Aqua Culture Asia Pacific November/December 2024 by Aqua Culture Asia Pacific

Translucent Post Larvae Disease

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Pangasius in India: Mismatch

Pangasius harvest in Andhra Pradesh, p40.

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Volume 20, Number 6

From the editor

2 An Ardous 2024

Industry News

4 larvi 2024: the fish and shellfish hatchery conference returns after 7 years

Shrimp Aquaculture

8 Replacing Artemia nauplii in shrimp hatcheries

A micro-encapsulated diet ensures biosecurity and economics in hatchery operations

By Mark Rowel Napulan, Peter Van Wyk and Ramir Lee

11 Translucent post larvae disease

Andrew Shinn and colleagues caution that molecular testing is essential for accurate identification of the specific cause

13 Future proofing shrimp farming at GSF 2024

16 Assessing the environment footprint of commercial shrimp operations

A conversation with Benedict Standen and Thiago Soligo on environmental footprinting made easy

Feed Technology

20 Feeding the future: The critical role of early stage nutrition in aquaculture

Marc Campet says the nursery stages require micro feeds with precise and functional nutrition to support a strong start for fish and shrimp growth

22 Optimising aquafeed formulations

The potential of using enzymes technology to improve sustainability in Asian aquaculture. By Vivi Koletsi

25 Research on enhancing quality and reducing melanin spots

There is whole fillet downgrading, says Marianne Nergard

Finfish Aquaculture

28 How can Asia’s core fish farming industry enter the mainstream investors portfolio

A discussion at TARS 2024

Disease Management

32 Phytobiotic -based functional additives to reduce the impact of EHP-WFS in shrimp

Shrimp farming in Asia is confronted with significant challenges due to disease outbreaks, particular white faeces syndrome. By I-Tung Chen, Khin Thiri Khit, Phuc Hoang, Maria Mercè Isern-Subich, Loc Tran and Waldo G. Nuez-Ortín

35 Disease mitigation in marine fish and tilapia

At TARS 2024,the boundaries of current knowledge were pushed in managing outbreaks in marine fish and tilapia. By Zuridah Merican

38 Too late to prevent a shrimp disease outbreak

A caution on Point of Care testing after clinical signs of disease in shrimp. By Jade Nauman

Industry Review: Freshwater Fish

40 Pangasius catfish farming in India: Development and challenges

Laxmappa Boini and Ravinder Rao Bakshi say frequent lows in farmgate prices are pushed by seasonality and demand mismatch

45 Carp culture in Nepal receives a post-COVID boost

Local feed company spearheads innovation across the supply chain. By Moushumi Shrestha, Pradip Paudel, Anton Immink, Bishal Gautam and Miroslav Kostecki

48 The case for marine tilapia aquaculture in Singapore Shubha Vij, Joe Ng and Rajesh Joshi present this option

Show Review

50 Aqua 2024 – A joint EAS and WAS conference and trade show

53 IAFET 2024- Empowering the regional aqua business

55 At larvi 2024, solutions for early stage farming

Aqua Culture Asia Pacific is a print and digital magazine. View E-magazine & Download

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59 Company and Event News

Zuridah Merican

Global prices for shrimp are currently at their lowest since the last decade and without doubt from an oversupply. Farmers are struggling and the most frequently asked question in 2024 was, “when will the low prices end!” During a panel at the Global Shrimp Forum (GSF) 2024, Balasubramaniam V said that in India, few are giving up, but more are working on efficiencies to be ready when prices are better. Unlike previous years, there is less room for error for Indonesian farmers practicing intensive culture. For them, meeting P&L targets is key as they struggle with poor support from banks. In June 2024, Kontali estimated the year’s growth at 5% for India and 6% for Vietnam; all of which are relative to the slowdown in 2023.

Contrary to 2023, shrimp demand has stagnated. Today, there is a costof-living crisis in the EU and the US affecting the shrimp market. Shrimp remains a luxury item in the eyes of middle to low-income consumers. China was the great hope for many shrimp producing countries until We strive to be the beacon for the regional aquaculture industry. We will be the window to the world for Asia-Pacific aquaculture producers and a door to the market for international suppliers. We strive to be the forum for the development of self-regulation in the Industry.

OUR MISSION

An arduous 2024

recently, as consumers feel the pain of the decline in real estate valuations and face depressed consumer confidence. Ecuadorian shrimp exporters have been shifting their focus from China to the EU and elsewhere. Farmers in the Asian region also feel the pain of global trade, when Ecuadorian shrimp, destined for the Chinese markets, are diverted and flood markets in Southeast Asia.

In fish aquaculture, the task set at TARS 2024 included targeting potential marine fish species for mass market adoption, to be the ‘tropical salmon’. The choice of fish does not depend on the fastest growth or sustainable farming technology but the fish popular with consumers at any point in time. Industry leaders discussed marketing, branding and sustainability (MBS) as ways to gain market access.

The continuous decline in US consumption of frozen tilapia fillets, down to 48,000 tonnes until June 2024, was reported. The US tariffs of 25% on Chinese tilapia imports have significantly impacted the margins of exporters. The year saw China losing the frozen tilapia market whilst emerging producers in Latin America gain with fresh chilled tilapia, now a growing segment in the US.

In the US white fish market, Vietnamese pangasius fillet has gained significant market share in lieu of tilapia. This shift can be attributed to several factors, including competitive pricing, improved quality, and increased demand for sustainable seafood. There is also a high demand for pangasius in China, albeit at lower prices than locally produced freshwater carp.

