Integrating Black Soldier Fly (Hermetia illucens) Larvae Meal in Aquaponics System for Lettuce (Lactuca sativa) Production
Abstract
The adoption of aquaponics systems faces challenges due to the high cost of fish feed, lack of sustainability, and reliance on fishmeal as a primary input. One potential solution to replace fishmeal is the use of black soldier fly larvae (BSFL) in aquaponics. The study aimed to explore the effect of substituting fish meals with BSFL meals on the growth performance of lettuce (Lactuca sativa) in aquaponics. The study employed the Randomized Complete Block Design (RCBD). A total of 135 catfish fingerlings were divided into three groups and stocked in nine water barrels of 100 litres each (filled with 60 litres of water). The fingerlings were fed twice a day for a duration of 56 days after a two-week period of acclimatisation using commercial feed. Water was cycled through the hydroponic media grow bed using an automatic timer, with a 15-minute cycle every hour throughout the day and night. Fish meal was replaced with BSFL meal at three different proportions: 0% (BSFL0), 30% (BSFL30), and 50% (BSFL50). The data collected was analysed using One-Way Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) and Kruskal-Wallis tests, followed by Tukey's ad-hoc and Dunn's tests, respectively, utilising JMP 16 software. The results indicated that the fresh leaf weight was significantly influenced by the diet types (p<0.05). However, no significant effect was observed on root weight, total dry weight, number of leaves, or root length (p>0.05). This study suggests that black soldier fly larvae meal can successfully replace up to 50% of fishmeal in aquaponics without compromising lettuce growth performance. Therefore, promoting the use of black soldier fly larvae meal can contribute to the sustainability of lettuce production in aquaponics
Downloads
References
Al Tawaha, A. R., Wahab, P. E. M., Jaafar, H. B., Zuan, A. T. K., Hassan, M. Z., & Al-Tawaha, A. R. M. (2021). Yield and nutrients leaf content of butterhead lettuce (Lactuca sativa) in response to fish nutrient solution in a small scale of aquaponic systems. Ecological Engineering and Environmental Technology, 22(6), 85– 94. https://doi.org/10.12912/27197050/141524
Badiola, M., Basurko, O. C., Piedrahita, R., Hundley, P., & Mendiola, D. (2018). Energy use in Recirculating Aquaculture Systems (RAS): A review. Aquacultural Engineering, 81, 57– 70. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.aquaeng.2018.03.003
Bordignon, F., Gasco, L., Birolo, M., Trocino, A., Caimi, C., Ballarin, C., & Xiccato, G. (2022). Performance and fillet traits of rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) fed different levels of Hermetia illucens meal in a low-tech aquaponic system. Aquaculture, 546.
Buzby, K. M., & Lin, L. S. (2014). Scaling aquaponic systems: Balancing plant uptake with fish output. Aquacultural Engineering, 63, 39– 44. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.aquaeng.2014.09.002
Delaide, B., Delhaye, G., Dermience, M., Gott, J., Soyeurt, H., & Jijakli, M. H. (2017). Plant and fish production performance, nutrient mass balances, energy and water use of the PAFF Box, a small-scale aquaponic system. Aquacultural Engineering, 78, 130–139. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.aquaeng.2017.06.002
FAO, IFAD, UNICEF, WHO, & WFP. (2018). The State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World 2018. Building climate resilience for food security and nutrition. Rome, FAO. https://doi.org/10.4060/ca5162en
Johnson, G. E., Buzby, K. M., Semmens, K. J., Holaskova, I., & Waterland, N. L. (2017). Evaluation of Lettuce Between Spring Water, Hydroponic, and Flow-through Aquaponic Systems. International Journal of Vegetable Science, 23(5), 456– 470. https://doi.org/10.1080/19315260.2017.1319888
Jordan, R. A., Geisenhoff, L. O., de Oliveira, F. C., Santos, R. C., & Martins, E. A. S. (2017). Yield of lettuce grown in aquaponic system using different substrates. Revista Brasileira de Engenharia Agricola e Ambiental, 22(1), 27–31. https://doi.org/10.1590/1807- 1929/agriambi.v22n1p27-31
Knaus, U., & Palm, H. W. (2017). Effects of the fish species choice on vegetables in aquaponics under spring-summer conditions in northern Germany (Mecklenburg Western Pomerania). Aquaculture, 473, 62–73. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.aquaculture.2017.01.020
Koop, M. (2016). Aquaponics and the Potential of BSFL Farming in Ethiopia (Doctoral dissertation, Van Hall Larenstein). November.
