Broiler Hermetia illucens larvae meal

Despite the existence of a number of studies investigating the effect of insect meal on the growth performance of broilers, knowledge about the metabolic effects of insect meal in broilers is still scarce. Thus, the present study investigated the effect of partial replacement of soybean meal with Hermetia illucens (HI) larvae meal on the liver transcriptome, the plasma metabolome and the cecal microbiota in broilers. For the study, 72 male one-day-old Cobb 500 broilers were divided into three groups and fed three different diets with either 0% (HI0), 7.5% (HI7.5) or 15% (HI15) defatted HI meal for 35 d. Each group consisted of 6 cages (replicates) with 4 broilers/cage.Comprehensive analysis of the metabolic effects of replacement of soybean meal with HI larvae meal in the diets of broilers using liver transcriptomics, plasma metabolomics and cecal microbiomics shows no negative impact of dietary HI larvae meal but beneficial increases of breast muscle weight and carcass weight and an improvement of the AID of several amino acids. Based on these findings HI larvae meal can be recommended as a sustainable alternative protein source for broilers.