Nutrition

Ahead of the inaugural meeting of the World Aquaculture Society’s African Chapter, which is due to take place in Alexandria this month, Harrison Charo Karisa – one of the key organisers of the event – discusses the prospects of the continent’s aquaculture sect…

Oladejo Olanrewaju Olumide is the chairman of Ikorodu Fish Farm Estate and second vice-president of the Lagos State Catfish and Allied Farmers Association (LASCAFAN) – the umbrella body of all catfish farmers in Lagos State.

While insect production is likely to grow significantly in the coming years, it will be vital for the aquafeed industry to make the most out of what is likely to remain a fairly niche ingredient and not treat it as a simple substitute for fishmeal or soy.

Petter M Johannessen, director general of the IFFO, believes that marine ingredients play a crucial role in developing aquafeeds with a low carbon footprint.

Hatch and Conservation International (CI) have put 10 female-led aquaculture businesses through their paces as part of their first-ever Women in Aquaculture Innovation Studio programme.

As the aquaculture industry expands, it needs every feed option – both conventional and alternative – at its disposal. But what steps can the sector take to bring sustainable feed ingredients online?

Indonesia’s aquafeed producers – be they industrial players or farmers who produce feed independently – are increasingly looking towards the use of local and sustainable alternatives to fish meal and soy.

Novel means of improving shrimp health – including the use of alternative feed ingredients – are due to be the subject of a short, free webinar taking place on 10 November. Organised by The Fish Site and Calysta, the event has been inspired by trials …

Shrimp fed diets containing FeedKind, a novel microbial protein produced by Calysta, have been shown to be more resistant to Vibrio parahaemolyticus – the source of early mortality syndrome (EMS).

Catfishes have surpassed tilapia in global aquaculture production and – helped in part by the sheer number of their species and their extensive geographical range – they are set to remain at the top table.

“Rabbitfish have amazing potential for small-scale sustainable aquaculture across the tropics: they are easy to grow have high local demand and they are herbivorous and feed on a variety of freely-available feeds.”

Instead of treating and discarding wastewater from food processing, Mark Rottmann, CEO of iCell Aqua, is integrating it with RAS – bringing the industry closer to achieving zero-waste and fully circular protein production.*

The aquaculture industry must continue in its quest to become more sustainable, with greater use of seaweeds in aquafeeds and production of herbivorous fish among two of the most promising avenues to achieve this.

Wanyama Pascal is manager of Bayrise Fish Farm on Lake Victoria, Kenya – a tilapia farm with the capacity to produce nearly 400 tonnes a year.