Farmed salmon are regularly exposed to handling, bacteria, viruses, lice, jellyfish, and climate or seasonal variations, all of which put pressure on health and performance (Sommerset, NVI report 2025). Accordingly, Norwegian salmon farming is faced with high mortality rates, injuries, and downgrading, culminating in financial losses.
Salmon feed has undergone continuous change, raising questions about whether today’s plant-based formulations are optimal for fish facing increasingly demanding production conditions. While starter and smoltification diets often include relatively more fishmeal to secure growth and survival, feeds for the sea growth phase typically contain less, relying heavily on plant proteins such as soy and wheat gluten. Research and industry experience suggest that higher protein-to-lipid ratios, typically achieved through increased fishmeal inclusion, can enhance production efficiency, yield, and muscle quality.
As global aquaculture expands, the availability of fishmeal is likely to remain limited, underscoring the importance of quality. Commercial production of fishmeal is based on the production of a meal where the water-soluble components, separated during the cooking process, are returned and dried together with the fishmeal. Gently dried fishmeal produced at low temperatures (LT meal) retains more water-soluble proteins, amino acids, nucleotides, and volatile compounds such as TMAO, crucial for stress resilience and osmoregulation in salmon, than conventional steam-dried fishmeal. However, it is more costly to produce.
A new Norwegian project, OptiBoost, will test different fishmeal prototypes and compare LT-dried fishmeal types with conventional fishmeal to evaluate their effects on nutrient composition, the stability of water-soluble fractions, and the functional health benefits for salmon. Researchers will investigate how different qualities of fishmeal influence osmoregulation and resilience during critical production phases, such as seawater transfer and winter growth. Pelagia will contribute with fishmeal variants. Trials will commence with controlled tank studies at Nofima, followed by large-scale commercial cage trials with Skretting and Salmar.
“Fishmeal is an excellent feed ingredient; however, it should not stop us from making it even better and more sustainable. The goal is to document the added value and cost-effectiveness of gently processed, high-quality fishmeal in supporting salmon growth, feed efficiency, health, welfare, survival, and quality, ultimately strengthening the sustainability and reputation of Norwegian aquaculture,” Antony J Prabhu Philip, senior researcher & project leader at Nofima, told Aquafeed.com.
OptiBoost is a three-year research project funded by FHF (NOK 8 million/EUR 686,000) led by Nofima, with partners Pelagia, Skretting, and SalMar.