In terms of aquafeed, all commodity prices have dropped. Being optimistic, can we expect a reduction in feed costs giving farmers some room to breathe. As of October 2024, the price of fish meal was USD1,638/

tonne. The average price of fishmeal in 2023 was around USD1,738/tonne (Source: ycharts.com). With this decline in prices and with fishmeal as the gold standard, will aquafeed millers increase fishmeal in their formulations? This year saw some traction on the push for sustainable feeds, led by certification bodies and EU’s deforestation law. Fortunately, ASC has moved the compliance date to October 2026 from the original in January 2025. The EU’s deforestation regulation, applicable for imports into EU was also pushed back to January 2026 for large operators and June 2026 for micro- and small enterprises.

Disease is the major cause of poor productivity (yield/ha) and mitigating outbreaks amidst low prices has not been easy for farmers. Poor prices lead to cost cutting and less investment in functional health additives to pre-empt outbreaks. Facing poor survival rates, a Malaysian farmer reflected that profitable shrimp farming is now just an illusion. In general, to overcome the double jeopardy (low prices and low survival), steps include reduction in stocking densities to as low as 60PL/m2 in Malaysia and in India to 20-25PL/m2

Sustainability is not just for differentiation but a necessity for the continuation of aquaculture in Asia. The push to nurture the next generation of farmers was successful in 2024, all because we have visionaries willing to step-up to the plate, such as Rizky Darmawan (Indonesia), Chodpipat Limlertvatee (Thailand) and Bettina Valerie Lim (Philippines). Fortunately, they still find aquaculture sexy despite an arduous 2024.

If you have any comments, please email: zuridah@aquaasiapac.com

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larvi 2024: The fish and shellfish larviculture conference returns after 7 years

This specialised conference and trade show for early stages in fish and shellfish aquaculture - Fish and Shellfish Larviculture Symposium returned to Belgium after a long 7-year break. The first symposium was held in 1991 and continued every 4 years until 2017. COVID disrupted this 4-year trend. It was with much relief to academics, industry and students involved in the fish and shellfish hatchery and nursery segments to finally have a platform to share knowledge, innovations and network at the 8th meeting in Ostend, Belgium.

Throughout the 3-day conference and trade show, over September 9-12, several of the 350 participants from 50 countries, remarked on how they have missed this conference focusing uniquely on larviculture. The organising group from the Laboratory of Aquaculture and Artemia Reference Center, Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU) and SINTEF, Norway promised to resume with the next symposium to follow the 4-year Olympic style interval in 2028.

Conference Chair Professor Dr Annelies Declercq from the Laboratory of Aquaculture and Artemia Reference Centre, Ghent University said that feedback from attendees was overwhelmingly positive, with many expressing their excitement about being back at larvi. “Seven years was truly too long but the wait was worth it” was a common sentiment. Attendees emphasised that this is a conference like no other—very thematic, no parallel sessions, allowing everyone to attend all the presentations and ensuring that no valuable insight was missed. We are very grateful to our scientific committee for helping to draft the scientific program.”

This conference had 47 selected speakers. The diversity of topics ranged from larval nutrition, innovative approaches to disease management, broodstock maturation, deformities, and larval development, to commercial upscaling. “These highlighted the remarkable expertise within our community. Those not presenting orally had the chance of poster presentations and selection for a panel discussion on their work. We bridged theory and practice,

The opening of larvi 2024 had musical intermezzos by the Koninklijk Jeugdmuziekkorps Onze-LieveVrouwecollege Oostende (OLVOBand).

offering valuable insights for both academia and industry,” said Declercq. She complimented the presenters on the level of detail, the strong methodology, and the clear focus on addressing real-world challenges which truly set the tone on the quality of the presentations.

The conference started with two keynote presentations. Kari Attramadal, Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU) presented on “More arguments for microbial management in aquaculture hatcheries” and Patrick Waty, CEO INVE Aquaculture, Gold Sponsor, discussed the status of marine fish and shellfish hatcheries around the world (https://bit.ly/3C2rT6a).

Microbial control in aquaculture systems requires understanding the processes governing the composition of the microbiota associated with different compartments - fish larvae, rearing water, and live food. Attramadal said that water and fish microbiota are not the same and water microbiota is not the same as biofilm microbiota. Her

runner up for his poster on “Mature Biofilters Safeguards Recirculating Aquaculture Systems (RAS) from Opportunistic Bacterial Invasions”.

From the left, Members of the International Artemia Aquaculture Consortium, Liying Sui, Tianjin University of Science and Technology, China and Yeong Yik Sung, Universiti Malaysia Terengganu; the team from the Singapore Food Agency, Rui Alexandre Gonçalves, Xu Qun Ying and Quek Wei Li; and Fernando, Norwegian University of Science and Technology. Fernando was

were always within reach. The interaction between industry and academia was a highlight, with both

Patrick Sorgeloos and Annelies

Declercq with the poster on UGent Mama Magda Aquaculture Fund. (see box).

recommendations to increase microbial control in culture of marine larvae included biosecurity of intake water, its microbial maturation and closure of the gap between the load of organic matter and the number of competing bacteria. The rearing water affects larval microbiota more heavily than diet. The idea is not to kill all bacteria but to ensure that fish is exposed to good bacteria.

for improvement, particularly when it comes to making the industry more predictable (i.e. how many successful hatchery runs in a year), low standard deviations and high hatchery survivals!

Patrick Sorgeloos recalls the critical role of larval nutrition for global aquaculture

It was also an opportunity for the global larviculture community to recognise Professor Patrick Sorgeloos, the man behind the global hatchery industry and who continues to have a genuine interest in nurturing academia and industry alike. At the closing of the conference, he was named as larvi ambassador and founder.

