Growth Performance of catfish fed with soybean and melon peels as partial replacement with maize

Abstract

Finding sustainable, affordable substitutes is necessary due to the rising price and restricted
supply of maize in fish feed compositions. The growth performance of juvenile Clarias
gariepinus was assessed in this study using a diet that included soybean meal and melon peels
(Citrullus lanatus) as partial substitutes for maize. For five weeks, forty young catfish were split
into two treatment groups at random and fed either a standard commercial feed or an isonitrogenous experimental diet that contained 25% crude protein. In addition to biometric
measures and water quality parameters, key growth indices such as weight increase, specific
growth rate (SGR), feed conversion ratio (FCR), and survival rate were evaluated. The findings
showed that fish fed the formulated diet had better SGR (4.6% vs. 4.0%), higher weight gain
(18.16 g vs. 14.69 g), and superior final weight (22.72 g vs. 19.5 g) than fish fed the commercial
feed. The formulated group's lower FCR (0.062 vs. 0.066) indicates improved feed utilization
efficiency. The length-weight relationship, condition factor, and survival rate did not differ
significantly (p > 0.05) across treatments. The water quality measurements for the C. gariepinus
culture stayed within the ideal ranges, suggesting that the prepared feed had no negative
environmental effects. The results demonstrate the economic feasibility and nutritional
sufficiency of soybean meal and melon peels as sustainable substitutes for maize in aquafeed. In
intensive catfish farming, this method is a viable way to save feed expenses while enhancing
growth performance. To evaluate nutrient digestibility, scalability, and long-term physiological
effects under various aquaculture systems, more research is advised.
Keywords: Maize, Melon Peels, Soybean, Fishmeal, Iso-nitrogenous, Experimental Diet, Biometric Measures,
Water Quality, Growth Indices, Proximate Composition