality [73].…”

Implementation of a metabolizable energy regression model for black soldier fly larvae fat in broiler chicken diets: effect on growth performance, nutrient digestibility, and selected physiological indices

“…Insect dietary fat is a byproduct of protein meal produced by various extraction methods, such as solvent systems, mechanical separation and/or pressing, Soxhlet extraction, and supercritical extraction (Kierończyk et al, 2022b). Overall, incorporating insect dietary fat into poultry diets, including those for broilers (Kierończyk et al, 2023), laying hens (Heuel et al, 2021), turkeys (Sypniewski et al, 2020), and pheasants (Flis et al, 2024), has been shown to yield positive results. Growth performance outcomes are comparable to those achieved with commonly used dietary fats, such as soybean oil, palm oil, or poultry fat (Schiavone et al, 2018;Benzertiha et al, 2019).…”

“…Moreover, studies have neither shown adverse effects on the weight or length of selected gastrointestinal tract (GIT) segments (Kierończyk et al, 2020) nor on favourable nutrient utilisation, particularly for the coefficients of ether extract ileal digestibility (Kierończyk et al, 2022c). The insect fatty acid (FA) profile, in terms of saturated fatty acid (SFA) and unsaturated fatty acid (UFA) levels, is defined between that of animal fats and oils of plant origin (Sosa and Fogliano, 2017;Kierończyk et al, 2023). However, the predominant FAs in Hermetia illucens (HI) larvae, a preferred species for insect production in mini-livestock farming, include lauric (C12:0), myristic (C14:0), palmitic (C16:0), palmitoleic (C16:1), oleic (C18:1), and linoleic (C18:2) acids (Kierończyk et al, 2022a) further implementation of meals and fats derived from invertebrates to livestock (poultry and swine).…”