Abstract:
Aquaculture, an important source for animal protein utilizes a lot of fishmeal regarded as the best protein source in fish feeds. For making feeds, aquaculture sector alone consumed the equivalent of about 23.8 million metric tons (mmt) of fish or 87% of nonfood fish by 2006. By 2011, the non-food uses of world fisheries were 23.2 mmt out of a total fish production of 154 mmt. The use of fishmeal is therefore substantial; 15.0 mmt being used in 2010. In Nigeria for example, small forage pelagic fish used in fishmeal production contributes 51% of total fish supply. Because most of the conventional plant/animal feed sources are equally in great demand for human consumption, there is an urgent need to examine other products from little researched plants such as moringa (Moringa oleifera Lam) as alternative source of protein in aquaculture feeds. There is a dearth of information on the use of moringa leaf or seed meals as fish feed ingredients. An extensive search and analyses of published data on moringa and any of its use in aquaculture were therefore carried out. It was reported to be hardy, high yielding and thrive in diverse ecological zones. Its leaves, the kernel and the fat-free kernel meals contain 26.4 %, 36.7 % and 61.4 % of crude protein, respectively. The kernel contains over 40 % of good quality oil comparable to olive oil. The leaves and pods are rich in vitamins and minerals. Moringa leaves are free from anti-nutritional factors except for saponins and phenols. Studies on the use of moringa in fish feed production are few and far between as is discovered in this review. Combination of seed and leaf meals in desired proportion might result in obtaining a plant-based protein source that could favourably replace fishmeal in fish feeds. Hence, this review on available information on M. oleifera used in fish feeds exposes the need for further research.
