Sustainability in the aquaculture value chain begins with the raw materials used in the feed. Raw materials form the foundation for fish growth and health, and therefore ultimately for the fish farmers’ success. Aller Aqua wants customers to have high quality feeds with stable performance, but also with minimal environmental impact.
”In recent years, much attention has been given to soy produced in South America and the resulting effects, such as deforestation and cultivation methods. In our work to continuously increase sustainability and purchasing raw materials near our European factories, we will now gradually eliminate the use of soy from South America,” explained Henrik Halken, group vice president, Aller Aqua Group.
The company said that the four European factories have already begun this process. In 2019, 50% of the soy used in their European factories were regionally produced and during 2020, this number will reach 100%. This is in line with EU initiatives supporting an increased production of protein crops to increase self-sufficiency, and thereby reduce import. Aller Aqua is working actively with United Nations Sustainable Development Goals in all their factories.
“To ensure the greatest positive impact on our environmental footprint, we continuously look at our raw material portfolio. In recent years, we have increasingly utilized various by-products that in addition to reducing waste, maintain the feed quality. We also take pride in having a specialized protein factory in Germany which produces high value proteins based on local raw materials.
Additionally, it is positive that aquaculture has one of the lowest CO2 emissions compared to other animal productions,” concluded Halken.
