Growth, body composition, and survival of juvenile white bass (Morone chrysops) when dietary fish meal is partially or totally replaced by soybean meal, poultry by-product meal, an all-plant protein blend or a commercial pla

Authors: Rawles, Steven - Steve; Fuller, Adam; Green, Bartholomew - Bart; Abernathy, Jason; Straus, David - Dave; Deshotel, Michael; McEntire, Matthew - Matt; Huskey, George; ROSENTRATER, KURT - Iowa State University; Beck, Benjamin; Webster, Carl

Submitted to: Aquaculture Reports
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 8/17/2022
Publication Date: 8/19/2022
Citation: Rawles, S.D., Fuller, S.A., Green, B.W., Abernathy, J.W., Straus, D.L., Deshotel, M.B., McEntire, M.E., Huskey Jr, G., Rosentrater, K., Beck, B.H., Webster, C.D. 2022. Growth, body composition, and survival of juvenile white bass (Morone chrysops) when dietary fish meal is partially or totally replaced by soybean meal, poultry by-product meal, an all-plant protein blend or a commercial plant-animal protein blend. Aquaculture Reports. 26. Article 101307. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.aqrep.2022.101307.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.aqrep.2022.101307

Interpretive Summary: White bass are a popular sportfish in the southern United States and are also used as broodstock to produce the very popular sport- and food-fish, hybrid striped bass. However, there is currently no aquaculture production of white bass which is a shame because the fish has all the qualities of hybrid striped bass: good flavor and quality of the fillet, seems to be less susceptible to diseases, and may grow at a wider temperature range. If white bass are to be grown commercially, economical, and nutritious diets must be formulated. Marine fish meal (FM) is the most nutritious, and most expensive, ingredient in many fish diets, and is a limited resource due to static populations of the fish species that are used to make FM. Thus, replacing FM is essential if aquaculture diets are to be sustainable, both environmentally and financially. As there are no nutrition studies in the published literature on the use of alternative protein ingredients in white bass diets, we conducted a feeding trial in which six diets containing similar protein and fat levels were fed to white bass. One of the test diets consisted exclusively of plant protein sources. Juvenile white bass (40.2 g initial weight) were stocked into tanks and fed one of the diets for 60 days. Test diets in which various percentages of soybean meal and poultry by-product meal, partially or completely replaced FM resulted in similar growth performance as fish fed the control diet containing 30% FM. However, fish fed an all-plant diet and a diet containing a commercial protein blended product completely replacing FM resulted in reduced growth performance, feed efficiency, and body composition of juvenile white bass compared to fish fed diets containing 30% FM. Results from the study indicate that white bass can be fed diets in which some, if not all, the FM can be replaced by more sustainable, and cost-effective, ingredients (such as soybean meal and poultry by-product meal), but that more research is needed to formulate an all-plant diet for white bass.

Technical Abstract: White bass are a popular sportfish in the southern United States and are also used as broodstock to produce the very popular sport- and food-fish, hybrid striped bass. However, there is currently no aquaculture production of white bass which is a shame because the fish has all the qualities of hybrid striped bass: good flavor and quality of the fillet, seems to be less susceptible to diseases, and may grow at a wider temperature range. If white bass are to be grown commercially, economical, and nutritious diets must be formulated. Marine fish meal (FM) is the most nutritious, and most expensive, ingredient in many fish diets, and is a limited resource due to static populations of the fish species that are used to make FM. Thus, replacing FM is essential if aquaculture diets are to be sustainable, both environmentally and financially. As there are no nutrition studies in the published literature on the use of alternative protein ingredients in white bass diets, we conducted a feeding trial in which six diets containing similar protein and fat levels were fed to white bass. One of the test diets consisted exclusively of plant protein sources. Juvenile white bass (40.2 g initial weight) were stocked into tanks and fed one of the diets for 60 days. Test diets in which various percentages of soybean meal and poultry by-product meal, partially or completely replaced FM resulted in similar growth performance as fish fed the control diet containing 30% FM. However, fish fed an all-plant diet and a diet containing a commercial protein blended product completely replacing FM resulted in reduced growth performance, feed efficiency, and body composition of juvenile white bass compared to fish fed diets containing 30% FM. Results from the study indicate that white bass can be fed diets in which some, if not all, the FM can be replaced by more sustainable, and cost-effective, ingredients (such as soybean meal and poultry by-product meal), but that more research is needed to formulate an all-plant diet for white bass.