Milestone for the insect-based aquaculture sector: BSFL-derived palatant for pacific white shrimp

Following the news on B Corp recertification earlier this month, Innovafeed announced a new scientific milestone for the insect-based aquaculture sector. On LinkedIn, it gave the preview of a new white paper, developed in collaboration with SPAROS, a leading European R&D centre in aquaculture nutrition, with experimental trials conducted by RIASEARCH, on shrimp (Penaeus vannamei) palatability and performance.

Marine-derived palatants such as squid meal are increasingly volatile, constrained, and environmentally challenging. This study explores whether Innovafeed’s black soldier fly -derived palatants (Hilucia™) can offer a high-performing, scalable alternative.

The study demonstrated effectiveness of a BSFL-derived palatant for pacific white shrimp diets. The BSFL-derived palatant displays a strong phago-stimulatory effect, increasing relative feed intake by 7.56% compared to the control feed, demonstrating a palatant or attractant effect comparable to that of squid meal. Authors are: Jorge Dias, PhD, SPAROS; André Barreto, PhD at RIASEARCH; Marine Bezagu, PhD and Luca Donati at Innovafeed. 

This trial was conducted to demonstrate that a diet containing 3% BSFL-derived palatant (BSF), when compared to a negative control diet (Control), shows phago-stimulatory activity in pacific white shrimp. It was also to assess the BSF diet’s performance against a benchmark diet containing 3% squid meal (Squid). Shrimp were fed for seventeen days in a stable environment. Mortality was low, ranging between 0 and 2%, and was not affected by dietary treatments. 

Experiments were conducted at the RIASEARCH R&D facility (Portugal). Whiteleg shrimp of an average initial weight of 7.4g were randomly distributed into 12 tanks (25 shrimp/tank, 4 replicates per feeding condition). All tanks were maintained with the same water parameters, i.e. temperature of 28.5°C, dissolved oxygen level of 7.3mg/L and a salinity of 24.8ppt throughout the experimental period.

Shrimp were fed manually in 3 daily meals (08:00, 12:00, 16.00 h). Daily feed ration was based on an internal feeding table for whiteleg shrimp but guaranteeing a slight excess of feed. One hour after each meal, all uneaten pellets were recovered by siphoning. The amount of feed distributed and uneaten was quantified on a daily basis. Every day, uneaten pellets from each tank were dried overnight in a convection oven (105ºC for 12 hours) and weight quantified on a dry basis. Shrimp number and biomass per tank were quantified at the start and at the end of the trial. Finally, feed intake per day was expressed as a percentage of average body weight per day, in order to facilitate comparisons between different groups and studies

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These results add to a growing body of evidence that insect-based ingredients are not only sustainable, they are performance-driven solutions for modern aquaculture.

Despite the study only lasting 17 days,  authors were close to doubling the shrimp’s weights, and therefore it is still interesting to look at growth performance. There was no statistically significant differences in feed efficiency of tested groups, showing that the increased feed intake would translate into faster growth, and therefore still imply financial benefits at farm scale. 

Key Messages 

Reduced feed intake is commonly associated with shrimp diets high in plant protein. To alleviate this, certain marine ingredients such as squid, fish or krill, are included in formulations as attractants and palatants, but are prone to unstable supply and price volatility. This study evaluated how Innovafeed’s BSFL-derived palatant could be integrated in shrimp diets as an alternative, and found that it was a powerful feed effector:

• Addition of 3% BSFL-derived palatant improved relative feed intake of shrimp by 7.56%, in regards to negative control (figure 1).
• Comparable phago-stimulatory effect between feeds formulated with BSFL derived palatant and those containing an equivalent amount of squid meal.
• Feeds using either squid meal or the BSFL derived palatant maintained feed conversion ratio at a level similar to control diet (Figure 2).

Recent studies suggest that insect protein may stimulate feeding behaviour in crustaceans , but their potential as functional palatants in shrimp diets remains insufficiently documented. The ability of an insect-derived palatant to replace squid meal could offer a pathway towards reducing dependency on marine resources in P. vannamei feeds, and while maintaining feed intake, growth performance, and overall profitability in intensive production systems.

“Shrimp fed diets with the BSF-derived palatant showed improved
appetite, confirming its value as a natural, sustainable solution
for boosting feed attractiveness and performance.”

Authors concluded that the BSFL-derived palatant displayed a strong phago-stimulatory effect, increasing relative feed intake by 7.56% compared to the control feed, demonstrating a palatant or attractant effect comparable to that of squid meal.

Download the whitepaper on innovafeed.com/en/hilucia-aquaculture/

Beyond shrimp

In January, Innovafeed will announce a major commercial partnership in aquaculture, on another species.