The BlackAlternatives:Soldier

Feed, as one of the essential primary components in agriculture and aquaculture, is constantly developing, especially on the formulation side. Other than quality, the feed mill industry is now challenged to find and use alternative ingredients that are sustainable and efficient. Luckily in recent years, a number of alternative feed ingredients have been developed that can act as a substitute for protein sources in feed. One such ingredient is the maggot/larvae protein meal obtained from insects. The insect itself comes from the Hermetia illucens, or as commonly known as the Black Soldier Fly (BSF). This fly species originally came from South America and survives by ingesting “organic wastes.” BSF larvae also contain high levels of animal crude protein, around 4142%. This is why this larvae meal is a prime candidate as an alternative protein source for animal feeds to replace fishmeal and other less sustainable sources.

BSF Larvae Meal Potential

Budi Tanaka, the CEO and founder of Bio Cycle Indonesia saw the potential of BSF as a business early on and started to produce larvae meals in 2018. Budi explains that Bio Cycle was established in 2018 as a pilot project and received investment from the Koppert Foundation in 2019. Finally, the factory in Riau was built in March 2020. Budi said the reason he built Bio Cycle is that from a business perspective, BSF has the potential to cover various sectors, including livestock farming, agriculture, fisheries, waste management, and global sustainability issues. According to Budi, currently, BSF Meal is being used across various animal feed sectors, including Pet food (dogs, cats, even reptiles) and aquaculture. Especially in aquaculture, which encompasses the farming of fish and other aquatic species, has recognized the potential of BSF Meal as an alternative protein source. “The high protein content and amino acid profile of BSF Meal makes it a valuable ingredient for meeting the nutritional requirements of aquatic species,” Budi explained. For fish and shrimp feeds, Budi continued, the utilization of Black Soldier Fly (BSF) offers several advantages, particularly in terms of sustainability and promoting better immune health for aquatic organisms. One such characteristic is their high content of amino microbial peptides (AMPs). These AMPs are natural compounds with antimicrobial properties that play a crucial role in the larvae’s defense against harmful pathogens. When included in fish or shrimp feeds, the AMPs from BSF larvae can help enhance the immune response of aquatic organisms, strengthening their ability to combat bacterial infections. Specifically, the presence of AMPs in BSF larvae can provide protection against pathogenic bacteria such as strains of Vibrio, Pseudomonas, Aeromonas, etc. These bacteria are commonly associated with crustacean diseases and can have detrimental effects on the gut health of shrimp.

In terms of insect meal’s potential as an animal feed ingredient, the Business Development Manager of Skretting Asia, Ho Gim Chong, said that they have seen from lab tests, research papers, and farm trials that there are added functional and performance benefits from using BSF meal in shrimp feed. “We’ve also seen that as the fish meal supply continues to face volatility, alternative proteins grown sustainably and consistently in a highly controlled environment could bring much­needed stability to the feed industry. We have seen strong evidence in R&D papers that best inclusion rates for BSF Meal to be included in fish/shrimp feed are between 2.5% to 12.5%,” he claimed.

According to Ho Gim Chong, there are a couple of requirements for an ingredient to be considered worthy for feed formulation. Those requirements are: they are available in large quantities, are priced fairly, have a high level of digestible protein for the animal, and finally, they must have consistency. BSF Larvae Meal is a viable option, though much