SUSTAINABLE FISH FEED ALTERNATIVES: PERFORMANCE OF FISH WASTE AND TEMPE-BASED FEED ON THE QUALITY AND FEED ACCEPTANCE OF EARLY FISH FRY

Abstract

The availability of organic waste offers a promising opportunity for developing sustainable alternative feed sources. This study aimed to evaluate the performance of an independent feed formulated from fish waste and tempe waste on feed acceptance and early-stage fry performance. A non-factorial Completely Randomized Design (CRD) was employed, consisting of five feed formulation treatments with four replications: P0 (100% control), P1 (100% alternative), P2 (50% alternative + 50% control), P3 (75% alternative + 25% control), and P4 (25% alternative + 75% control). ANOVA results showed no significant differences (p > 0.05) in growth performance, but revealed significant differences in survival rate (p < 0.05). The best performance was observed in treatment P1, which resulted in length gain (4.63 cm), weight gain (17.01 g), SGR (3.22%), FCR (1.84), and SR (54%). The buoyancy test indicated that the alternative feed could float for 2 minutes with 100% palatability. Water quality parameters remained within optimal ranges across all treatments, with temperature (26°C), DO (5 mg/L), pH (8.5), NH₃/NH₄ (0.3 mg/L), and TDS (197.8 mg/L). These findings indicate that feed formulated from fish and tempe waste can serve as a sustainable, cost-effective, and environmentally friendly alternative feed for tilapia fry during the early stages of culture.