Incorporating whole insect larvae into poultry diets: state of the art and future perspectives

A wide range of insects are being considered as potential candidate sources of dietary protein; however, it was only recently that the European Union, with Regulation (EU) 2017/893 of May 24, first allowed the use of the black soldier fly (Hermetia illucens), the common housefly (Musca domestica), the yellow mealworm (Tenebrio molitor), the lesser mealworm (Alphitobius diaperinus), the house cricket (Acheta domesticus), the banded cricket (Gryllodes sigillatus) and the field cricket (Gryllus assimilis) as feed in aquaculture. With Regulation (EU) 2021/1372 of August 17, their use was extended to poultry and pig feed. Most of the studies on the use of insects in poultry feeding have focused on the benefits of insect meals. However, live insects are part of the natural diet of poultry, so more effort should be directed at evaluating their use further, not only in relation to their effect on poultry performance and product quality, but also from the perspective of bird welfare. No adverse effects have been observed with the dietary inclusion of live larvae at up to 10% of the daily feed intake. However, further research is needed to establish the inclusion levels that are most advantageous for the bird's health, economically sustainable for the breeder and without the unnecessary waste of resources. Live larvae provide fresh, unaltered nutrients and they stimulate birds to express innate behaviours which may improve the birds' welfare. The production and distribution of live larvae may be laborious and expensive, especially for large-scale production systems. Dehydrated larvae are easier to handle, and no complex protocols need to be implemented prior to offering to the bird. By contrast, dehydrated larvae are potentially less attractive to birds. HIGHLIGHTS center dot The use of insects in poultry feed has received significant interest as a potential solution to improve the sustainability of poultry diets. center dot Whole insect larvae (live, dehydrated or defrosted) are a promising tool to improve poultry welfare by inducing foraging behaviour and stimulating greater activity. center dot The use of dehydrated larvae is promising because of easy handling and biosecurity issues. center dot The methods of distributing the whole larvae to the birds need to be customised, thus the poultry equipment manufacturers should expand their market by producing specific automatised dispenser for live or dehydrated insect larvae.