Finding an Alternative to a Fish Based Feed25 May 2012
Scientists at Liverpool University are developing a new plant-
based product that could replace fishmeal, reducing the need for
farmers to feed fish to other fish at a time when more than 90
per cent of EU waters are at risk from overfishing. It is
estimated that in order to satisfy consumer need for fish in an
expanding human population, the UK market would need to increase
supplies by more than 1.9 million tonnes by 2035. Currently
farmed fish, such as salmon, are fed food containing fishmeal,
which means that several kilograms of wild fish are consumed to
produce one kilogram of farmed fish. This has fuelled concerns
that there could be a global shortage of fish in the next 20
years. To help sustain fish stocks, the aquaculture industry is
working towards replacing fishmeal with plant proteins, such as
soya. The difficulty with this approach, however, is that many
plants contain anti-nutrients that prevent digestive enzymes
from working, resulting in po