Economic viability of <i>Pueraria phaseoloides</i> leaf meal inclusion diets fed to <i>Clarias gariepinus</i> juveniles

Abstract

Modern aquaculture calls for the reduction of feed costs, which is partly achievable via dietary plant protein inclusion. A 70-day feeding experiment was conducted to investigate the economic viability of inclusion of Pueraria phaseoloides leaf meal (PLM) as a protein ingredient in the diets of Clarias gariepinus juveniles. Five isonitrogenous diets (D1-D5) were formulated to contain 40% crude protein with inclusion of PLM at 0%, 5%, 10%, 15% and 20% levels, respectively. D1 (0% PLM) served as the control diet. One hundred and fifty C. gariepinus juveniles of initial mean weight of 79.87 ± 5.85 g were randomly allocated to five dietary groups (G1- G5) and three replicates each, and fed with the five PLM formulated diets, respectively, at 5% biomass daily. Fifteen concrete tanks of volume 1m3 each were used for the experiment. Each tank was stocked with ten juveniles. Results showed that the cost/benefit ratio increased with the levels of inclusion of PLM. Hence, D5 (20% PLM) gave the highest cost/benefit ratio of 1:2.38 while D1 (0% PLM) gave the least cost/benefit ratio of 1:1.87. The present findings showed that PLM can be included in C. gariepinus diet up to 20% level for profit maximization in the aquaculture industry.