Table 4.
Proximate composition (mean ± SD, n = 3) of T. molitor larvae 1 reared on different feeding substrates.
| L1 | L2 | L3 | L4 | L5 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Moisture (%) | 64.73 ± 0.90 b | 60.50 ± 0.67 d | 61.95 ± 1.26 cd | 63.32 ± 0.67 bc | 68.48 ± 0.76 a |
| Protein (% DM) | 37.78 ± 0.74 b | 50.14 ± 2.42 a | 47.58 ± 1.59 a | 39.39 ± 1.33 b | 38.05 ± 0.94 b |
| Fat (% DM) | 40.10 ± 1.31 a | 34.04 ± 4.00 b | 32.14 ± 1.79 b | 35.32 ± 0.60 ab | 36.06 ± 1.90 ab |
| Fiber (% DM) | 5.97 ± 0.31 a | 7.06 ± 0.64 a | 8.34 ± 0.29 a | 7.97 ± 1.27 a | 10.18 ± 3.45 a |
| NFE (% DM) | 12.68 ± 0.64 ab | 4.87 ± 0.96 c | 8.08 ± 0.54 bc | 13.39 ± 3.04 a | 11.14 ± 2.14 ab |
| Ash (% DM) | 3.48 ± 0.10 b | 3.90 ± 0.30 b | 3.86 ± 0.16 b | 3.92 ± 0.27 b | 4.57 ± 0.18 a |
| Energy content (kcal/100 g DM) | 575 ± 7 a | 540 ± 22 ab | 529 ± 8 b | 545 ± 1 ab | 542 ± 15 ab |
1 Larvae were reared on organic wheat flour (L1), middlings (L2), middlings/olive pomace 75:25 w/w (L3), middlings/olive pomace 50:50 w/w (L4), middlings/olive pomace 25:75 w/w (L5). Values in a row with different letters are significantly different (Tukey test, p < 0.05).