Carcass traits, meat quality, and fatty acid profiles of broiler chickens fed diets with increasing inclusion levels of microwave-dried black soldier fly (Hermetia illucens) larvae meal

The present study investigates the effects of different inclusion levels of a microwave-dried black soldier fly (Hermetia illucens) larvae meal (HILM) on the carcass characteristics, breast meat quality, and fatty acid profiles of leg meat in broiler chickens. A total of 150 male broilers were randomly assigned to three dietary treatment groups (10 replicates·treatment^-1 and 5 birds·replicate^-1). HILM was included at increasing levels (0, 2, and 4%; CON, 2HILM, and 4HILM, respectively) in diets formulated for three feeding phases: starter (1 - 7 d), grower (7 - 21 d), and finisher (21 - 35 d). One bird per replicate was slaughtered at d 35; the carcasses and organs were weighed, and breast and leg meats were excised for a meat analysis. A linear decrease (p < 0.01) was observed for live and carcass weights for the whole period of the experiment, with no difference between the CON and 2HILM groups. Broilers fed HILM showed no significant differences in meat quality parameters, except for an increase in yellowness (b^*) in the 2HILM and 4HILM groups compared to the CON group (p < 0.01). With an increase in the HILM inclusion level, the proportion of saturated fatty acids (SFAs) such as lauric, myristic, stearic, arachidic, and heneicosylic acids showed a linear increase (p < 0.01); however, total SFA, monounsaturated fatty acid, and polyunsaturated fatty acid did not differ among the dietary treatments. Thus, microwave-dried HILM can be considered as a possible alternative ingredient to soybean meal in broiler diets up to a 2% inclusion level.