Norway is funding a research that will look into the potential of insects as fish feed ingredient.

The research, called the Aquafly Project, will be undertaken by the Research Council of Norway (NIFES), which has set aside NOK 13 million (US$1.9 million) for the four-year study.

AquaFly will be looking at the use of insect meal as an ingredient of salmon feed, NIFES said, adding that environmental, social and economic factors would be taken into consideration in the course of the research.

As project leader, NIFES will be responsible for research on fish nutrition and feed safety. Other partners in the research would look at other aspects of the project, giving it a very broad perspective.

The project is a cooperative effort involving 12 research and industry partners. AquaFly will explore the potential to "tailor" the insect nutrient profile to meet the nutritional needs of farmed salmon.

Previous NIFES studies have demonstrated that insect meal is a good source of protein for farmed salmon.

"Insects and insect larvae are an important component of the natural diet of salmon, and insect meal is therefore one of the most natural things we can add to fish feed," NIFES said.

The potential risks of using insect meal in fish feed will also be studied, it added.