Mowi committed to test the winning formula from the F3 Fish Oil Challenge, along with China-based Yuehai Feed Group and AlphaFeed. The companies will provide the results of their trials through the F3 Feed Innovation Network (FIN).

The free trial for the F3 Challenge winner will be conducted in one of Mowi’s open-environment research facilities either in Norway or Scotland and will include Mowi’s low and zero fish-oil formulations with the winning fish-oil replacement. Mowi’s salmon feeds are GMO and land-animal product free, complying with both EU regulations and customer demand. Currently, the inclusion of marine ingredients in their conventional diets is less than 10 percent of fishmeal and around the same low inclusion of fish oil.

“At Mowi we are committed to sustainability and are always looking for more efficient and environmentally friendly ways of producing feed for our salmon,” said Laura Martínez Rubio, research, development & technical manager at Mowi Feed. “It is also important that our salmon gets the healthiest diet possible. At Mowi we want to be at the forefront, and we are therefore excited about testing the winning non-fish oil.”

“We are delighted that these big companies have committed to testing the winning fish-free oil,” said Kevin Fitzsimmons, F3 Challenge judge and professor at the University of Arizona. “This is an important step forward toward the large-scale adoption and use of alternatives to wild-caught fish in aquaculture feed.”

As of the third sales reporting period, the four competitors have collectively sold 472,359 kilograms of F3 oil during the contest. Veramaris remains in the lead with the most F3 oil sold.