According to the report, one tonne of algal oil can replace the DHA obtained from around 40 tonnes of wild-caught fish © Mart Production
The Centre for Feed Innovation (CFI) – an independent think tank accelerating the development of novel feed ingredients by providing businesses and investors with insights to drive innovation in sustainable, scalable and safe animal feed ingredients – has released its 2025 State of the Industry report on algal oil in aquafeeds.
Aquaculture growth depends on omega-3s, traditionally supplied by fish oil, but limited global supply and rising demand are driving price volatility and pressure on pelagic fisheries. CFI assesses algal oil’s nutrition, scalability, sustainability and safety as a substitute for fish oil, concluding that the key challenge is no longer technical viability but scaling supply and access.
According to the report, algal oil has moved from pilot trials to routine inclusion in commercial salmon diets. Major feed producers – including Skretting, BioMar and Cargill – are already incorporating algal oil in their formulations, with trials showing 100 percent replacement of fish oil without negative impacts on growth or feed conversion.
Global production of algae-based EPA and DHA is about 20,000 tonnes in 2025 and could reach 36,000 tonnes by 2030, as the fish oil deficit is predicted to widen to 100,000 tonnes by 2030. While algal oil can lower emissions, ease pressure on wild stocks and cut contaminants, CFI says costs, regulation and feedstock dependence still require coordinated action across the value chain.
Read the full report on CFI’s website.
