Effect of Spirulina Meal Supplementation on Growth Performance and Feed Utilization in Fish and Shrimp: A Meta-Analysis

The application potential of spirulina meal in aquaculture feeds has been well summarized in several descriptive reviews. Nevertheless, they converged on compiling results from all possible relevant studies. Little available quantitative analysis regarding the pertinent topics has been reported. This quantitative meta-analysis was performed to investigate the influences of dietary spirulina meal (SPM) addition on responsive variables in aquaculture animals, including final body weight (FBW), specific growth rate (SGR), feed conversion ratio (FCR), protein efficiency ratio (PER), condition factor (CF), and hepatosomatic index (HSI). The pooled standardized mean difference (Hedges' g) and 95% confidence limit were computed to quantify the primary outcomes based on random-effects model. The sensitivity and subgroup analyses were carried out to evaluate the validity of the pooled effect size. The meta-regression analysis was conducted to investigate the optimal inclusion of SPM as a feed supplement and the upper threshold of SPM usage for substituting fishmeal in aquaculture animals. The results indicated that on the whole, dietary SPM addition significantly improved FBW, SGR, and PER; statistically decreased FCR of animals; had no significant influence on CF and HSI. The growth-enhancing effect of SPM inclusion in the form of feed additive was significant; however, the effect was indistinctive in the form of feedstuff. Furthermore, the meta-regression analysis displayed that the optimal levels of SPM as a feed supplement in fish and shrimp diets were 1.46%-2.26% and 1.67%, respectively. Additionally, up to 22.03%-24.53% and 14.95%-24.85% of SPM as fishmeal substitute did not have a negative effect on growth and feed utilization in fish and shrimp, respectively. Therefore, SPM is a promising fishmeal substitute and a growth-promoting feed additive for sustainable aquaculture of fish and shrimp.

Automated summary

This study conducted a quantitative analysis to investigate the application effect of spirulina meal in aquaculture feeds. The results showed that the moderate addition of spirulina meal significantly improved the weight, growth rate, and protein utilization of aquaculture animals, while reducing the feed conversion ratio. The growth-promoting effect of spirulina meal as a feed additive was significant, but its effect as a feedstuff was not. The optimal inclusion levels were 1.46%-2.26% for fish diets and 1.67% for shrimp diets. Up to 22.03%-24.53% and 14.95%-24.85% of spirulina meal as a fishmeal substitute did not have a negative effect on the growth and feed utilization of fish and shrimp.