BACILLUS-FERMENTED VEGETABLE PROTEINS AS FISHMEAL REPLACERS IN JUVENILE WHITELEG SHRIMP Litopaeneus vannamei

An 8-week feeding trial was conducted to investigate vegetable proteins with and without bacillus-fermentation process as the dietary fish meal replacers in juvenile whiteleg shrimp, Litopaeneus vannamei. Eight isonitrogenous and isoenergetic diets were formulated: A 30% fish meal based diet (CON) and seven other diets replacing 30% of fishmeal from the CON diet with fermented soybean meal + Bacillus spp (STL), sterilized STL (STD), fermented soybean meal + corn gluten meal + Bacillus spp (ATL), sterilized ATL (ATD), fermented soy protein concentrate + Bacillus spp (FSPC) and fermented soybean meal + commercial probiotics (DB), and soy protein concentrate (SPC). Shrimp averaging 0.5 ± 0.01g (mean±SD) were randomly distributed into 24 aquaria as groups of 40 shrimp/tank and fed the experimental diets in triplicate. At the end of the experimental period, weight gain and specific growth rate of shrimp fed STL and ATL diets were significantly higher than those of fish fed CON and DB diets (P<0.05). There was no significant difference among fish fed STL, FSPC, ATL, SPC, STD and ATD diets. We will discuss on the advantages of bacillus-fermented vegetable proteins when the other results are summarized.