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Functional brewers’ yeast in sustainable aquaculture and MSc Scholarship award ceremony
Virtual award ceremony, from top left to bottom right: Dr Daniel Merrifield and Dr Holger Kühlwein congratulate the two recipients of the MSc scholarships, Jack Sears-Stewart and Luciano Brincat.
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n increasing prioritisation of a sustainable production of food and protein for the rising global population is apparent across all agricultural sectors and manifested in the Sustainable Development Goals adopted by all United Nations Member States in 2015. The aquaculture sector is no exception to that. The MSc Sustainable Aquaculture course at the University of Plymouth, UK contributes greatly to train the next generation of young aquaculture scientists in this context and covers topics such as the sustainable use of resources for aquaculture production, aquatic animal health, reduction of environmental impacts and socio-economic factors. A further significant pillar of the course is the industry guest lectures delivered by representatives from leading companies and organisations along the value chain. These lectures aim at giving insights from a commercial perspective and counteract potential misconceptions and unawareness of the students regarding industrial operations and procedures, respectively.
covered included nutrient-rich autolysed yeast, prebiotic yeast cell walls/MOS (mannan oligosaccharides) and purified ß-glucans as boosters of immune-competence. The presentation was concluded by reporting on initial trial results of the recently launched new product range of yeast extracts, which aims at alleviating the potential negative side-effects of challenging diets.
Industry Scholarship Programme
The sustainable upcycling of by-products of the beer brewing industry and the application of the refined end products in various aquaculture scenarios were the core topics of the recent lecture given by Dr Holger Kühlwein, Global Key Account Manager Aquaculture at Leiber GmbH.
As a continuation of its investment in sustainable aquaculture R&D and education, Leiber GmbH is also proudly providing funding again for two of the students as part of the Aquaculture Sustainability Industry Scholarship Programme. Both will be able to deepen their knowledge and laboratory skills by participating in feeding trials and subsequent analytical work with selected brewer’s yeast products. “The society’s rising awareness with regards to food production and its impact on environmental sustainability and animal welfare is driving sustainability initiates along the value chain on a large scale” said Kühlwein. “By refining by-products of the brewing industry Leiber GmbH’s has been exemplifying sustainability and upcycling since 1954. It is only a logical conclusion that we further support R&D and training programmes directed towards aquaculture sustainability. This programme at University of Plymouth combines all these aspects in a holistic manner.”
His lecture included aspects such as different yeast cell fractions/products, raw material sourcing, quality assurance and applications in aquafeeds and aquatic animal health and how these products can contribute to an overall more sustainable aquaculture. The product types
Dr Daniel Merrifield, University of Plymouth, added, “Our industry guest lecture series and associated Aquaculture Scholarship Programme provide an excellent opportunity for our students to engage with world-leading players from the industry.” www.leibergmbh.de
May/June 2021 AQUA Culture Asia Pacific
