Report on growth performance of intermediate growing poultry genotype fed black soldier fly (Hermetia illucens) live larvae

The POULTRYNSECT Work Package 2 “Chickens in vivo feeding trials” aims to evaluate the Black Soldier Fly (BSF) live larvae inclusion as feed ingredient in chicken diet to reduce the feed soybean content and therefore increase sustainability of the chickens production. Animal welfare and environment issues frequently influence the consumer choices in terms of meat purchase. Therefore, considering that the use of soybean – which is the main feed ingredient in poultry diet – is nowadays critical for its unsustainability, the search for alternative protein sources and rearing systems is fundamental. Insects as the BSF could be an alternative to soybean, thanks to their nutritional profile, high feed conversion ratios and low greenhouse gases emission. Some studies have already been conducted in laying hens, broilers and other avian species fed live insects evaluating the effects on birds’ growth, health status and slaughtering performance. However, no data are available about the BSF live larvae provision in medium-growing chicken breeds. The WP2 has three different objectives: 1) perform in vivo poultry feeding trial to determine the optimal inclusion level of live HI larvae for organic chicken production; 2) assess the gender effect on performances, welfare and health of birds fed live insect larvae; 3) assess in two different genotypes model (with different growing-rate) the effect on performances, welfare and health of birds fed live insect larvae. For the first trial, the Label Naked Neck hybrid (medium-growing genotype) was reared for 82 days. The growth performances were recorded during the trial to determine the Feed Conversion Ratio (FCR), Average Daily Gain (ADG), Average Daily Feed Intake (ADFI) and the average weight (AW) of the birds. This Deliverable reports the growth performance preliminary results obtained from the first task of the in vivo trial performed with Label Naked Neck chicken by the UNITO project partner