Interpretive Summary: Potential of Drosophila melanogaster (fruit fly) as a dietary protein source for broilers

By: Chaohai Yuan, Yafei Cai, Zikang Niu, Lanxin Hu, Ershuai Kuang, Wei Zhang

Insects are regarded as one of the most promising protein sources for feed production due to its high nutritional value and low environmental cost. The objectives of this study were to analyze the dynamic nutritional composition of Drosophila (fruit fly) at various developmental phases in parallel with a commercial black soldier fly larvae (BSFL) meal, as well as to determine the effect of diets with their inclusion on broilers. Results showed that Drosophila larvae possessed a higher crude protein and a lower crude fat content when compared to the BSFL product. In the feeding trial, the performance of broilers receiving Drosophila diets was remarkably improved, with no significant influence on bird metabolic status and meat quality, except the pH of breast and thigh muscles in Drosophila diet groups being higher than that of the control group, but still in the normal range. To sum up, Drosophila meal evaluated herein has a good nutritional composition and thereby elicits a beneficial impact on the growth performance and meat production of broilers, making it a potential dietary protein source for poultry.