Declercq said, “Today’s industry challenges present a wealth of opportunities—disease prevention and management, food security, and improving livelihoods of local communities. After speaking with a range of fish and shrimp producers, consultants, and suppliers, the feedback was clear: larvi inspired new ideas. The solutions presented were both practical and scientifically grounded, offering direct applications for the industry. In conclusion, it’s all about applied, upscaled solutions, and incorporating AI into the next wave of industry advancements.”

When I compare the hatchery practices of today with 20 and 30 years ago I can say that there is much room for improvements. Of course, the hatcheries are much bigger than ever before, but they are no longer operated by the highly skilled technicians that operate the hatcheries, especially for shrimp. Obviously, for cost savings less skilled technicians have taken over and much of the knowledge and practices of the past are not considered anymore. Many Vibrio infections in the shrimp hatcheries can be traced back to poor Artemia management (and algae as well), as basic principles of how to produce Vibrio free Artemia instar I are not known/considered anymore.

Patrick Sorgeloos: I started this conference series back in 1991, during my tenure at the Artemia Reference Centre, Ghent University , Belgium. Back then, aquaculture was just growing, but its future growth required predictability and cost-effective availability of larvae, fry and fingerlings production. Year by year, there are major breakthroughs in the hatchery and nursery segments but improvements must be continuous.

Back then, why the need for such a specialised conference series?

Patrick Sorgeloos recalls the critical role of larval nutrition for global aquaculture

Do you see any changes in larviculture over the years?

PS: The unique nature of the larvi conferences is that we focus on one specific theme, larviculture of fish and shellfish species, not only a multibillion aquaculture industry but still the key to successful aquaculture outputs. We need to admit that there is still much room for improvement, particularly when it comes to making the industry more predictable ( i.e. how many successful hatchery runs in a year), low standard deviations and high hatchery survivals!

PS: Furthermore, it appears from the Artemia session organised just prior to the larvi conference that in shrimp hatcheries and perhaps in marine fish hatcheries as well, we might have reduced the Artemia feeding levels below a critical quantity and especially quality-wise. We know that older Artemia nauplii with lower nutritional value and likely contaminated with Vibrio , while not affecting larval survival and growth, are compromising the immune competence of the post larvae prior to their transfer to the stressful grow out conditions. This might explain the many Vibrio -related disease outbreaks in recent shrimp farming.

We finally see also an increased interest in marine fish larviculture with several new species considered for farming in different parts of the world. We all admit that this is a sector with considerable potential in the future.

Reflections on larvi 2024 with previous editions?

When I compare the hatchery practices of today with 20 and 30 years ago I can say that there is much room for improvements Of course, the hatcheries are much bigger than ever before, but they are no longer operated by the highly skilled technicians that operate the hatcheries, especially for shrimp. Obviously, for cost savings less skilled technicians have taken over and much of the knowledge and practices of the past are not considered anymore. Many Vibrio infections in the shrimp hatcheries can be traced back to poor Artemia management (and algae as well), as basic principles of how to produce Vibrio free Artemia instar I are not known/considered anymore.

Back then, why the need for such a specialised conference series?

Do you see any changes in larviculture over the years?

PS: These larvi conferences go back to September 1991 when we had few participants from the private sector and mainly from the Mediterranean marine fish hatcheries. The academic representatives were mostly from Europe. Many were also from our cooperation projects (often with INVE) in Latin America, Southeast Asia with shrimp and marine fish, in particular Asian seabass.

Patrick Sorgeloos and Annelies Declercq with the poster on UGent Mama Magda Aquaculture Fund. (see box).

Over the 8 past conferences, we have seen an increase in participants from the private sector reaching about 50% at the 2017 conference. This is the first time we reached over 350 participants with large groups from outside Europe, showing the worldwide interest in such a specialised conference.

Moving forward with extractive aquaculture

There were a few presentations on molluscs and seaweed larviculture, although this sector of extractive aquaculture deserves more international attention if we want to make aquaculture more sustainable through more integration with ‘fed’ aquaculture.

Takeaways from industry and academia

PS: Furthermore, it appears from the Artemia session organised just prior to the larvi conference that in shrimp hatcheries and perhaps in marine fish hatcheries as well, we might have reduced the Artemia feeding levels below a critical quantity and especially quality-wise. We know that older Artemia nauplii with lower nutritional value and likely contaminated with Vibrio, while not affecting larval survival and growth, are compromising the immune competence of the post larvae prior to their transfer to the stressful grow out conditions. This might explain the many Vibrio-related disease outbreaks in recent shrimp farming.

Reflections on larvi 2024 with previous editions?

A summary of some takeaways came from the closing words by representatives from the private and academic sectors. Eamonn O’Brien, Skretting, commented, “Life start sets life performance” is a phrase that resonates strongly, as the focus on early life stages across various aquaculture species is critical for the industry’s success. Innovation, collaboration, and clever minds will continue to drive us forward.”

International Artemia Aquaculture Consortium

PS: These larvi conferences go back to September 1991 when we had few participants from the private sector and mainly from the Mediterranean marine fish hatcheries. The academic representatives were mostly from Europe but were not limited to Europe. Many were also from our cooperation projects (often with INVE) in Latin America, Southeast Asia with shrimp and marine fish, in particular Asian seabass.

For Professor Atsushi Hagiwara, Nagasaki University, it was clear - “No Larvae, No Aquaculture”. Larviculture forms the foundation of successful aquaculture. However, a key question remains: What is egg quality? Since egg quality directly influences larval survival, improving it is essential for the sustainability of the industry. Therefore, finding the right parameters to determine egg quality remains a key challenge, as was often identified at previous larvi conferences. Despite advances in molecular biology and genome breeding, we have yet to focus fully on enhancing larval survival rates. This is an area ripe for future exploration.”

