FBA Issue 34: September / October 2010

 

  

 

 

With aquaculture output rising by 14% annually since 2000 and fishmeal becoming scarce, the American Soybean Association highlighted aquaculture's vast potential - and its need for a viable plant protein substitute at its Southeast Asia Aquaculture Conference held August 2-5 at the Makati Shangri-la Hotel in Manila, Philippines. An extensive study of feed-based aquaculture was presented by Michael Cremer, PhD, global aquaculture technical director of the US Soybean Export Council.

With both population and personal incomes rising, Asians are demanding both a higher quality and quantity of aquaculture products. Increasing demand from freshwater fish farming, particularly in China, which accounts for 60% of world aquaculture, created the demand for today's aqua feed milling industry.

 

Up to now, fishmeal remains the dominant protein source for aqua feeds but Cremer made it clear that this is an unsustainable path. Fishmeal output peaked in the 1990s and has since steadily declined in the face of rising aquaculture production. Only plant-based substitutes such as soy can allow aquaculture to continue expanding amid declining supplies of its main feed ingredient.

 

Cremer pointed out that soon, global demand for fishmeal from aqua feed will quickly exceed declining supplies. China demand on its own could soon exceed the world supply of available fishmeal. Hence, the need to develop alternative, plant-based aqua feed protein sources.

 

According to Cremer, at least 6 million tonnes of soymeal is now used annually in fish feeds, along with significant quantities of wheat, corn and other plant products. He also disclosed that for the last three years, China has been using all-plant protein fingerling feeds based on soy protein concentrate (SPC) for the traditional 8% to 20% fishmeal conclusion.

 

But it is not only China that is exhibiting growth for feed-based aquaculture. Cremer says that expanding fish farming in India, Europe, Mexico, Chile, Middle East and Eurasia are also making it clear that continued growth depends on the adoption of plant-based protein substitutes. For aquaculture's potential to feed a 3 billion population expansion anticipated over the next several decades to be actualised, a shift from finite marine-based meals to renewable plant protein based feeds must be successfully transitioned.

 

With fishmeal production set to drop yet again this year, the conference made clear that expanded research support for alternatives, particularly soy-based ingredients, is acutely needed.  Indeed, even before fishmeal can be completely phased out of aquaculture, fish farming's demand for soymeal, soy protein concentrate (SPC), soy oil and soy lecithin have been on the rise.

 

One can always counter that as an industry association, the ASA has an interest in phasing out fishmeal's use in aquaculture. What cannot be argued is that whether it is a soy-based substitute or some other feed material, the conference did a valuable service by highlighting that aqua culture's day of reckoning with regards to feed is on the horizon.