Proximate Composition of Different Feeds Used in Shrimp Farms in Bagerhat District

Abstract

The study was undertaken to analyze and compare the proximate composition of some commercial feeds and ingredients of handmade feeds available in Bagerhat District through chemical analysis. Eight commercial feeds and five ingredients of handmade shrimp feeds were collected over a period of four months, from April to July 2010, from local markets and fish farmers. The commercial shrimp feeds were Quality Feeds Ltd. (QF), ACI Feed Ltd. (ACI), Saudi-Bangla Feed Ltd. (SBF), Mega Feeds Ltd. (MF), CP Feed Ltd. (CPF), Titas Feed (TF), Teer Feed (Teer), and Shapla Feed (SF). The five ingredients of handmade shrimp feeds were rice polish, wheat bran, mustard oil cake, maize bran, and soybean. Proximate composition analysis involved the measurement of moisture, protein, and lipid levels in the feeds. In general, there was no large variation between the analyzed and company-declared nutrient contents of the different feeds. However, two feeds, Shapla and Quality, showed differences of more than 2.5% between the analyzed and declared protein values. The analyzed protein contents of Shapla and Quality feeds were 25.23% and 31.51%, respectively, whereas the company-declared protein values were 28% and 34%, respectively. Similarly, Teer Feed had a lower protein content (17.04%) than the company-declared value (22%). On the other hand, Mega and Saudi-Bangla feeds showed a difference of less than 1% between the analyzed and declared values. Among the feeds, Saudi-Bangla, Titas, and Teer feeds had similar lipid contents, whereas ACI Feed had approximately 3.5% less lipid content than the company-declared value. Except for CP Feed (Tk. 83/kg), there was no large variation in the prices of the different feeds. Among the ingredients of handmade feeds, the maximum moisture content was found in maize bran (14.06%) and the minimum in mustard oil cake (10.83%). The maximum protein content was found in soybean (43.89%), while the minimum was observed in rice polish (15.49%). The highest lipid content was found in rice polish (9.95%) and the lowest in maize bran (1.67%). The results of the study showed that Saudi-Bangla Feed Ltd. had the smallest difference between the analyzed and company-declared nutrient values.