Feeding Channel Catfish, Ictalurus punctatus , Diets Amended with Refined Marine Fish Oil Elevates Omega‐3 Highly Unsaturated Fatty Acids in Fillets

Channel catfish, Ictalurus punctatus , 88.4 ± 2.6 g/fish, were fed a basal diet amended with 4% of three processed menhaden, Brevoortia tyrannus , oils. These were compared with basal diets amended with 4% corn oil or 4% canola oil. Three replicate aquaria of nine fish each were fed assigned diets twice daily. At 6 wk, fish were group weighed, fillets were collected for sensory evaluation, fatty acid analysis by gas chromatography (GC). In a second study, catfish, 118.8 ± 3.2 g/fish, were stocked into fifteen 0.04‐ha earthen ponds and fed once daily for 16 wk one of four diets containing 2 or 4% of either catfish offal oil or refined (RF) menhaden oil. At harvest, fillets were saved for sensory evaluation and fatty acid analysis. Results showed no significant ( P  > 0.05) differences among treatments for aquarium study and pond study variables such as weight gain, fillet proximate analysis, or pond production. GC analysis showed that levels of omega‐3 ( n ‐3) highly unsaturated fatty acids (HUFA) in fillet lipid were significantly ( P  < 0.05) elevated for fish fed menhaden oil diets. Sensory evaluation revealed that fillets from fish fed RF menhaden oil had satisfactory flavor and could be a source of n ‐3 HUFA for humans.