Located in the Pacific coastal-town of Colaco, Chile, the Cargill Innovation Center is geared specifically to improve health and wellbeing for salmon. The innovation center will serve as a research hub of experts from EWOS and Cargill, who will focus on developing functional fish diets and studying diseases that affect farmed salmon in Chile and other countries focused on aquaculture. Through the Cargill investment and the support of Corfo, a Chilean developmental agency, the innovation center will have more than 30 scientists and aquaculture experts.

A group of researchers has modified the nutritional profile of nut materials to increase protein and fit specifications for aquaculture feeds. They evaluated the nut mixture and found that trout fed a diet containing 5 percent fishmeal and 49 to 58 percent nut meal had survival and growth rates similar to trout fed a diet containing 55 percent fish meal. Furthermore, they determined the amount of protein and amino acids that was actually digestible and can support high levels of growth in rainbow trout whether it replaces fish meal or soy protein concentrate in the diet.

The Center for Aquaculture Technologies Canada recently received an approval from the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) Office of Biohazard Containment (OBCS) for its aquaculture research facility located in Souris, Prince Edward Island Canada. The facility is now approved to operate as an Aquatic Animal Pathogen Containment Level 3 (AQC3) biocontainment facility. This certification allows the Center for Aquaculture Technologies to expand its suite of services to include the conduct of in vivo and in vitro studies with imported aquatic animal pathogens.

The B.C. Salmon Farmer\'s Association has released a paper indicating that B.C. farm-raised salmon are among the most sustainable farm raised animals on the market. The paper, titled \"Comparing the Environmental Footprint of B.C.’s Farm-Raised Salmon to Other Food Protein Sources,\" examines the evidence from the literature on the environmental impact of ocean netpen farm-raised salmon versus other protein sources and, based on the evidence, develops estimates of the overall environmental footprint of farm-raised salmon in B.C. compared to production of other food proteins.

GlobalVetLINK (GVL®) has released a new Veterinary Feed Record (VFR) feature that offers veterinarians a tool for managing and tracking non-VFD, feed-grade antibiotics (ie. carbadox, bacitracin, tiamulin) in its FeedLINK® Electronic VFD System. Writing VFRs allows vets to simulate the VFD (Veterinary Feed Directive) process, providing a “practice” method to prepare for expanded VFDs coming January 1.

IFFO is proud to announce the finalists for the Leadership and Innovation Awards. The winners of the awards will be announced at the Gala Dinner of the 56th IFFO Annual Conference, held in Bangkok. This year’s applicants came from a wide cross section of IFFO’s membership, showing examples of success from both small and large producers and traders from across the globe.

Shortly before the opening of the 2016 World Nutrition Forum in Vancouver, BIOMIN Managing Director, Dr Hannes Binder outlined the feed additive producer’s ambition to become the market leader in the phytogenic feed additive (PFA) space by 2020. “Producers are looking to get more out of their feed, reduce antibiotics, shrink the environmental footprint and enhance gut performance. These all point to feed efficiency, and that’s where innovative phytogenic feed additives come into play.”

Nelson\'s Cawthron Institute is carrying out a groundbreaking open ocean shellfish farming project intended to boost aquaculture exports by tens of millions of dollars. Led by Cawthron Institute aquaculture scientist Kevin Heasman, the five year project recently received NZD 6 million from the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment, Stuff reported. Heasman said the project aimed to revolutionize the current open ocean farming structures to make them more efficient and low maintenance.

Farmed fish are here to stay as wild fish stocks have come under increasing pressure worldwide, says Nova Scotia Fisheries and Aquaculture Minister Keith Colwell. Colwell responded Thursday to a federal audit tabled before parliament that warned the Department of Fisheries and Oceans had not yet crafted a plan to restore 12 of 15 wild fish stocks deemed to be in critical condition.

The need for aquaculture development was further confirmed by new statistics from IFPRI that show the global community is not on course to end hunger by the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal deadline of 2030. If hunger declines at the same rate as the report finds it has since 1992, more than 45 countries - including India, Pakistan, Haiti, Yemen, and Afghanistan - will still have “moderate” to “alarming” hunger scores in the year 2030, far short of the goal to end hunger by that year. \"The 2030 Agenda set a clear global objective for an end to hunger - everywhere - within the next 14 years. There is a need for urgent, thoughtful and innovative action to ensure that no one ever goes hungry again.\"

The International Feed Industry Federation (IFIF) and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) held their 15th annual meeting at FAO Headquarters on 06-07 October 2016 to further strengthen their collaboration on critical issues to ensure safe, nutritious and sustainable feed and food. FAO, said “FAO and IFIF have a long standing partnership and this meeting addressed a number of critical issues of common interest, such as the need for capacity development to ensure feed safety and the importance of collaborating to tackle the issue of antimicrobial resistance (AMR).

