Effect of Dietary Insect Meal and Grape Marc Inclusion on Flavor Volatile Compounds and Shell Color of Juvenile Abalone Haliotis iris

Almost 60% of the fish meal produced globally is used in aquaculture feeds. Fish meal production relies on finite wild-marine resources and is considered as an unsustainable ingredient. Insect meal (IM) is considered a sustainable source with high levels of protein suitable for growth promotion. Grape marc (GM) is a waste byproduct of the winery industry rich in pigments with antioxidant capacity. However, the inclusion of both ingredients can affect the flavor of the meat of abalone and the color of the shell due to different nutritional profiles. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of the dietary inclusion of IM and GM on the flavor volatile compounds and shell color of the juvenile Haliotis iris in a 165-days feeding trial. Abalone were offered four experimental diets with different levels of IM and GM inclusion and a commercial diet (no IM or GM). Soft bodies of abalone were used to characterize volatile compounds using solid-phase microextraction gas chromatography–mass spectrometry, and color changes were analyzed in ground powder of abalone shells using color spectrophotometry 400–700 nm (visible). The results showed 18 volatile compounds significantly different among the dietary treatments. The inclusion of IM did not significantly affect the flavor volatile compounds detected, whereas the inclusion of GM reduced volatile compounds associated with lipid-peroxidation in abalone meat. The inclusion of IM and GM did not significantly affect the lightness nor the yellowness, blueness, redness, and greenness of the ground shells. The supplementation of abalone feeds with GM can help to reduce off-flavour compounds which may extend shelf-life of raw abalone meat.