Moving forward with extractive aquaculture

At the pre-conference Artemia session, members of the newly FAO-recognised International Artemia Aquaculture Consortium presented overviews on the worldwide situation regarding Artemia production and use in aquaculture. A highlight was the finding that feeding more Artemia in shrimp hatcheries might not affect survival and growth but have a significant impact on improved immune competence of the postlarvae, thus improving their survival once transferred to stressful grow-out conditions.

Next larvi event

Box at bottom

UGent Mama Magda Aquaculture Fund

“The quality of presentations has been outstanding at previous meetings. This year, seeing it from a different perspective, this time as conference chairperson, in fact, they exceeded my expectations. We consistently bring in top experts in the field alongside passionate students, and the depth of knowledge and innovation presented was truly impressive. From cutting-edge research to practical, industry-relevant applications, larvi 2024 bridged theory and practice, offering valuable insights for both academia and industry,” said Declercq.

Many followers of larvi conferences will remember Magda Vanhooren, who was very much involved in the practical organisation of the larvi conferences and supported international students at the Laboratory of Aquaculture & Artemia Reference Centre Ghent University established this fund in her memory. The fund finances a 6-month research stay for PhD double degree candidates between UGent and their university in the South

For the next edition, organisers aim to build on the success and feedback from this year’s event. One of the key goals will be to provide even more opportunities for in-depth discussions and exchanges between attendees, to allow for longer conversations, which were something attendees particularly appreciated. “The current setup, kept our sponsors at the front and centre, ensuring that practical, immediately applicable solutions for aquaculture were always within reach. The interaction between industry and academia was a highlight, with both sides benefiting from each other’s expertise,” said Declercq.

UGent Mama Magda Aquaculture Fund

Many followers of larvi conferences will remember Magda Vanhooren, who was very much involved in the practical organisation of the larvi conferences and supported international students at the Laboratory of Aquaculture & Artemia Reference Centre. Ghent University established this fund in her memory. The fund finances a 6-month research stay for PhD double degree candidates between UGent and their university in the South.

BRINE: The writer, the professor, and the shrimp that changed the world by Dieter Honoré, is the story of the extraordinary life of Patrick Sorgeloos, as he journeys around the world connecting with young scientists, nurturing them on artemia biology and hatchery technology. Sorgeloos had developed a fascination for Artemia and committed full time to this tiny crustacean which would play an important role in solving global food shortages through aquaculture. Honoré weaved an excellent biography of Sorgeloos’ life - crafting a tale based on intuition and imagination and not so much on hard facts and science. This book offers excellent information on Patrick – from the time he was born, his childhood interest on nature, his family life, his beloved wife - Magda, and on his life-long passion on Artemia research.

From left, Qi Zi Zhong, Ocean University of China; Vu Ngoc Ut, Cantho University, Vietnam; Rudy Bijnens, I&V Bio Thailand and La Nguyen The Hien, Laboratory of Aquaculture and Artemia Reference Centre, Ghent University Belgium.

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Replacing Artemia nauplii in shrimp hatcheries

The focus is on the advantages of a micro-encapsulated diet - from ensuring biosecurity during hatchery operations to its economics

By Mark Rowel Napulan, Peter Van Wyk and Ramir Lee

Artemia nauplii have been a critical live diet for penaeid shrimp larvae in commercial marine shrimp hatcheries since the 1960s (Cook and Murphy, 1966). They are rich in essential fatty acids, proteins, and other nutrients required by shrimp larvae for optimal growth and development. Artemia nauplii have several attributes that have contributed to their widespread use in commercial shrimp hatcheries. The size of Artemia nauplii is highly suitable for shrimp larvae. The cysts can be easily stored with a long shelf-life and can be hatched on demand. Despite all these advantages, Artemia nauplii do not epitomise as a perfect feed.

Issues with Artemia nauplii

The nutritional value of Artemia nauplii can be highly variable. It is at its maximum immediately after hatching. The nutritional value of the Instar 1 nauplii declines continuously with time after hatch as the nauplii deplete the nutrients stored in the yolk sac. The nutritional value of Artemia nauplii varies considerably between different geographic strains and from one year to the next.

A common practice in commercial shrimp hatcheries is to parboil and then freeze Artemia nauplii prior to feeding. Feeding frozen nauplii makes it easier for shrimp larvae to capture them, reducing the risk of overfeeding and preventing tanks from becoming over-populated with adult Artemia. However, the process of parboiling and freezing nauplii leads to the degradation of some proteins and further loss of nutritional value.

The biggest weakness associated with the use of Artemia nauplii in hatcheries is that they present a major biosecurity risk. Hatched nauplii are an important vector for the introduction of Vibrio into larval rearing tanks (Lavilla-Pitogo et al., 1990; Lopez-Torres et al., 2001). Glycerol released by the cysts during the hatching process provides an ideal culture medium for Vibrio (Van Stappen et al., 2024). As a result, Vibrio loads in both the hatching water and in the nauplii themselves can be extraordinarily high (Table 1). Decapsulation of the cysts prior to hatching reduces Vibrio loads, but only slightly. Disinfection of hatched nauplii prior to feeding reduces Vibrio counts but is not 100% effective.

counts

Capsulated cysts De-capsulated cysts Water (x 106 CFU/mL) Artemia (x 109 CFU/mL) Water (x 106 CFU/mL) Artemia (x 109 CFU/mL) 6.20 ± 0.45 1.20 ± 0.90 2.00 ± 1.50 0.45 ± 0.24

Table 1. Vibrio counts isolated from Artemia hatching water and Artemia nauplii from hatching tanks stocked with nondecapsulated and de-capsulated cysts (Interaminense et al., 2014).

