Poultry meal and poultry oil as sources of protein and lipid in the diet of European eels ( Anguilla anguilla)

Feeding trials were conducted to evaluate poultry meal and poultry oil as dietary replacements for fish meal and/or fish oil in the diet of juvenile eels. Eels fed diets in which fish meal and fish oil were replaced with poultry meal and poultry oil had significantly lower mean weight gains than those fed with either fish meal and poultry oil or poultry meal and fish oil. When defatted fish meal and defatted poultry meal were used in diets supplemented with either fish oil or poultry oil, moderately growing eels fed diets supplemented with 10% fish oil had significantly higher weights than those receiving either 5% fish oil or 5% and 10% poultry oil at day 53. Fast growing eels showed the same growth patterns at day 33, but by day 53 growth of eels fed diets with 5% and 10% fish oil, and 10% poultry oil were not significantly different from one another. However, eels fed 5% poultry oil diets had significantly lower growth than all other groups. There were no significant differences in moisture, protein, ash, crude fat or percent fatty acid content of eels fed any of the diets.