Comparative In Vitro Characterization of the Nutritional and Functional Properties of Commercially Available Black Soldier Fly Larvae Meal and Soybean Meal

This study provided an integrated comparative characterization of the nutritional and in vitro functional characteristics of commercially available defatted black soldier fly larvae meal (DF-BSFLM), full-fat black soldier fly larvae meal (FF-BSFLM), and soybean meal (SBM). DF-BSFLM had the highest crude protein concentration (55.70%), whereas in vitro crude protein digestibility was 72.87%, 75.26%, and 88.75% for DF-BSFLM, FF-BSFLM, and SBM, respectively. FF-BSFLM had the highest ether extract concentration (37.09%) and predicted apparent metabolizable energy (AME) value (21.92 MJ/kg), followed by DF-BSFLM (15.86 MJ/kg) and SBM (10.98 MJ/kg). SBM had higher concentrations of several essential amino acids, including leucine, isoleucine, arginine, and phenylalanine, whereas DF-BSFLM had higher concentrations of methionine and valine. FF-BSFLM had the highest saturated fatty acid content (57.57%) and lauric acid concentration (18.79%), whereas SBM had the highest polyunsaturated fatty acid content (51.71%). DF-BSFLM had the highest total Folin–Ciocalteu-reactive content (64.6 mg GAE/g) and DPPH radical-scavenging activity (48.2 mg TE/g), compared with 40.9 mg TE/g for SBM and 27.7 mg TE/g for FF-BSFLM. Overall, the tested ingredients exhibited distinct nutritional and in vitro functional profiles. These findings provide a product-level comparison of commercially available BSFLM products with SBM. Because the FF- and DF-BSFLM products were obtained commercially rather than generated from a common batch under controlled conditions, the observed differences cannot be attributed exclusively to defatting. Furthermore, each ingredient was represented by a single commercial batch, and the analytical replicates do not establish product-level variability. Further studies involving multiple independent commercial batches and controlled in vivo trials are needed to assess product variability and evaluate nutrient bioavailability, standardized ileal amino acid digestibility, energy utilization, and physiological responses in poultry.