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According to scientists, alligators’ ancestors were vegetarians. It seems these reptiles, or at least the farmed ones, may soon revisit their dietary roots, all thanks to the soybean checkoff.

Production of farmed U.S. alligators is expanding, with a farm gate value of nearly $80 million in 2020 (up from around $30 million in 2010). These animals were historically fed chickens, but their handlers moved away from raw meat diets for more stable diets. Industry then moved to a pelletized diet—an animal-based feed that has remained largely unchanged since it was first developed in the 1990s.

Mark Flint, who is a conservation wildlife veterinarian with The Ohio State University, saw an opportunity.

“Soybeans are a great alternative to animal-based protein sources. Soybeans have a lot of potential. There are many strains, so you can pretty much select what you want in terms of protein levels and alkaloid levels,” he said.

Enter the Ohio Soybean Council and soybean checkoff. Flint met Barry McGraw (who leads soy-based product research and commercialization efforts for OSC) through the Ohio Aquaculture Association. “We literally met over a cup of coffee, and we started talking about potential projects,” said Flint.

“The Ohio Soybean Council board is always looking for innovative new uses of soybeans, and we’d already had success in animal agriculture,” said McGraw, referring to EnzoMeal, a soy-based diet developed for fish. “A soy-based diet for alligators is an excellent exploratory project. If this research is successful, we’ll increase soybean demand by helping a growing industry.”

So how’s the project going? So far, the results are promising.

As with all commercially managed species, good alligator herd health is essential to optimal production. The project had to confirm that switching to a soy-based feed would have no negative impacts on the animals’ weight gain, hide quality, behavior, health, or overall welfare. Researchers began with 1,728 newly hatched alligators and fed each of them one of two diets: a standard commercial alligator feed (Cargill XFat) or the soybean-based feed. Other than protein source, the two feeds were nearly identical in composition. The alligators were then monitored for activity levels that indicate well-being and tested for health impacts over two years. Researchers concluded that, regardless of diet, the animals’ health and welfare was excellent and their mental state was positive.

“In the second phase, we’ll look at different concentrations of soy and try to refine the protein levels,” said Flint. “Nobody knows exactly how much protein an alligator needs to remain healthy. If we can reduce the level of protein enough that soybeans can be the sole protein source, we won’t have to add any byproducts. Then we can use a milled soybean product for a far more cost-effective feed.”

For more information about the development of soy-based new uses funded by your checkoff, visit airableresearchlab.com.