Effects of dietary inclusion of black soldier fly larvae raised on kitchen waste on laying performance and egg quality in laying hens

This experiment aimed to investigate the effects of adding black soldier fly larvae (BSFL) raised on kitchen waste to the diet on the laying performance and egg quality of hens. A total of 270 laying hens were randomly assigned to three groups with six replicates each (cages). The control group (CON) was fed a basal diet, while the experimental groups were fed diets containing 3 % and 6 % BSFL (LBF and HBF), maintaining consistent nutritional indices across groups. Following a twoweek pre-feeding period, an eight-week formal experiment was conducted to assess the productive performance, egg quality, as well as amino acids and fatty acids in the egg yolk. Results indicated a trend towards reduced average daily feed intake (ADFI) with the BSFL diet (P = 0.081) and a significant increase in egg weight with the addition of 3 % BSFL (P < 0.05). Compared to the CON group, the LBF and HBF groups showed a significant improvement in the Albumen height (P < 0.05) and a significant decrease in yolk color (P < 0.05). The inclusion of BSFL elevated the content of threonine, serine, tyrosine, glutamic acid, and umami amino acids (P < 0.05), as well as the content of non-essential amino acids in the yolk (P = 0.056), while it reduced the proportion of essential amino acids (P < 0.05). In deail, the LBF and HBF treatments significantly increased the levels of lauric acid (C12:0) and myristic acid (C14:0) in the yolk (P < 0.05) and significantly decreased the levels of linolenic acid (C18:3n3) (P < 0.05), with a trend towards reducing linoleic acid (C18:2n6c) (P = 0.059), polyunsaturated fatty acids (P = 0.069), and n-6 polyunsaturated fatty acids (P = 0.079). In conclusion, the BSFL diet can improve the egg-laying performance and egg quality of laying hens, increase the content of nonessential amino acids and certain fatty acids in the yolk, and positively influence of yolk flavor and functional characteristics.