Housefly Maggot Meal (Magmeal): An Emerging Substitute of Fishmeal in Tilapia Diets

Several feed ingredients have been investigated in an attempt to substitute fishmeal in the diets of fish and livestock. These include both animal protein and plant protein sources. Unfortunately attempts to use these ingredients for complete replacement of the fishmeal component in tilapia diets have not entirely been successful. A major reason is the suboptimal content of essential amino acids in the diets especially methionine. Based on cost effectiveness, availability, crude protein content and amino acid profile, magmeal seem to be a candidate for replacement of fishmeal in fish diets. In this study, seven test diets (36 % crude protein, dry matter) formulated by replacing fishmeal with magmeal were fed to triplicate groups of fifteen fingerlings (initial average weight 2.0±0.1g) for 56 days. Results obtained from growth parameters, protein utilisation, stress indicators and haematological parameters revealed no significant difference among all feeding groups. The observation suggests that magmeal can completely replace fishmeal in the diet of Tilapia Oreochromis niloticus fingerling and can meet the nutrient requirements of this species.