Vibrio

A marine shrimp hatchery in the Philippines.

In studies conducted at the University of the Philippines Visayas, it was demonstrated that Rescue administered in the feed eIectively colonised the gut and provided signiﬁcant improvement in challenge trials with Vibrio parahaemolyticus and Vibrio harveyii (Figure 1).

Figure 1. Results of challenge trials where the survival of juvenile shrimp fed with feed top coated with Rescue is compared with survival of shrimp fed with feed without Rescue. The graph on the left shows results when challenged with Vibrio harveyii, while the graph on the right shows results when challenged with Vibrio parahaemolyticus

Commercial trials

Replacing Artemia with a liquid microencapsulated diet

PL8 improved survival by 33% compared to a control group. In both trials, the final weights of the post larvae harvested were the same for both treatment groups.

Economics of Artemia replacement

Trials conducted at Zeigler’s Aquaculture Research Center (Z-ARC) showed that EZ Artemia Ultra can replace 100% of the nauplii in the larval rearing protocol. Nevertheless, most hatcheries prefer to use the liquid microencapsulated diet to replace 30-50% of the nauplii in the diet. When the diet is used to partially replace Artemia nauplii, many hatcheries reported higher survival rates as compared to when no nauplii were replaced.

In 1997, Zeigler developed a biosecure liquid microencapsulated diet called EZ Artemia to replace live Artemia nauplii. This diet was formulated with marine protein and lipid sources to exceed the nutritional value of enriched Artemia nauplii. The marine protein sources are PCR-tested to guarantee the final product is free from Vibrio and all World Organisation for Animal Health (WOAH)-listed shrimp pathogens. In addition, this diet contains Vpak , a blend of ingredients promoting improved larval immune function.

Replacing Artemia nauplii in the feeding protocol can potentially reduce production costs. When costs are compared based on equivalent usage rates, the liquid microencapsulated diet is likely to be cheaper than using Artemia nauplii, whether hatched from cysts or purchased pre-hatched as an Artemia nauplii paste (Table 2). Additional costs associated with hatching Artemia cysts should be considered.

In recent trials at an Indonesian hatchery (Figure 2), replacement of 100% of the Artemia nauplii in the diet between zoea 3 (Z3) and post larva 1 (PL1) resulted in survival increasing by 32% . In the second trial at the same hatchery, replacement of 33% of the nauplii fed from PL1 to PL8 improved survival by 33% compared to a control group. In both trials, the ﬁnal weights of the post larvae harvested were the same for both treatment groups.

In 2021, EZ Artemia Ultra was launched after nearly 25 years of continuous R&D. Compared to the original EZ Artemia, this product has a higher nutrient density and improved ingredient digestibility. The microcapsules are almost neutrally buoyant and will remain suspended in the water column nearly indefinitely with minimal aeration. The microcapsules contain 1.0 x 107 CFU/g of Rescue, a proprietary blend of four species of Bacillus bacteria selected for their ability to control the most pathogenic species of Vibrio. The liquid fraction of EZ Artemia Ultra contains 1.0 x 107 CFU/g of Remediate, a blend of Bacillus species selected for their ability to digest organic matter and control ammonia.

In studies conducted at the University of the Philippines Visayas, it was demonstrated that Rescue administered in the feed effectively colonised the gut and provided significant improvement in challenge trials with Vibrio parahaemolyticus and Vibrio harveyii (Figure 1).

Commercial trials

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100% Replacement of Artemia Nauplii z3 - PL1

33% Replacement of Artemia Nauplii PL1 - Pl8

Figure 2. Comparison of survival rates in tanks fed with EZ Artemia Ultra replacing a percentage of the Artemia nauplii in the feed protocol. The graph on the left shows the results of a trial in which 100% of the Artemia nauplii were replaced with EZ Artemia Ultra from Z3 – PL1, while the graph on the right shows the results of a trial in which 33% of the Artemia nauplii were replaced with EZ Artemia Ultra from PL1 – PL8.

However, when comparing the economics associated with the use of Artemia nauplii with the use of EZ Artemia Ultra, one must also consider how differences in survival affect hatchery profitability. If improvements in biosecurity and reduced viral loading result in higher survival rates, revenues from the sale of post larvae will increase. The impact of higher survival on revenues will often have a much larger impact on hatchery profitability than the impact of the price differences for different feeding protocols.

References

Cook, H. L. and Murphy, M. A. 1966. Rearing penaeid shrimp from eggs to postlarvae. Proceedings 19th Annual Conference Southeastern Association Game and Fish Commissioners 19: 283–288.

Interaminense, J.A., Ferreira Calazans, N., do Valle, B.C., Lyra Vogeley, J., Peixoto, S., Soares, R. and Lima Filho, J.V. 2014, Vibrio spp. Control at Brine Shrimp, Artemia, Hatching and Enrichment. J World Aquacult Soc, 45: 65-74. https://doi.org/10.1111/ jwas.12096

*Note: The price of Artemia cysts can vary widely based on quality, origin, and annual supply.

Table 2. Cost per kg of EZ Artemia Ultra, Artemia cysts, and Artemia nauplii paste expressed as cost per 100 million Artemia nauplii equivalent amount.

