Kind of diet on the growth, reasonable period for food waste elimination in digestive system of cricket and consumer acceptance

Abstract

Crickets (Gryllus bimaculatus De Geer) are an edible insect that has become more common to rear for consumption in recent years. The crickets were reared from 7 to 45 days of age and were fed with two dietary treatments: para grass (Brachiaria mutica) and para grass plus chicken feed. The total feed consumption was 198.17 and 320.77 g. for para grass and para grass plus chicken feed, respectively. However, at 45 days of age, crickets fed with grass plus chicken feed had higher body weight and feed conversion ratio when compared to those fed with only fresh grass. Starvation immediately affected the body weight of crickets. At 24 hours after the beginning of starvation, the crickets had low wastes in the digestive system and minimal body weight loss. For sensory evaluation, the consumers accepted starved crickets from all time periods. The color, smell, flavor and texture were all accepted. The total preference score ranged from 6.87-7.53; however, the consumers preferred the starved crickets at 0 and 24 hours the most.