In fed-aquaculture systems, feeds represent the largest share of both the sector’s ecological footprint and operational costs. Unsustainable feed ingredients or inefficient feeding strategies can therefore seriously compromise both environmental and economic sustainability.
To support the health, growth, and welfare of fish and crustaceans, sustainable aquafeeds must be nutritionally complete, highly digestible and palatable. Inadequate nutrition not only reduces performance but also elevates disease risk, increases waste outputs, and raises dependence on therapeutics.
Advancing aquafeed sustainability demands a holistic approach – one that reduces reliance on finite marine resources and minimises environmental impacts such as eutrophication and carbon emissions. Central to this is the adoption of circular and regenerative feed ingredients and alternative materials including algal meals and oils, insect meals and microbial proteins.
Our research programmes have evaluated the suitability of a broad range of alternative raw materials, including algal products, single-cell proteins, plant-derived ingredients, agricultural by-products, marine by-products, and insect meals.