Artemia nauplii have been demonstrated to be a major vector for the introduction of pathogenic Vibrio into larval rearing tanks which causes severe diseases such as acute hepatopancreatic necrosis disease (AHPND) and transparent post larva disease (TPD). These diseases can lead to high mortality rates in hatcheries, significantly impacting hatchery productivity and profitability. When Vibrio infected shrimp are introduced to farms the bacteria can result in outbreaks and major losses for the farms. EZ Artemia Ultra is a biosecure larval diet that can help reduce bacterial loads in larval shrimp tanks and support higher survival rates. This diet is an economical and convenient biosecure alternative to Artemia nauplii.

Lavilla-Pitogo, C. R., Baticados, M. C. L., Cruz-Lacierda, E. R. and De la Peña, L.D. 1990. “Occurrence of Vibrio species, including Vibrio harveyi, in Penaeus monodon hatcheries in the Philippines.” Aquaculture, 91(1), 1-13.

Lopez-Torres, M. A. and. Lizarraga-Partida, M. L. (2001). Bacteria isolated on TCBS media associated with hatched Artemia cysts of commercial brands. Aquaculture 194:11–20.

Lavilla-Pitogo, C. R., Baticados, M. C. L., Cruz-Lacierda, E. R. and De la Peña, L.D 1990. "Occurrence of Vibrio species, including Vibrio harveyi, in Penaeus monodon hatcheries in the Philippines." Aquaculture, 91(1), 1-13.

Lopez-Torres, M. A. and. Lizarraga-Partida M. L (2001). Bacteria isolated on TCBS media associated with hatched Artemia cysts of commercial brands. Aquaculture 194:11–20.

Peter Van Wyk is Global Technical Sales

Van Stappen, G., Sorgeloos, P. and Rombaut G. (eds.) (2024) Manual on Artemia production and use FAO Fisheries and Aquaculture Technical Papers, No. 702. Rome, FAO. https://doi.org/10.4060/cd0313en

Van Stappen, G., Sorgeloos, P. and Rombaut, G. (eds.) (2024). Manual on Artemia production and use. FAO Fisheries and Aquaculture Technical Papers, No. 702. Rome, FAO. https://doi. org/10.4060/cd0313en

Authors details:

is Asia Sales Manager based in the

Email: mark.napulan@zeiglerfeed.com

Mark Rowel Napulan is Asia Sales Manager based in the Philippines. Email:mark.napulan@zeiglerfeed.com

Peter Van Wyk is Global Technical Sales Manager based in Florida.

Ramir Lee is Regional Technical Manager based in Vietnam. All authors are with Zeigler Bros. Inc.

Ramir Lee is Regional Technical Manager based All authors are with Zeigler Bros. Inc.

Note: This article was adapted from Recent advances on Artemia replacement in shrimp hatcheries. Hatchery Feed & Management, Volume 12 Issue 1 2024

Peter Van Wyk is Global Technical Sales Manager based in Florida. Ramir Lee is

Artemia Nauplii

EZ Artemia Ultra

Translucent Post Larvae Disease – a deadly Vibrio infection affecting farmed shrimp

Molecular testing is essential for accurate identification of the specific cause combined with stringent biosecurity measures

By Andrew Shinn, Ratchakorn Wongwaradechkul, Jorge Piazza, Bruno Decock, Thomas Raynaud, Alfredo Medina and Emmy Léger

Understanding Vibrio infections in shrimp production

Infections associated with Vibrio species pose significant challenges in commercial shrimp operations. If unmanaged, these bacteria can establish populations in water, sediment, or biofilms within farm systems, leading to infections and high mortality rates.

In shrimp hatcheries, Vibrio species can infiltrate or proliferate through multiple routes. These include introduction via broodstock, infected shrimp nauplii, contamination through water sources, and transmission from microalgae, live feeds, or water and air pipelines. Moreover, they can be transported on personnel equipment, on skin, or dispersed through aerosols (Shinn et al., subm.).

What is Translucent Post Larvae Disease?

Translucent Post Larvae Disease (TPD), also known as Highly Lethal Vibrio Disease (HLVD), is a severe condition that has impacted shrimp post larvae production in China and Vietnam since 2020.

The disease is primarily caused by a strain of Vibrio parahaemolyticus, though a Baishivirus has also been implicated in some cases. The V. parahaemolyticus strain associated with TPD produces a toxin that disrupts the hepatopancreas, affecting nutrition and leading to rapid mortality, especially in smaller shrimp.

Visually, affected post larvae (PL), particularly at stages 2-4, exhibit distinct symptoms such as an empty gut and a colourless, translucent hepatopancreas, leading to diminished activity and sluggish movements. Mortality occurs rapidly, typically within a few hours of infection, with rates reaching as high as 80-100% within 24-48 hours, often occurring 3-5 days post-stocking.

Since other pathogens can cause similar visual symptoms in shrimp, accurate diagnosis requires proper testing rather than relying solely on the visible symptoms.

The role of Vibrio parahaemolyticus in TPD

Most cases of TPD are caused by V. parahaemolyticus strains that carry an aerolysin gene, which produces a toxin leading to cellular damage in the hepatopancreas and resulting in death. Another shrimp disease, acute hepatopancreatic necrosis disease (AHPND), is also caused by V. parahaemolyticus, but these strains carry a different toxin gene. Although both toxin genes cause similar damage to the hepatopancreas and lead to comparable outcomes, molecular testing is essential for accurate identification of the specific cause.

How to test for TPD and AHPND

Visual inspections alone are insufficient for diagnosing TPD or AHPND. Accurate diagnosis requires laboratory testing. To do this, collect a targeted sample of PL (i.e., those exhibiting pale and moribund characteristics, approximately 30-50 individuals). Rinse the PL with sterile distilled water and then fix them in 95-99% molecular-grade ethanol.

