As the price of fish feed continues to increase, companies will need to work to make its use more efficient by creating more precise feed formulas to reduce waste. Albert Tacon of Aquatic Farms pointed out that fish feed prices, which can make up about 60% of the cost to raise fish, have continued to increase significantly, a trend which will not likely change. “Prices of ingredients are never going to go down, they\'re always going to go up.”

The world produced a record one billion tonnes of animal feed last year, and it did so with seven percent fewer feed mills. Aquaculture and the aqua feed industry have seen six years of growth in line with increased consumption of farmed fish. China is the world leader in fish feed production at 16 million tonnes. It’s estimated that three-quarters of the world’s fish feed is consumed in the Asia Pacific region.

A £1 million pilot program to boost innovation in aquaculture in the Highlands and Islands is set to go ahead. The program is targeted at helping small to medium enterprises (SMEs) achieve greater commercialization of new innovative products and services, which will have a positive and sustainable economic and social impact. Highlands and Islands Enterprise (HIE) has approved the funding package and will run the program in conjunction with the Scottish Aquaculture Innovation Centre (SAIC). Projects supported will have clear commercial outcomes. Together they are expected to boost industry turnover in the region by around £8 million and create up to 50 jobs, including many in fragile areas.

The American Feed Industry Association has announced the promotion of Gary Huddleston to director of feed manufacturing and regulatory affairs. Huddleston previously served as the manager of feed manufacturing safety and environmental affairs. He joined AFIA in 2015. \"This well-deserved promotion is a result of the excellent work Gary has done surrounding FSMA, as well as EPA, OSHA and DOT, during the last two years.\"

Researchers at the University of California, Davis have identified short DNA segments in tilapia that influence the expression of the genes that regulate the fish’s internal body chemistry in response to salinity stress. Additionally, the researchers developed an assay to identify similar regulatory DNA segments in the genomes of other fish species. “This work represents a critical milestone in our efforts to understand how highly stress-tolerant fish convert environmental signals and cues into very beneficial biochemical and physiological outcomes that enable them to adapt to an extremely wide salinity range that is deadly for most species.”

This year\'s Novus Graduate Scholars Program (NGS) launch is set for March 20 at Sichuan Agriculture University. NGS is based on \"Science-Based, Elite Identification,\" aiming to find the most outstanding graduates and develop their potential to innovate in the industry through scholarships and internships. This informative event is open to students and will be the first step in the process. Applications opened to students on March 8, and NGS candidates will be selected by August.

Scientists at Nofima have analyzed sludge from three aquaculture commercial hatcheries through an entire production year, resulting in precise knowledge about the content of the sludge, presented recently in two reports. The analyses show that sludge has a high content of energy, nitrogen and minerals, such as phosphorus. The content of organic pollutants is low and does not constitute an environmental risk for use in fertilizer. By contrast, the zinc and cadmium levels in sludge are a challenge.

One of the most important fisheries in the world, the Peruvian anchovy fishery, launched this week its Fisheries Improvement Project (FIP) to get a “certifiable status” according to the guidelines of the Conservation Alliance for Seafood Solutions (CASS). The Action Plan for the FIP includes an update of the former pre-assessment against the MSC standard, an evaluation of the trophic impacts of the fishery, the improvement of controls for the small-scale fleet and a better understanding of the direct impacts on other species, through a private on board observers program.

LoveTheWild last month announced the close of a $3 million Series A round, led by Dutch investment firm Aqua-Spark. On Wednesday, the company revealed that DiCaprio was among the remaining investors. It was not disclosed how much the actor contributed financially. In a statement, DiCaprio praised LoveTheWild\'s efforts to shift the market toward sustainability with its farm-raised seafood kits: \"The exploitation of our oceans has left many marine ecosystems on the brink of total collapse, which is hurting our ability to harvest our seas as a reliable food source as we have for thousands of years. LoveTheWild is empowering people to take action on this crisis in a very meaningful way.\"

Nutriad has announced the appointment of Mr. Przemyslaw Przeor as Business Manager of its Polish branch, Nutriad Polska. Przemyslaw brings with him considerable experience in the Polish feed additive market, as he has serviced customers in the country for more than 10 years. “Nutriad achieved strong brand recognition in Poland over the years, building on products with a proven track record, supported by renowned technical experts. I am excited to have become part of the Nutriad team and look forward to growing our presence in Poland.”

