Alrubaye's USDA-NIFA Grant Supports Poultry Farmers; Arkansas One Of Seven States Awarded

A comprehensive assessment of the potential of harvested insects could lead to a low-cost, readily available protein/methionine source for organic poultry farmers.

Synthetic amino acids are generally prohibited in certified organic poultry production. Methionine is the only synthetic amino acid allowed in organic poultry feed at restricted levels in organic poultry diets due to its high biological requirement.

Finding a natural, cheaper source of methionine has been a priority for organic farmers, and the USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture has awarded a nearly $1 million grant to U of A's Adnan Alrubaye, assistant professor of poultry science in the Dale Bumpers College of Agricultural, Food and Life Sciences, and a group of faculty and researchers from the University of Arkansas, USDA-Agricultural Research service and the UA System Division of Agriculture.

The project, "De-Bugging Synthetic Methionine From Organic Poultry Diets: Exploiting The Potential Of Insect Meals As A Source Of Methionine," is funded for $996,545.

Arkansas is one of only seven states nationwide to receive this grant, positioning it as a leader in organic farm research.

In addition to harvested insects, Alrubaye and his team will also evaluate commercially raised crickets, which preliminary data showed to also have immense potential as sustainable sources of methionine for organic poultry diets.

Alrubaye, who is also associate director of U of A's graduate program in cell and molecular biology, and his team of researchers plan to:

• Collect and prepare insect meal from wild harvested insects and perform microbiological safety and nutrient analysis of the meal to formulate broiler rations,
• Evaluate growth performance and meat quality of broiler chickens fed with insect-based diets,
• Conduct an economic analysis to evaluate the feasibility of insect meals as a viable source of methionine and
• Conduct on-farm testing for ascertaining the effectiveness of treatments in organic poultry production systems.

"The long-term goal of this proposal is to provide a natural and sustainable source of methionine and minimize the impact of dietary supplementation of synthetic methionine in organic poultry production," Alrubaye said. "Our overall goal is to evaluate the potential of insect meals as a natural source of methionine, while assisting organic poultry producers to comply with the requirements of the National Organic Program."

Project results and information on organic poultry production will be disseminated to organic and sustainable agriculture communities by an extension team consisting of experienced poultry specialists and stakeholders who have been involved in organic poultry production.

The team will disseminate the project's results to the organic poultry community through various delivery methods, including conferences, electronic and printed materials, and training activities at a research and teaching-oriented organic poultry facility. Additionally, the team will conduct train-the-trainer programs for extension specialists and other interested stakeholders on the project's objectives, results and applications.

The first phase, collecting and preparing insect meal, includes formulating broiler rations to optimize methionine levels. Traps will provide farmers with an economical way to collect supplemental protein sources from their animal and agricultural farms, and will be deployed at multiple locations to collect houseflies from poultry farms.

"The harvested flies will be collected and processed to obtain dried insect meals," Alrubaye said. "The dried insect meal will be screened for the presence of selected poultry and human pathogens, including Salmonella, Listeria monocytogenes and Campylobacter jejuni, using standard culture and PCR-based detection methods to ensure the safety of inclusion of insect meals in poultry rations. We will conduct nutrient analysis of dried insect meals to determine true metabolizable energy (TMEn) and digestible amino acids of insect meal and formulate rations for broiler chickens."

Feed trials will be conducted during the second phase to evaluate growth parameters and feed efficiency in broiler chickens fed an insect-based meal compared to those fed synthetic methionine.

"We will also determine the post-harvest meat quality and conduct sensory studies to evaluate the consumer acceptability of meat from broilers fed with natural and sustainable sources of methionine in comparison to broiler chickens fed with conventional diets," Alrubaye said. "We will utilize the data from the aforementioned studies to determine the most effective treatments, and we will conduct on-farm testing of the effectiveness of treatments in organic poultry farms."

Alrubaye is principal investigator. Co-PIs are Komala Arsi, Palma Jesudhasan and Phillip Shults, USDA-ARS; Craig Coon, professor, poultry science; Jada Thompson, associate professor, agricultural economics and agribusiness; Casey Owens, professor, poultry science; Diego Martinez, poultry nutritionist, Center of Excellence for Poultry Science; and Sarah Bramall, instructor, agricultural education, communications and technology.

The work is supported by USDA NIFA's Research, Education and Economics Information System Program, project award No. 2025-51106-45108 for 2025-29.

With insect farming projected to generate 5.5 million tons of insect waste in North America by 2033, scientists with the Arkansas Agricultural Experiment Station, Bumpers College and USDA-ARS looked at the byproduct as a soil amendment in soybeans and switchgrass.

The research showed that the insect waste, also called frass, delivered two to four times greater nutrient efficiency than poultry litter and reduced soybean leaf damage by 38% to 45%.

About the Dale Bumpers College of Agricultural, Food and Life Sciences: Bumpers College provides life-changing opportunities to position and prepare graduates who will be leaders in the businesses associated with foods, family, the environment, agriculture, sustainability and human quality of life; and who will be first-choice candidates of employers looking for leaders, innovators, policy makers and entrepreneurs. The college is named for Dale Bumpers, former Arkansas governor and longtime U.S. senator who made the state prominent in national and international agriculture. For more information about Bumpers College, visit our website, and follow us on Twitter at @BumpersCollege and Instagram at BumpersCollege.

About the University of Arkansas: As Arkansas' flagship institution, the U of A provides an internationally competitive education in more than 200 academic programs. Founded in 1871, the U of A contributes more than $2.2 billion to Arkansas' economy through the teaching of new knowledge and skills, entrepreneurship and job development, discovery through research and creative activity while also providing training for professional disciplines. The Carnegie Foundation classifies the U of A among the few U.S. colleges and universities with the highest level of research activity. U.S. News & World Report ranks the U of A among the top public universities in the nation. See how the U of A works to build a better world at Arkansas Research and Economic Development News.