Laboratory tests can then identify the different toxin producing genes produced by Vibrio species. Simultaneously, request that the samples are tested for the presence of plasmid genes pir AB producing the toxins responsible for AHPND, utilising the AP4 nested PCR method developed by Dangtip et al. (2015) and for TPD using primers for the ldh gene, which produces the thermolabile hemolysin toxin (Vicente et al., 2020; Zou et al., 2020). If both tests are negative, request that samples are tested for the Baishivirus , using primers as specified by Xu et al. (2023).

Parallel assessment of microbiology results is essential. If all three PCR test results are negative, then look to other potential bacterial pathogens that might result in PL that are translucent in appearance.

Why test

Regular testing is crucial for identifying early-stage infections and preventing their establishment and spread. It raises awareness of the local risks of infection. Testing can offer valuable insights into disease dynamics and potential introduction routes. It facilitates timely interventions and enables the revision of biosecurity protocols to reduce the likelihood of future introductions and outbreaks, thereby minimising economic losses.

“Vibrios pose a serious threat to shrimp production, but strict biosecurity measures and regular surveillance can effectively manage these risks.”

TPD infected post larvae at stages 2-4 show empty gut and a colourless, translucent hepatopancreas. Mortality occurs typically within a few hours of infection. Photo credit: Xu Tao

Managing TPD outbreaks

If TPD is detected, take immediate action:

• Isolate infected shrimp and quarantine the affected areas.

• Conduct tests to confirm the disease.

• Assess the risk to other shrimp batches and the overall farm operations.

• Cull infected stock to prevent further spread.

• Strengthen biosecurity measures, including monitoring visitors and disinfecting equipment and water systems.

• Increase surveillance to monitor the situation and prevent future outbreaks.

Other Vibrio infections affecting shrimp

Besides TPD, other Vibrio infections can also cause shrimp to appear translucent. For example, some strains of V. parahaemolyticus carrying a different toxin gene are responsible for AHPND, also known as early mortality syndrome, which can result in sudden and severe mortality. Additionally, other Vibrio species, such as V. alginolyticus and V. harveyi, can cause systemic infections leading to septic hepatopancreatic necrosis (SHPN).

Need for Vibrio vigilance and tight biosecurity

The rapid and severe onset of Vibrio-induced mortalities in penaeid shrimp hatcheries, transitioning from a state of apparent health to moribundity and death within mere hours, underscores the critical need for stringent biosecurity measures and vigilant surveillance protocols.

Recognising the risks associated with Vibrio infections is paramount from a biosecurity standpoint, necessitating proactive measures to prevent and mitigate potential outbreaks. Establishing robust control and management procedures are essential to effectively manage these risks. Surveillance emerges as a crucial practice for early detection and containment of infections, ensuring swift intervention when necessary.

Best practices for biosecurity in shrimp hatcheries:

• Pond preparation: Disinfect ponds, use clean water, and avoid transferring contaminated water.

• Grow-out ponds: Monitor stocking densities and manage wastes effectively to minimise the risk of Vibrio outbreaks.

Remember!

Vibrio bacteria pose a serious threat to shrimp production, but strict biosecurity measures and regular surveillance can effectively manage these risks. Early detection is crucial for minimising the impact of Vibrio-related diseases, improving shrimp survival, and ensuring the sustainability of shrimp farming operations.

References are available on request

Andrew Shinn is Global Technical Expert (Health).

Email: a.shinn@inveaquaculture.com

Ratchakorn Wongwaradechkul is an aquatic veterinarian, Regional Technical Support Asia

1. Disinfect water and equipment using ozone, UV light, or hypochlorite.

2. Conduct comprehensive and regular cleaning of the entire production system, including pipework, air lines, and air delivery systems, to remove biofilms and surfaces where Vibrio can establish.

3. Use separate, biosecure water systems to minimise contamination risks.

4. Add probiotics to the water to enhance shrimp health and reduce harmful bacteria.

5. Isolate broodstock in clean conditions and provide biosecure diets to maintain their health.

Managing Vibrio at every stage of shrimp production

Vibrio infections can occur at any stage of shrimp farming, from broodstock to grow-out ponds. Implementing proper disinfection, maintaining strict hygiene, and adding probiotics to feed and water are essential for reducing infection risks.

• Hatcheries: Ensure biosecure water systems and conduct regular facility cleanings.

• Live feeds: Source live feeds from biosecure providers to prevent introducing Vibrio

Jorge Piazza is Strategic Marketing Manager

Bruno Decock is Business Development Manager

Thomas Raynaud is Product Manager

Alfredo Medina is Global Technical Expert Shrimp Hatchery

Emmy Léger is Customer Success Director. All authors are with INVE Aquaculture

Future-proofing shrimp farming at GSF 2024

Since 2022, the Global Shrimp Forum (GSF) gathers industry leaders and experts, representing the entire shrimp value chain to join together in shaping the future of the global shrimp industry. “The feedback from GSF 2024 delegates was that it was the best one yet, and the board and I feel confident that with the additions we will be making to the event next year, it will continue to go from strength to strength,” said Willem van der Pijl, Board Member and Managing Director of the Global Shrimp Foundation. The third edition was held on September 3-7 in Utrecht, The Netherlands, and the attendance increased to 542, represented by over 320 organisations from 41 countries.

