Thoughts for the Future of Aquaculture Nutrition: Realigning Perspectives to Reflect Contemporary Issues Related to Judicious Use of Marine Resources in Aquafeeds

Abstract

In recent decades, aquaculture nutrition research has made major strides in identifying alternatives to the use of traditional marine‐origin resources. Feed manufacturers worldwide have used this information to replace increasing amounts of fish meal and fish oil in aquafeeds. However, reliance on marine resources remains an ongoing constraint, and the progress yielded by continued unidimensional research into alternative raw materials is becoming increasingly marginal. Feed formulation is not an exercise in identifying “substitutes” or “alternatives” but rather is a process of identifying different combinations of “complementary” raw materials—including fish meal, fish oil, and others—that collectively meet established nutrient requirements and other criteria for the aquafeed in question. Nutrient‐based formulation is the day‐to‐day reality of formulating industrially compounded aquafeeds, but this approach is less formally and explicitly addressed in aquaculture research and training programs. Here, we (re)introduce these topics and explore the reasons that marine‐origin ingredients have long been considered the “gold standards” of aquafeed formulation. We highlight a number of ways in which this approach is flawed and constrains innovation before delving into the need to assess raw materials based on their influence on aquafeed manufacturing techniques. We conclude with a brief commentary regarding the future funding and research landscape. Incremental progress may continue through the accumulation of small insights, but a more holistic research strategy—aligned with industry needs and focused on nutrient composition and ingredient complementarity—is what will spur future advancement in aquaculture nutrition.

The Future of Aquatic Protein: Implications for Protein Sources in Aquaculture Diets

“…Although the production of fish meal and fish oil from forage fish has been steadily decreasing over the last 20 years and the proportion of these ingredients within aquafeeds is demonstrating a downward trend, they are still important feed components for many carnivorous fishes and crustaceans. 26 The total annual production of fish meal was $4.5 million tons, and the total annual production of fish oil s $0.9 million tons in 2016, of which 69% and 75%, respectively, are used in aquafeeds. 20 An additional 23% and 5% of this fish meal is used in pig and chicken feeds.…”

High‐oil residue camelina meal, a viable source of protein at low levels in diets for juvenile salmonids

“…The inclusion of FM in salmon feed has reduced from 450 g/kg in 1995 to 160 g/kg in 2015 and is projected to reduce to 120 g/kg in 2020 (Olsen & Hasan, ). Feed prices are likely not as high as they would be if the old formulations were used today (Turchini, Trushenski, & Glencross, ). Using a combination of various plant‐based and animal by‐product, ingredients provide a majority of the protein content.…”

Composition of amino acids and related nitrogenous nutrients in feedstuffs for animal diets

“…Collectively, these results indicate the unique importance of creatine in animal-source feedstuffs in improving the feed consumption, growth, health and reproduction of animals (including farm, companion and aquatic animals). Our findings will also guide the cost-effective formulation of new diets for livestock, poultry, fish and shrimp (e.g., reducing the use of fishmeal in aquafeeds) that is based on the nutrient composition and complementarity of feedstuffs, an important area of animal nutrition research (Le Floch et al 2018;Turchini et al 2019;Wu 2018).…”

“…These salient variations in published values might be attributable to the raw materials used (e.g., their sources, freshness and microbial contamination), processing technologies for ingredient production, and errors in AA analyses. A database on the composition of AAs and related nutrients in a variety of protein ingredients derived from terrestrial animals and fishes is much needed to guide the formulation of diets for feeding livestock, poultry, fish, shrimp and companion animals (Turchini et al 2019;Wu 2018). To achieve this goal, we analyzed eleven common animal-source feedstuffs and, for comparison, three common plant-source feedstuffs for AAs in oligopeptides, protein, and the free pool as well as creatine, creatine phosphate, creatinine, agmatine, polyamines, and glutathione.…”