Performance of the house cricket (Acheta domesticus) on by-product diets in small-scale production

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Abstract
As insect farming is becoming more popular in Europe and in the US, the use of food industry by-products in insects’ feed is drawing more attention. However, it is still unclear how to maximise the use of by-products in the feeds while meeting the nutritional requirements and maintaining profitable rearing yields with the current production technology. In this study, we conducted an experiment in Finnish small-scale cricket farming and laboratory conditions to determine whether five diet treatments, including by-product diets with barley mash and turnip rape, modify the overall fresh yield (kg), development time and feed conversion rate of the house crickets (Acheta domesticus). We discovered that the diets differed in the overall fresh cricket yield (kg) but not in the development time or the feed conversion rate of the crickets. The diets with a high proportion of by-product decreased the price of the feed but at the same time reduced the yield. Based on our results, complex by-product diets with the by-product proportion of 20-41% are the most suitable for house cricket rearing.

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