Replacement of fish meal in practical diets for the Pacific white shrimp, Litopenaeus vannamei

The use of a co-extruded soybean poultry by-product meal (CEPM) and flashed dried poultry by-product meal (FD-PBM) was evaluated as replacements for f ish meal in a practical diet formulated to contain 32% crude protein and 8% lipid. Each meal was substituted for menhaden fish meal on an iso-nitrogen ous basis and offered to juvenile Litopenaeus vannamei (mean initial wt. +/ - S.D., 0.37 +/- 0.015 g) over a 6-week period. Inclusion levels ranged fro m 0 (30 g fish meal /100 g diet) to 80% replacement (6 g fish meal/100 g di et). Replacement of fish meal with CEPM resulted in equivalent values for f inal weight, percent weight gain and feed efficiency (FE) and a significant increase in protein conversion efficiency (PCE). Similarly, replacement of 40%, 60%, and 80% of the fish-meal protein in the basal diet with FD-PBM r esulted in a significant increase in weight gain and FE. Although not signi ficant, there was also a general increase in PCE when FD-PBM was included i n the diet. Under the reported conditions, survival, FE, and PCE values wer e either improved or were not significantly influenced by the replacement o f menhaden fish meal with either CEPM or FD-PBM. Hence, these products can be used to reduce the fish-meal content of practical diets from 30 to 6 g/1 00 g dry wt. (C) 2000 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.