Formulation of Fish Feeds Using Fruit Pellets for Goldfish

(Carassius auratus)

INTRODUCTION

Food production and processing in developing countries produce a huge amount of fruit

waste by-products, which are costly and pose detrimental effects on the environment. According

to the World Wildlife Fund for Nature (WWF), an estimated 2,175 tons of food scraps are

thrown away on a daily basis in Metro Manila. A huge chunk of this comes from households,

with fruit peelings being recognized as the most common kitchen waste (Mendiola, 2020). Fruit

peelings, also known as rind or skin, are the outer protective layer of a fruit that can be peeled

off.

Fruits are the highly used food products among horticultural crops. These items are

consumed uncooked, nominally cooked, or fully cooked, according to their nature and cooking

process. With the change in diet habits and rising population, the production, as well as the

processing of horticultural crops, has exponentially improved to meet its increasing demand. A

large amount of peel waste is generated from fruit industries and household kitchens and has led

to big nutritional and economic loss and environmental problems (Kumar, 2020).

Fruit by-products are produced in huge quantities during industrial processing and

constitute a serious issue because they may pose a harmful risk to the environment. The proposal

of employing fruit by-products, particularly fruit peels, has gradually attained popularity because

scientists found that in many instances peels displayed better biological and pharmacological

applications than other sections of the fruit (Hussain, 2022). The proper utilization of fruit peels

will not only resolve a large number of environmental problems, but this strategy will improve

health through enriched food products comprising health-enhancing molecules.

Unbeknown to many is the potential of peelings to go from being discarded into useful,

sustainable byproducts. It's crucial to take note that these fruit skins and trimmings are actually

brimming with nutrients. It provides superior quality protein to that of meat, milk, and eggs and a

well-balanced essential amino acid profile, necessary minerals, and fatty acids. There is a

concern about the increasing prevalence and incidence of different fish infections and a growing

interest in shifting from synthetic to natural antimicrobial agents, leading to the use of fruit peel

wastes for the identification of novel compounds for use as fish feed additives.

In fish farming, feeding strategies that employ phytochemicals as modulators of

immunological and physiological responses such as growth, antioxidant activity, and gene

expression have received attention. In the past years, several studies have reported positive

results of using fruit peel extracts as a nutritional additive in aqua feeds. Recently, these dietary

functional pellet additives have been evaluated and reported to increase disease resistance and

improve fish growth, animal welfare, and pellet utilization. This review elucidates the global

production, bioactive compounds, natural sources, chemical structures, physical properties, and

practical applications of fruit peel wastes and extracts as a desirable and sustainable route in fish

nutrition (Salem & Ragaza, 2022).

Fishes just like Goldfish, scientifically known as Carassius auratus, have been known to

be ubiquitous in nature and can be found in rivers, streams, lakes, ponds, reservoirs, and virtually

every freshwater habitat on the planet from temperate to tropical environments. They have been

introduced to many parts of the world to control mosquito populations. To sum up, goldfish is an

aquarium-based ideal pet to cherish.

With this in mind the researchers have conducted an investigation into possible

alternatives with one such being potential use of fruit peels as fish pellets. Using fruit peelings as
 Formulation of Fish 4

potential sources of energy in urban areas is a viable alternative, which should be exploited to

use as ingredients in fish feed. With the development of a feed that is both effective and

economical for an aquaculture species for all its life stages is a continuous effort. Thus, this study

discusses these factors and processes in formulating a feed that is both viable and nature-

friendly. Generally, this study aims to find out the effectiveness of using fruit peelings as fish

pellets for Goldfish (Carassius auratus). Specifically, it aims to determine if there is a significant

difference in the length of the goldfish using formulated fish pellets with that of commercial fish

feed, to determine if there is a significant difference in the weight of the goldfish using

formulated fish pellets with that of commercial fish feed and to determine if there is a significant

difference in the color of the goldfish using formulated fish pellets with that of commercial fish

feed.

MATERIALS AND METHODS - TO BE CONTINUE

Materials

The materials that will be used in this study are 2 kg of fruit peels (orange peels, banana

peels, mango peels, wheat stalks, etc.), 4 20L containers as fish tanks, 9 goldfish (Carassius

auratus) fish, 500g Calcium carbonate, 1 large bucket, 1 pellet maker, 1 weighing scale and 1

tape measure.

