Grasshopper-enriched poultry feed: a new approach to sustainable nutrition

Abstract

[EN] The abundance of natural resources—particularly grasshoppers found across the world—has been well documented (Afdila et al., 2020; Wei et al., 2023). These insects belong to the suborder Caelifera, which includes various families. The largest family within Caelifera is Acrididae (Le Gall et al., 2019). Insect resources yield valuable opportunities based on their nutritional value (Nieto et al., 2023). Recent scientific research reported by Aguilera et al. (2021) highlights insects as sustainable, protein-rich, and nutritionally dense food sources. For instance, insect meals found high levels of protein, essential fats, and unique compounds like chitin. This study emphasized that these nutritional attributes, combined with insects’ low environmental impact, make them excellent candidates for future animal feed systems. The availability of raw materials for feed is essential for the successful production of feed to meet livestock needs. Grasshoppers can be considered a viable option for poultry feed production. This initiative aims to address the nutritional requirements of poultry, ultimately boosting poultry production. Moreover, enhancing the utilization of natural resources can lead to food conservation for humans. This factor is crucial to consider given the human population in the world. Thus, it is essential to ensure a sustainable supply of natural feed ingredients for poultry, such as grasshoppers, which offer high biological value without competing with food meant for humans. Initiatives to source sustainable feed ingredients, such as incorporating grasshoppers, will strengthen poultry production to meet human food demands. Currently, the livestock industry has not widely adopted insects, especially grasshoppers, as a natural resource for poultry feed. The purpose of this article is to briefly discuss the important potential role of grasshoppers as a breakthrough raw material in feed technology and as a subject that has not been widely explored in the poultry feed industry recently. Many of the primary raw materials used as key protein sources in poultry feed, such as fish, soybeans, nuts, and corn, directly compete with human food sources. At the same time, it is undeniable that global food security continues to be an elusive goal for millions of people worldwide. One such alternative is the use of insects, such as grasshoppers, as feed ingredient. These insects offer several advantages, including being a cheap protein source (Alshelmani et al., 2021) that can be used as a raw material in poultry feed ingredient. The cultivation of insects is considered environmentally sustainable, as it generates significantly lower greenhouse gases (GHs) and requires substantially less land area. Grasshoppers thrive in a variety of environments, are easy to cultivate, and their organic material is not harmful to poultry (Latchininsky et al., 2011). Therefore, this paper aims to highlight the potential of grasshoppers as a sustainable and underutilized protein source for poultry feed, with notable nutritional and environmental benefits.