PREPARATION, NUTRIENT COMPOSITION AND DIGESTIBILITY OF FERMENTED SHRIMP HEAD SILAGE

Raw heads of the river prawn, Macrobrachium vollenhovenii, were fermen ted with Lactobacillus plantarum at 30 degrees C using molasses or cas sava starch as the carbohydrate source. After incubation for 7 days, a desirable and stable pH < 4.5 was attained, and the carbohydrate sour ce did not affect non-protein nitrogen (NPN) content or the proximate composition of the liquid silage after 30 days incubation. Hydrolysed feather meal, poultry by-product meal or soybean meal, used as alterna tive filler, was blended with the liquid silage (85:15, w/w) and solar -dried. The dried shrimp head silage meals were incorporated as protei n supplements into pelleted semi-purified diets for catfish, Clarias g ariepinus. Apparent digestibility coefficients of dry matter, crude pr otein, gross energy and essential amino acids in the silage by catfish fingerlings was high (> 70%). It was concluded that dried fermented f ish silage is suitable and has a potential as a protein feedstuff in f ish diets. (C) 1997 Elsevier Science Ltd.