Experimental Design

This study will be conducted using a Completely Randomized Design (CRD) with 3

treatments in 3 replications. The treatments are as follows:

Initial

Week Final Week

R1 R2 R3 R1 R2 R3

Treatments

Treatment A (Orange

Pellet)

Treatment B (Mango

Pellet)

Treatment C (Banana

Pellet)

Positive Control

(Commercial Feed)

Fig 3. Treatments and Replicates

Procedure

Gathering of Materials

The following tools and materials will be collected locally across Roxas City. The gold

fishes that will be used for the experiment will be bought from local pet stores, these fishes will

be bought young to test the effectiveness of the formulated fish feed on the color and healthiness

of the goldfish as it grows. Fruit peels will be collected from several local households, about two

kg of orange, banana and mango pellet wastes. The containers used to house the goldfish will be

bought from market stores each capable of holding 3 gallons of water, 500g of carbon carbonate

will be purchased at local drug stores, the pellet maker will be used from local fisheries. The

researchers will also prepare 1 bucket, 1 tape measure and 1 mixer each resourced by the

researchers' households.

Formulation of Fish Feed

Before the start of the experiment, the collected food peels will be oven-dried for about a

week. After 1 week, the dried food feels will then be pulverized into powder form to size 250 μ.

The powder will be used as a medium to grow the probiotics. The pure culture of probiotics will

be inoculated into the filtrate used as media in a sterile condition and incubated at 37°C for 24

hrs. After 24 hours, growth will be observed. Calcium carbonate will be used to immobilize the

probiotics spores grown in the media.

Preparation of Different Treatments

The experiment will consist of three treatments and one control. The experimental diets

are as followed:
 Formulation of Fish 8

Orange peel feed (OPF): 4% orange peel powder, 4% calcium carbonate blended with probiotic

and 2% starch as a binder.

Mango peel feed (MPF): 4% mango peel powder, 4% calcium carbonate blended with probiotic

and 2% starch as a binder.

Banana peel feed (BPF): 4% banana peel powder, 4% calcium carbonate blended with probiotic

and 2% starch as a binder.

The ingredients will be the same for all feeds, except the variable being the chosen fruit

peel powder to test the effectiveness of various fruit peels as fish feed. These treatments will run

in contention with our control treatment of commercial fish feed found in Roxas City.

Experimental setup

The experiment will be conducted over a period of 20 days. The fingerlings of Goldfish

(Carassius auratus) will be obtained from local hatcheries in Roxas City, Capiz. Goldfish

fingerlings are selected because of their fast growth rate and easy availability. The experiment

will be set up in four distinct experimental groups, each group having three replicates, in 4

containers (at least 3 Gallons capacity each).

Each of the containers will be stocked with 3 fingerlings. Initial length and weight will be

recorded before loading Round-the-clock aeration will be provided to all the tubs, with a 2 HP

air blower. Prior to the feeding of experimental diets, the fish will be acclimatized and starved

overnight to empty their gut and increase their appetite and reception for new diets. The fish will

be fed (5% body weight) twice daily at 09:00 and 14:00. As the water becomes turbid, water will

be changed every second day to maintain good water quality/dissolved oxygen content.
 Formulation of Fish 9

Experimental tubs will be cleaned manually by siphoning all the water along with fecal

matter and leftover feed twice a week. The siphoned water will be replaced by an equal volume

of fresh chlorine-free tap water. Water quality will be monitored using standard methods to

maintain relative water levels.

Gathering of Data

After 20 days of the experiment, the fish will be removed from the containers and begin

to be given a final check for any abnormalities or extra lumps before the final length and weight

will be noted. Once obtained, the color of the goldfish will be examined and compared before

and after experimentation.

The following factors will be gathered:

Nutritional indices: The growth response of fish fed with different diets will be monitored by

noting average gain in weight, length and color of scales

Average gain in weight: It gives the increase in weight of the animals during the experimental

period. It will be calculated using the formula.

Average gain in wt. (g) = Average Final wt. (g)—Average Initial wt.

(g)

Fig 5. Ave. Gain in Weight

Average gain in length: This gives the increase in standard length during the experimental

period. It will be calculated using the following formula.

Average gain in length (cm) = Average Final length (cm)—Average Initial length (cm)

Fig 4. Ave. Gain in Length

Color of Fish Scales: This gives the observable health of the goldfish before and after the

experiment.

Analysis of Statistical Data

The experiment will be designed in a completely randomized block design with three

replications for each treatment. At termination of the experiment, all surviving fishes will be

collected and length and weight recorded individually. All statistical analysis will be performed

using IBM SPSS Statistics version 20. After experimentation and documentation, all samples

will be disposed of carefully in disposable plastic bags to avoid contamination.

References

Catacutan. (2017). The Southeast Asian Fisheries Development

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Verma, S. R., & Satyanarayan, S. (2016, September 28).

Effect of special fish feed prepared using food industrial waste on Labeo rohita.

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