IPB’s Professor Discovered Alternative Feed for Livestock Rations from Maggot
Professor of the Faculty of Animal Husbandry (Fapet) of Bogor Agricultural University (IPB), Prof. Dr. Nahrowi, found an alternative animal feed from maggot to replace MBM. MBM or meat bone meal is widely used for rations or animal feed ingredients such as poultry, fish, and pigs. All this time, MBM is 100 percent imported. This causes the MBM prices become more expensive. Moreover, Indonesia needs MBM 800 thousand tons each year.
Prof. Nahrowi said, previously Indonesia used fish meal containing animal protein for livestock rations. However, the fish meal quality produced by Indonesia is not good.
"Indonesia still cannot produce MBM, since the raw materials to make MBM are also consumed by humans, such as meat and bone. MBM made from mammals including pigs is also a problem for Muslim breeders in Indonesia. Therefore, alternative feed to replace MBM, like maggot, is needed, "said Prof. Nahrowi.
Maggot is the larva of the fly. Flies used as a maggot producer for animal feed obtained from fruit fly namely Black Soldier Fly (BSF) type. Maggot is suitable for replacing MBM as animal feed because it has all main requirements of animal feed ingredients. The criteria of animal feed, among others, the sufficient nutrition composition, competitive prices, and availability. These three conditions can be fulfilled by maggot. Maggot production is very fast, one BSF fly can produce 500 maggots in one reproduction.
Easy maintenance of BSF fly is also an added value to replace MBM. In addition, another important factor to determine maggot as an alternative feed is BSF as an insect does not carry the disease and has a high protein value.
Prof. Nahrowi’s research about maggot has been done since 2009. The research still continues until now at the stage of the formulation of protein concentrate, fat and chitin from maggot. This was conducted to further streamline and optimize the source of nutrients for animal feed from maggot. In addition to maggot, Prof. Nahrowi has also carried out research on Hong Kong caterpillars as alternative feed, but the limited availability and the expensive prices make Hong Kong caterpillars difficult to be more developed widely. He hopes the research on maggot can be developed more widely and can be utilized by many people. (TK)
