Quality Characteristics of Blue Swimming Crab (Portunus pelagicus, Linnaeus 1758) Meat Fed Gracilaria edulis (Gmelin) Silva

Abstract

This research aimed to study the growth and meat quality of blue swimming crab fed with different diets. The possibility of using red seaweed as a food-stuff or as supplementary food for cultures of blue swimming crabs was studied. Crabs, with an initial weight of 25 g on average, after 8 weeks of being fed with chopped fish had the highest weight gain (128.64%), crabs fed with moist pellets had the highest survival rate (90.00%) and crabs fed with red seaweed had a composition determined by proximate analysis that was lower than the other diets, but the contents of cholesterol (358.99 mg/100 g dry weight) as well as arginine and methionine were higher than the others (1.59 and 0.33 g/100g, respectively) (P≤0.05). The fatty acid profile was significantly different for stearic acid, linoleic acid and lignoceric acid (P≤0.05). The color of the meat from various parts of the crab was significantly different. Meat from crabs fed with red seaweed showed the lowest lightness but the highest redness. Crabs fed with moist pellets had the toughest meat (9.35 N). Nevertheless, no significant differences in taste, odor or texture of crab meat were found.