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ARS Home » Southeast Area » Auburn, Alabama » Aquatic Animal Health Research » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #268207
Title: Pond demonstration of production diets using high levels of distiller's dried grains with solubles with or without lysine supplementation for channel catfish

Author
item XHOU, PING - Auburn University
item DAVIS, D. ALLEN - Auburn University
item Lim, Chhorn
item Aksoy, Mediha
item PAZ, PATRICIO - Auburn University
item ROY, LUKE - Auburn University

Submitted to: North American Journal of Aquaculture
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 4/21/2010
Publication Date: 9/13/2010
Citation: Xhou, P., Davis, D., Lim, C.E., Aksoy, M., Paz, P., Roy, L.A. 2010. Pond demonstration of production diets using high levels of distiller's dried grains with solubles with or without lysine supplementation for channel catfish. North American Journal of Aquaculture. 72:361-367.

Interpretive Summary: Feed is generally the largest expenditure in semi-intensive and intensive catfish culture operations, and protein is the most expensive component of feeds. Efforts to reduce feed costs have resulted in increased use of lower cost alternative protein sources in diet formulations as replacements of more expensive ingredients. Soybean meal (SBM), because of its consistent quality and availability, and high nutritional value, is the most commonly used plant ingredient in fish feeds. Currently, SBM comprises 30 to 40% in commercial grow-out feeds for catfish. Replacement of SBM with less expensive protein sources would be beneficial in reducing feed costs. Distiller’s dried grains with solubles (DDGS), a co-product of the ethanol distillery industry is less expensive than SBM on a per unit protein basis. At present, DDGS is widely used as a protein supplement in terrestrial animal feeds, but its use in fish feed is limited due to its low content of essential amino acids, especially lysine. Results of earlier studies, however, have shown that, based on growth performance and feed utilization efficiency, DDGS is a promising feed ingredient for various fish such as channel catfish and tilapia. A recent laboratory study at our laboratory showed that, with lysine supplementation, corn DDGS at dietary levels of at least 40% can be used in catfish feeds as replacements of a mixture of SBM and corn meal without affecting their growth and feed utilization efficiency. The cost of feed can be further reduced if lysine supplementation can be omitted from the formulation. Thus, the response of channel catfish Ictalurus punctatus to practical diets containing 20% and 30% DDGS with and without lysine supplementation was evaluated over a 150-d pond trial. The experimental diets, which were formulated to contain 32% protein and 6% lipid, were as follows: diet 1 (control diet) contained 0% DDGS and 0% lysine; diet 2 included 20% DDGS and 0% lysine; diet 3 contained 20% DDGS and 0.10% lysine; diet 4 contained 30% DDGS and 0% lysine; and diet 5 included 30% DDGS and 0.20% lysine as substitutes for a SBM-corn meal combination. There were no significant differences in the measured variables (i.e., final weight, weight gain, yield, survival, and feed conversion ratio) among the dietary treatments, indicating that good growth and feed utilization of channel catfish reared in pond can be obtained by feeding diets containing 30% DDGS without lysine supplementation as a replacement, on an equal protein basis, of a SBM-corn meal mixture allow for in pond-produced channel catfish.

Technical Abstract: Due to the increased availability and potential price advantage of distiller's dried grains with solubles (DDGS), there is considerable interest in utilizing this product in aquaculture diets. The response of channel catfish Ictalurus punctatus to practical diets containing 20% and 30% DDGS with and without lysine suplementation was evaluated over a 150-d pond trial. Twenty earthen ponds were stocked with 650 juvenile channel catfish. The basal diet contained 35% soybean meal, 15% cottonseed meal, and 23.7% corn meal and was based on a typical practical diet formulation for channel catfish. The experimental diets, which were formulated to contain 32% protein and 6% lipid, were as follows: diet 1 (control [basal]diet)contained 0%DDGS and 0% lysine; diet 2 included 20% DDGS and 0% lysine; diet 3 contained 20% DDGS and 0.10% lysine; diet 4 contained 30% DDGS and 0% lysine; and diet 5 included 30% DDGS and 0.20% lysine. There were no significant differences in the measured variables (i.e. final weight, weight gain, yield, survival, and feed conversion ratio) among the dietary treatments, indicating that diets containing a soybean meal-corn meal mixture and 30% DDGS without lysine supplementation allow for good growth and feed utilization in pond-produced channel catfish.