Kovácsné Madar, Á., Rubóczki, T., & Takácsné Hájos, M. (2019). Lettuce production in aquaponic and hydroponic systems. Acta Universitatis Sapientiae, Agriculture and 47 Environment, 11(1), 51–59. https://doi.org/10.2478/ausae-2019-0005
Kyaw, T. Y., & Ng, A. K. (2017). Smart Aquaponics System for Urban Farming. Energy Procedia, 143, 342–347. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.egypro.2017.12.694
Love, D. C., Fry, J. P., Li, X., Hill, E. S., Genello, L., Semmens, K., & Thompson, R. E. (2015). Commercial aquaponics production and profitability: Findings from an international survey. Aquaculture, 435, 67–74. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.aquaculture.2014.09.023
Luo, X. L., Rauan, A., Xing, J. X., Sun, J., Wu, W. Y., & Ji, H. (2021). Influence of dietary Se supplementation on aquaponic system: Focusing on the growth performance, ornamental features and health status of Koi carp (Cyprinus carpio var. Koi), production of Lettuce (Lactuca sativa) and water quality. Aquaculture Research, 52(2), 505–517. https://doi.org/10.1111/are.14909
Mapfumo, B. (2022). Regional review on status and trends in aquaculture development in sub-Saharan Africa–2020.
Maucieri, C., Nicoletto, C., Junge, R., Schmautz, Z., Sambo, P., & Borin, M. (2018). Hydroponic systems and water management in aquaponics: A review. Italian Journal of Agronomy, 13(1), 1–11. https://doi.org/10.4081/ija.2017.1012
MoALFC. (2021). Climate Risk Profile for Kiambu County. Kenya County Climate Risk Profile Series. The Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock, Fisheries and Co-operatives (MoALFC), Nairobi, Kenya
Munguti, J. M., Kirimi, J. G., Obiero, K. O., Ogello, E. O., Sabwa, J. A., Kyule, D. N., Liti, D. M., & Musalia, L. M. (2021). Critical Aspects of Aquafeed Value Chain in the Kenyan Aquaculture Sector- A Review. https://doi.org/10.5539/sar.v10n2p87
Nozzi, V., Graber, A., Schmautz, Z., Mathis, A., & Junge, R. (2018). Nutrient management in aquaponics: Comparison of three approaches for cultivating lettuce, mint and 49 mushroom herb. Agronomy, 8(3). https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy8030027
Rakocy, J. E., Masser, M. P., & Losordo, T. M. (2016). Recirculating aquaculture tank production systems: aquaponics-integrating fish and plant culture. Oklahoma Cooperative Extension Service.
Schmautz, Z., Graber, A., Jaenicke, S., Goesmann, A., Junge, R., & Smits, T. H. M. (2017). Microbial diversity in different compartments of an aquaponics system. Archives of Microbiology, 199(4), 613–620. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00203-016-1334-1
Somerville, C., Cohen, M., Pantanella, E., Stankus, A., & Lovatelli, A. (2014). Small-scale aquaponic food production- Integrated fish and plant farming. FAO Fisheries and Aquaculture, 589(1).
Yeşiltaş, M., Koçer, M. A. T., Sevgili, H., & Koru, E. (2021). Effect of Different Inorganic Substrates on Growth Performance of African Catfish (Clarias gariepinus, Burchell 1822) and Lettuce (Lactuca sativa L.). Turkish Journal of Agriculture - Food Science and Technology, 9(4), 714–722. https://doi.org/10.24925/turjaf.v9i4.714-722.4024
Yildiz, H. Y., Robaina, L., Pirhonen, J., Mente, E., Domínguez, D., & Parisi, G. (2017). Fish welfare in aquaponic systems: Its relation to water quality with an emphasis on feed and faeces-A review. Water (Switzerland), 9(1), 1–17. https://doi.org/10.3390/w9010013
Copyright (c) 2024 Samuel Ochieng Nguka, Collins Kalwale Mweresa, Alice Nakhumicha Muriithi
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
