ENZOMEAL (IMPROVED SOYBEAN MEAL):  POTENTIAL PROTEIN SOURCE FOR AQUAFEED

Currently, aquaculture is the fastest-growing sector of food production. According to the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), almost half of the world's fish supply for human consumption derives from aquaculture production. Ongoing intensification of aquaculture has made it essential to develop suitable diets for fish using alternative protein sources. Therefore, the Ohio Soybean Council and its research partners Kentucky State University and Battelle, "the world's largest nonprofit research and development organization," have developed a new technology to increase the protein content and diminish the antinutritional factors from regular soybean meal (RSBM) i.e.,  improved soybean meal (ISBM) or EnzoMeal.

Using fish (yellow perch, Perca flavescens) fingerlings, a 10-week experiment was conducted to evaluate the nutritional quality of the ISBM to compare with that of fish meal and RSBM. Growth performance and nutrient utilization parameters of fish fed with ISBM based diets were comparable to fishmeal fed group. Overall, fish fed with ISBM grew 21% faster than fish fed with RSBM.

Five isonitrogenous (45% crude protein) and isolipidc (16% lipid) were formulated, control diet (fishmeal based), four experimental diets containing two inclusion level 18 and 33% of each ISBM and fermented soy protein concentrate. These diets were fed to for rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) for 10 weeks. At the end, there were no significant differences with respect to growth performance and feed utilization. Histological evaluation of specific important metabolic tissues, such as the liver, kidney, and spleen indicated no morphological abnormalities related to dietary treatment. Interestingly, histological examination of the gastrointestinal tract provided no evidence of detrimental impacts of high soy inclusion, specifically as related to distal enteritis, a common malady in salmonids fed high levels of soy protein.

A 12-week feeding trial was conducted for Pacific white shrimp (Litopenaeus vannamei) and found that 100% fishmeal protein can be replaced by ISBM without compromising the growth and health of the shrimp.

In a continuation of a series of previous projects we focused on the long term (1.5 years) effects of ISBM on carnivorous fish species (largemouth bass, Micropterus salmoides) in pond study. Based on interim-sampling (after 3 months) there were no significant differences in terms of growth performance among fishmeal, ISBM and RSBM fed groups. Overall, the results of those studies enlarge the portfolio of EnzoMeal for use in aqua feed.