Organoleptic and nutritional characteristics of fillets of pirapitinga fed different protein sources in a biofloc system

Abstract: The objective of this work was to assess the organoleptic and nutritional quality of fillets of cultured pirapitinga (Piaractus brachypomus), fed diets with either partial or total substitution of fishmeal, and to determine the nutritional quality of the biofloc meal. Fish were cultured in 500-L tanks with 84 fish m-3, treated with biofloc technology (BFT), and fed three isoproteic diets (24% crude protein, CP) formulated with the following protein sources: soybean meal (SM); soybean meal + fishmeal (SM+FM); and soybean meal + spirulina (SM+SP). After 84 days of culture, microbiological, nutritional, and sensory analyses were carried out on fillets with skin and without scales. There were not significant differences for dry matter, CP, moisture, and fat content between treatments. The fatty acid profile showed 21.3±1.03% polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs = ω-3 + ω-6), 37.11±1.29% monounsaturated fatty acids (MUFAs), and 41.58±1.34% saturated fatty acids (SFAs). The protein sources soybean meal and spirulina do not affect the fillet quality of pirapitinga nor the nutritional quality of biofloc meal.