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Title: GROWTH RESPONSE OF TILAPIA FED DIETS RICH IN HIGH-LYSINE CORN

Author
item WU, YING VICTOR
item TUDOR, KERRY - ILLINOIS STATE UNIVERSITY
item BROWN, PAUL - PURDUE UNIVERSITY
item ROSATI, RONALD - TEXAS A&M UNIVERSITY

Submitted to: Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 5/12/1999
Publication Date: N/A
Citation: N/A

Interpretive Summary: Increased use of domestic fuel alcohol, derived from corn by fermentation, reduces our dependence on foreign petroleum. Moreover, it utilizes a renewable resource produced by American farmers. Fermentation of corn to make alcohol also produces corn gluten meal, a protein-rich coproduct. As demands for fuel alcohol increase, a greater amount of corn gluten meal will be available, and it is economically essential to find new markets for it. Corn gluten meal is a potentially inexpensive ingredient for fish feed. But it is important to determine if feed containing corn gluten meal will result in good growth response for fish. Feeding experiments showed that feeds containing corn gluten meal resulted in equally good growth response compared with commercial fish feed. Corn gluten meal can thus be used in fish feed, resulting in greater market demands for corn farmers and less expensive feeds for fish producers.

Technical Abstract: Five experimental diets (32% protein) containing 46-51% high-lysine corn, 20% corn gluten meal, supplemented with soy grits and synthetic amino acids, with and without fish meal were fed to tilapia with average initial weight of 13 g for 70 days in aquaria. Weight gain expressed as percentage increase after 70 days was equal (P>0.05) to a commercial feed (36% protein) for all experimental diets, although the diet containing 6% fish meal and 4% fat had higher weight gain (P<0.05) than that without fish meal and without meat and bone meal. Fish fed the experimental diets had same (P>0.05) feed conversion ratio and same (P>0.05) protein efficiency ratio as fish fed commercial diet. It appears the 32% protein diets with 46-51% high-lysine corn and 20% corn gluten meal were adequate for tilapia based on weight gain, feed conversion ratio, and protein efficiency ratio.