Royal DSM and Evonik recently announced their intention to establish a joint venture for omega-3 fatty acid products from natural marine algae for animal nutrition. Evonik and DSM’s alternative omega-3 source is the first to offer both EPA and DHA and will be aimed at initial applications in salmon aquaculture and pet food. The companies will together build a commercial-scale production facility in the United States. The joint venture plans to invest around US$ 200 million in the facility (USD 100 million by each party over circa 2 years). The initial annual production capacity will meet roughly 15% of the total current annual demand for EPA and DHA by the salmon aquaculture industry.

“The aim is to use vegetable proteins instead of fish proteins. Ten years ago, food was made of about 30 or 40 percent fish meal. Today that’s been reduced by between 15 and 20 percent and we’re working to further reduce it.” A large-scale European project has examined this shift to very low levels of fishmeal and fish oil for the five most important species in Europe: rainbow trout, Atlantic salmon, carp, sea bream and sea bass. Throughout the life cycle of the fish, growth, health, reproductive capacity, and nutritional qualities, have all been scrutinized.

Fish farmers have called for new interventions to help address the numerous challenges affecting the sector’s development and growth potential. The farmers say lack of quality feeds and high prices are holding back the sector’s potential and hurting their businesses. “There is a problem of lack of quality fish feeds, but we are seeking ways to partner with the private sector and individuals to address the issue.\"

Unibio has announced the appointment of Michael Jensen MBA and Ph.D. as new Chief Commercial Officer. Michael Jensen has worked as a business executive in the food, feed and food ingredients industry and within industrial biotechnology. \"The business idea of Unibio both has meaning and purpose - and this is exactly why I am really looking forward to get going, meet the challenges and contribute with my experience and competences to a successful development of the company,”

Aquaculture investor David Tze has launched the Tze Venture Search Fund for Aquaculture Technology, which is focused on aquafeed technology. Tze’s new search fund, announced during the \"F3 Fish-Free Feed Challenge\" meeting in the San Francisco Bay Area in January, will focus on innovation in the aquafeed ingredients sub-sector, seeking a single aquaculture technology to acquire, operate, and grow.

Yumbah Aquaculture has become the only Australian abalone farm to produce and control the supply of its own feed after it bought South Australian based feed manufacturer, EP Aquafeeds. Yumbah Aquaculture has taken a controlling 75 per cent interest in the EP Aquafeeds business with the remaining 25 per cent share of the company remaining with current co-owner Thomas Coote. Under the terms of the acquisition the business will become Yumbah Aquafeeds.

The world\'s top agricultural traders and biotechnology firms are finding novel ways to make fish oil substitutes from grains and algae as they seek to cash in on consumer health fads that have led to a scarcity of the fatty acids commonly found in fish. \"We have finite fish oil, growing aquaculture and a world that needs more Omega-3s. They\'re going to have to come from somewhere else.\"

The Joint-Venture between the Danish BioMar Group and the Chinese Tongwei Group took another important step with the inauguration of a new production line for extruded feed and a new warehouse at the Haiwei plant in Southern China. \"The new extruder line is part of an upgrade of the factory where we have replaced older equipment with more efficient technology. Together with our Chinese partner Tongwei we want to continue the growth of Haiwei and that requires a series of upgrades and also a new large warehouse. Altogether it will make us more flexible towards the customers and allow for continued growth.\"

Jefo has announced the appointment of Mr. Adam Naylor to the position of Sales Director, South East Asia. Starting February 13th in this position, Mr. Naylor will be supporting the local technical sales specialists in developing major accounts and strengthening partnerships with distributors. In his role he will oversee all commercial activities in the aquaculture, poultry, swine, and ruminant sectors.

With global seaweed production increasing alongside demand for certification, the Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) and Aquaculture Stewardship Council (ASC) have been developing a joint standard for certifying global seaweed operations. Industry stakeholders are invited to view the proposed ASC-MSC Seaweed Standard and share expertise and feedback through an online consultation, which is open for 60 days.