Larve essiccate e vive di mosca soldato nera come arricchimento ambientale in polli autoctoni a lento accrescimento

The growth of the global world population leading to an increasing demand for meat and protein with high biological value. The rising demand is directly linked to an increased environmental impact. To address these challenges, the feed sectors need alternative sources for producing feed for farmed animals. The feed industry heavily relies on soybean that is the most widely cultivated, and on soybean meal that is the conventional protein source in poultry farming diets. However, there has been a growing interest in exploring innovative ingredients to reduce the reliance on soybean meal. One such innovative ingredient is insects, like black soldier fly larvae (BSFL). The experimental study aimed to investigate the effects of an experimental diet without soybean meal and of the use of dried and live BSFL as environmental enrichment in slow growing autochthonous chicken farming. For this purpose, 144 males of Bianca di Saluzzo were randomly assigned to 18 pens, with 6 replicates for each of the three experimental groups: control (C), control + dried BSFL (D-BSFL), and control + live BSFL (L-BSFL). At 39 days of age, the chickens were allotted in the pens and individually marked. Starting from 43 days of age, the provision of larvae to the D-BSFL and L-BSFL groups commenced. The diet was provided ad libitum to all pens, the dried larvae were provided to the D-BSFL group, while the L-BSFL group received live larvae. The two types of larvae were given in the same dry matter quantity. The chickens were raised until the end of the experimental trial, when they reached the 174 days of age. The assessment of growth performance involved the collection of data both during the experimental trial and after the chickens were slaughtered. The slaughtering procedure were done at 147 and 174 days of age of the chickens. Subsequent to slaughtering, the carcasses were prepared for weighing and sampling procedures. To assess the meat quality were taken the measure of pH and colour. The results of statistical analysis showed significant variations (P < 0.05) in growth performance among D-BSFL and L-BSFL treatments compared to the C treatment in the measure of final live weight (LW), average daily feed intake and average daily gain (ADG). The LW and the ADG were higher in the two treatments that received larvae provision. In terms of slaughtering performance a statically significant difference is observed in slaughter weight when comparing the C treatment to the other two groups. Furthermore, significant differences were identified in various aspects, including gizzard and glandular stomach weight, cholesterol and triglyceride levels, Cl content, GGT, and AST. These differences were detected between the comparison at 147 and 174 days of age, showing the highest values at 174 days of age, except for gizzard and glandular stomach that showing the lowest weight. No statistical differences were observed for meat quality parameters. The results of the experimental study suggesting that including BSFL had no detrimental effects on growth performance, slaughter performance, or meat quality parameters. This underline the convenience of using dried larvae for the easy storage conditions, preparation and inclusion. The use of insects in animal nutrition is increasingly worldwide supported by the updates in legislation and by consumers’ perceptions regarding animal welfare. Moreover, this incorporation provides an alternative source for producing feed for farmed animals