A recent BBC news article (6th October, 2016) highlighted the current challenges of including omega-3 fatty acids in farmed salmon. The article focuses on the reduction of fish oil in salmon diets, stating that one of the causes is the cutting back on the amount of anchovies fished and used for feed. The industry has reduced fishing, not because of resistance to use in feed but due to responsible management of the fish stocks. The production of fish oil has thus come down to 900/800,000 metric tonnes per year from its peak of more than 1 million mt. Over 40% of global fish oil production is certified under an independent scheme for responsible supply, a higher percentage than plant-based ingredients can offer.

The training event in Nigeria, part of the IFIF Global Animal Nutrition Program \'Train the Trainer\' pilot project supported by the Nigerian Institute of Animal Science (NIAS), brought together over 30 representatives from the Nigerian feed industries, who will act as multipliers by sharing the training with colleagues throughout Nigeria. The aim of the project is to raise capacities for feed safety in developing regions by training key individuals who can then act as trainers on site within a country. This reflects IFIF’s mission to promote science-based solutions and information sharing for the feed industry, as well as stimulate the adoption of international standards and global equivalency.

The Waterbase Limited has been awarded the “2016 India Shrimp Feed Industry New Product Innovation Leadership Award” by Frost & Sullivan. Frost & Sullivan’s Shrimp Feed New Product Innovation Leadership Awards Identifies companies that have demonstrated measured excellence in new, innovative products or product lines within their industry. “Given its strategic intent to consistently focus on improved end-user experience and enjoy strong consumer acceptance, The Waterbase Limited promises to be a massive technology contributor to the aquaculture industry in India.

The Scottish Aquaculture Innovation Centre (SAIC) has signed a Letter of Intent with New Zealand’s largest independent science organization, the Cawthron Institute, to explore research projects of mutual interest – in particular, projects that could lead to higher productivity in the shellfish industry. “Supporting new shellfish production systems is one of SAIC’s four priority innovation areas. This new, more formal relationship with the Cawthron Institute will enable us to pool our combined knowledge of the challenges of selective breeding for mussels and oysters, amongst other issues, to make more advances, faster.”

Skretting is now able to offer aquaculture feeds containing a ground breaking algal oil that consists of unprecedented levels of the two essential long chain Omega-3 fatty acids EPA and DHA, thanks to the joint development of Royal DSM and Evonik. This alternative to the finite supply of fish oil is currently under piloting at meaningful volumes for the aquaculture industry. The new marine algal oil is produced by natural algae from the ocean and cultivated in controlled, land-based facilities. The algal oil provides a sustainable means of producing Omega-3 and also ensures predictable volumes of EPA and DHA.

United Fish Industries (UFI) and the Pelagia Group have invested a combined €30 million to redevelop of one of Ireland\'s most iconic fish processing plants in Killybegs into a highly moderm fishmeal and fish oil plant. General Manager of UFI, Frank Trearty explained that the redevelopment of the plant was significant, as the old building was demolished and a new one built in it\'s place. \"We have installed the most up to date systems in the plant and redesigned the look of the old plant into a truly modern facility enhancing the reputation of Killybegs as Ireland’s premier fishing port.”

A groundbreaking research project aims to improve the feed efficiency of New Zealand king salmon, potentially saving the aquaculture industry millions of dollars. Nelson\'s Cawthron Institute recently received $12.85 million for the five-year-project spearheaded by senior aquaculture scientist Dr Jane Symonds. Symonds said the project will look at understanding the biology of feed efficiency as feeding salmon a specialized commercial diet was one of the biggest costs to the aquaculture industry.

The challenge grain and feed processors face in feeding the world’s rapidly growing population, particularly Asia’s increasingly affluent, protein-craving middle class, was a much discussed topic at the 2016 PIX and Feed Conference held in May on the Gold Coast in Australia. At the conference, Tim Hart, CEO of Ridley Corporation Ltd., a large feed supplier based in Melbourne, Australia, described the challenge of feeding a growing world population as well as Australia’s own population growth, which is projected to increase to 30 million by 2030. Australians will want more chicken (with demand projected to grow 3% per year), fish (up 25% by 2022) and dairy products, Hart said.

Twice per year, the American Feed Industry Association publishes its print magazine, \"The AFIA Journal.\" The publication keeps members, association friends and affiliates of AFIA up-to-date on organization, industry and government information. The fall 2016 AFIA Journal is now available in its eMagazine format. This edition includes in-depth coverage of several topics including the election\'s connection to the feed industry, a Q&A that provides all of the details on AFIA/Feedstuffs\' Feed Facility of the Year program, and the \"Top 5 Things Medicated Feed Firms Need to Know About VFD.\"