The American Feed Industry Association’s Board of Directors met last week for its annual spring meeting in the nation’s capital, where they elected a new chair and several Board and Executive Committee members, discussed priority issues impacting the animal food industry with legislators, and conducted other official business. The Board elected Bruce Crutcher, managing director for Micronutrients USA, as its new chairman, and recognized Lee Hall of Hallway Feeds for his leadership as the association’s Board chairman during the 2017-18 year. Hall now transitions into his one-year chairmanship of the Institute for Feed Education and Research’s (IFEEDER) Board of Trustees. During their meeting, Rep. David Rouzer spoke with AFIA members about the upcoming farm bill, trade and the state of U.S. agriculture.

New technologies are in the works to make salmon feed using less or no forage fish. They include the emerging use of insect meal and the development of genetic technologies such as CRISPR, which could work to modify a plant like false flax to produce more Omega-3 or modify a salmon to accept a plant form of Omega-3.

A research team from China and the United States recently found that using a less expensive feed with a specific carbon/nitrogen ratio may improve performance in a shrimp biofloc system. Their study determined that both feed and C/N ratio had significant effects on biofloc development, water quality, shrimp performance, feed utilization and input cost, and that the best water quality and performance of Litopenaeus vannamei were achieved with the C/N ratio of 12:1 for both feeds.

As the popularity of insects in aquafeeds grows, research to investigate the effects of substituting freshwater shrimp meal with black soldier fly larvae meal or adult cricket meal on physico-chemical properties of hot-extruded fish feed pellets has found that it is possible to process good quality extruded pellets using insect meals. In the study, researchers substituted FWSM protein in multiple fish feed formulations and adjusted moisture content of the formulated blends to 10, 20 or 30 g/100 g prior to extrusion. Results found that moisture content of the feed at extrusion affected pellet floatability and expansion ratio. Pellets with high floatability >90% and high expansion ratio ~60% were produced from all feed blends at 30 g/100 g moisture content.

Andalusia is offering aid worth EUR 698,501 to professional organizations in the sector of fisheries and aquaculture products. This aid is included among measures to promote trade and processing. The objective is to contribute to the achievement of objectives such as the improvement of the common organization of markets for fishery and aquaculture products, and the encouragement of investments in the processing and trade sectors.

Calysta and Nofima have announced they will partner to conduct large-scale trials in Atlantic salmon using Calysta’s FeedKind®protein as a means to improve feed efficiency and fish health. The trials, to be designed by Nofima, will begin in early 2019. “We are eager to do research on FeedKind as we believe that this may be an example of new protein sources that can contribute to a more sustainable aquaculture. Feedkind’s effect on salmon will be thoroughly tested at Nofima’s research facilities along with the effects this protein may have on the physicochemical qualities of the feed pellet.”

BioMar Group has invested in additional capacity for its factory in Denmark. The new line is expected to be ready in Q2 2019, and will be highly specialized and dedicated to fry and RAS feed production enabling the factory to increase flexibility, quality and production performance. It delivers mainly feed for species such trout, eel, sturgeon and salmon in RAS; however in total the factory produces feed for more than 40 species. After the capacity expansion, the factory will be able to deliver 150.000 tons of feed per year.

Tongwei Group’s chairman, Liu Hanyuan tops list of China’s wealthiest aquaculture and aquafeed billionaires.

The Undersecretariat of Agriculture, Fisheries and Rural Development of Andalusia is carrying out thirty research and transfer projects, specifically aimed at improving the competitiveness of aquaculture. Andalusian aquaculture produces 9,700 tonnes per year and represents 22 per cent of the value of the fishing sector in the region, and the goal is to reach a production of 20,000 tonnes.

IFFO has released its second Annual Report. A key area highlighted throughout the report is IFFO’s increased investment and focus on data gathering and technical reports, with the aim of effectively communicating the strategic and vital role of marine ingredients. IFFO project work has focused on the use of antioxidants and antioxidant stabilization, as well as the management of forage fish stocks, raw material supply, environmental impacts relative to other feed ingredients, and co-sponsorship of an international scientific conference on small pelagic fish stocks.   

Guangdong Haid has signed a cooperation partnership with Bühler to build a feed plant in Indonesia focused on that country’s shrimp sector. Speaking this week at the opening ceremony for the Swiss firm’s giant new manufacturing plant in eastern China’s Changzhou, Haid’s Vice President Tian Li said Haid will expand output to meet growing demand for specialist and quality feed in aquaculture across Asia. Haid also drew attention this week for launching an incentive scheme for employees granting share rights to high-performing staff.

In its 2018 first quarter report, Bakkafrost confirmed that its new salmon meal and salmon oil plant is expected to start operation in the second quarter of 2018, with full production in the second half of the year. The plant is being operated under the company\'s Harvsbrún brand. The major market for Havsbrún´s fish feed is the local Faroese market including Bakkafrost’s internal use of fish feed.

New evidence shows seafood from aquaculture can help feed the future global population while substantially reducing one of the biggest environmental impacts of meat production — land use — without requiring people to entirely abandon meat as a food source.

ENSO-neutral is favored through September-November 2018, with the possibility of El Niño nearing 50% by Northern Hemisphere winter 2018-19

The state government of Delta, Niger has completed construction of two fish feed mills at a total cost of approximately $1.6 million (N574.6 million). The mills are located in two council areas of the state: Ekpan in Uvwie Local Government Area and Aliosimi Owanta in Ika North East Local Government Area of the state. According to Mary Iyasere, Commissioner for Commerce and Industry, the idea behind the projects was to increase interest in fish farming among the youth population.

A leading Chinese brokerage firm is betting on 20-to 30-percent compound sales growth for aquafeed leader Guangdong Haid. China’s coastal fishing ban has driven an expansion in aquaculture and mariculture, resulting in growth in fish feed demand, and the industry has begun to embrace higher-quality products and more formulated feeds, according to a report on the sector.

Aller Aqua has announced the launch of its new Aller Aqua Zambia website. The new website provides easy access to detailed information in English about the new factory in Zambia, Aller Aqua product ranges and commitments to the local community. \"This new website provides easy access to information about our feed ranges specifically formulated for tilapia and catfish farmed in the region. At the same time, with this new website, we provide information on our initiatives to support the farmers and how we invest in the local community; how we grow together.\"

The Journal of the World Aquaculture Society has announced it is calling for papers for a forthcoming Functional Aquafeed Special Issue. The aim of the special issue is to collect original research articles, opinion articles, review articles, as well as short communications on aquafeeds that showcase the most recent activities and R&D developments made by the industry and academic institutions.

A group of researchers led by Nofima is currently examining how different types of quality can increase the value of salmon products. The ‘Qualidiff’ project is examining both how different customer groups demand different quality attributes and how the emphasis on these can enhance value creation and profitability. “Quality isn’t just about how salmon tastes. It can be about how much and what type of fat it contains, or about the color, cut and packaging. But quality can also be linked to ecolabels, origin or brands.\"

Cargill has extended its reporting on aquaculture with the release of a new report that includes all 17 of the company’s dedicated aqua feed facilities in 12 countries, covering 80 percent of its total aquafeed production footprint of nearly 1.5 million tonnes. The company has also expanded its reporting to include more species. “After a decade of reporting on the sustainability of our salmon feed, we are now addressing feed for shrimp, tilapia and other species. It’s important for us to support our customers with sustainability insights and to continue managing the impacts of our operations across the value chain.\"