This year, the inspirational item at the opening session was how the shrimp industry can continue to grow. BioMar Group CEO, Carlos Díaz presented his views on how shrimp fits into the Blue Foods agenda. Chairman of Rynan Aquaculture in Vietnam, Dr My Thanh, followed with a video projecting his vision for high-tech shrimp farming and insights on future proofing the industry. The farm design integrates mangroves around shrimp ponds to naturally remove organic waste and excess nitrates, and absorb carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. My said that 1ha of mangrove can sequester 33 tonnes of carbon dioxide (CO2), making them one of the most efficient natural carbon sinks.

Carlos Díaz, BioMar Group CEO and Dr My Thanh, Chairman, Rynan Aquaculture, at the opening session.

The Fisherfarms Inc, Philippines team, Imelda J. Madarang, CEO (middle) and Ronald Rivero, Deputy Director for International Sales (left), with ChingLing Lourdes Tanco, Managing Director, Mida Trade Ventures, Inc.

Shrimp Aquaculture

Changing feed for the future

It all starts with feed, which relies on raw materials. Diaz showed how the company has decreased its original percentage of marine raw materials in salmon feeds. “For a while, we have been increasing the plant-based raw materials. The Forage Fish Dependency Ratio (FFDR) went down but the carbon footprint was up. But we have managed to bring this down by using circular and restorative raw materials (single cells, algae, etc).”

Biomar practiced this in Ecuador, which raised the question of the real life cycle assessment (LCA) of Ecuadorian shrimp. In the literature, on average, for fed aquaculture, the impact is 70:30 (feed:farm) and for shrimp, it is 60:40 (feed: farm). Working with 3 customers in 15 locations, carbon footprint (CO2e per kg) of Ecuadorian shrimp was 5.2 versus 4.8 for Norwegian salmon. In addition, pond management is much more important in shrimp farming than that for the salmon.

salmon cages, in shrimp, the future is hydrophones listening to shrimp feeding and developing behavioural feeding algorithms. However, one solution does not fit all, as conditions in each farm and country may vary. Diaz concluded, “Shrimp has the great potential as salmon or even better to be a sustainable choice for consumers. But the story needs to be told. Together, precision farming, traceability and technology as a tool will be more relevant in the future.”

feeling algorithms. However, one solution does country may vary. Diaz concluded, “Shrimp has be a sustainable choice for consumers. But the farming, traceability and technology as a tool

Marketing - The Happy Protein

Marketing global shrimp - The Happy Protein

The Global Shrimp Council was formed in September 2023 to increase the per capita consumption of sustainable shrimp. This year, founders and co-chairs of the council, David Castro, Director General, Manta Bay, Mexico, and Gabriel Luna, owner of Gluna Shrimp, updated on the progress and introduced the marketing campaign to encourage consumption - Global Shrimp, The Happy Protein.

Biomar practiced this in Ecuador, which raised the question of the real life cycle assessment (LCA) of Ecuadorian shrimp. In fed aquaculture, generally, 70% of the impact comes from feed and 30% from farming. Working with 3 customers in 15 locations, it was shown that 40% came from farming and 60% from feed. However, it was clear that pond management is much more important in shrimp farming compared to salmon in cages.

Diaz described a scenario analysis with three factors; sustainable raw materials, FCR and green power. By optimising feed, the carbon footprint (g CO2 eq/kg LWE shrimp) was down to 4.5 from an average of 5.1. An FCR reduction brought this down to 3.5 and when combined with green power, it was lower at 2.1. A complete picture of the pond’s direct emissions and the influence practices requires information on stocking densities, feeding regimes and management approaches.

Export and import statistics

A cornerstone of the annual program is the latest export and import statistics. This was presented by van der Pijl.

1. Comparing the carbon footprint of Ecuadorian shrimp against Norwegian salmon.

Global Shrimp Council was formed in September consumption of sustainable shrimp. This year, Castro, Director General, Manta Bay, Mexico updated on the latest developments. A signiﬁcant encourage shrimp consumption.

Does sustainability pay off?

Diaz described a scenario analysis with three factors; sustainable raw materials, FCR and green power. By optimising raw materials, the carbon footprint (g CO2 eq./kg LWE shrimp) was down to 4.5 from an average of 5.1. An FCR reduction brought this down to 3.5 and when combined with green power, it was lower at 2.1. A complete picture of the pond’s direct emissions and the inﬂuence practices requires information on stocking densities, feeding regimes and management approaches.

Does sustainability pay o>?

In terms of exports, Ecuador showed a 2% increase in H1 2024, thus continuing with a slower growth trend but the 2024 Q2 exports of 344,000 tonnes was a new all-time record. This slow-down of growth rate is likely a long-term trend and is expected to continue into 2025. Prices did not recover but have slightly stabilised since September 2023. van der Pijl expects an 11% drop with exports to China in 2024 and the US and EU taking up the slack. If the decline continues, China’s market share could drop to 50%. Ecuador’s top 15 exporters had around 75% market share in 2023.

Export and import statistics

“The good news is that the focus on sustainability is not only the right thing to do but has paid off, at least with the salmon,” said Diaz citing the example of Tesco, which discloses the carbon footprint of different foods. Such retailers will help producers tell their stories. Fish and shrimp welfare, fresh quality, farming and processing excellence were mentioned as creating consumer value.

2023 actual 2024 forecast

A cornerstone of the annual program is the latest presented by van der Pijl.

Ecuador 1,214,104 1,285,164 (+10%)

India 712,913 734,333 (+5%)

Vietnam 293,593 307,593 (+5%)

Indonesia 209,066 187,716 (-10%)

“The good news is that the focus on sustainability is not only the right thing to do but has paid o^, at least with the salmon,” said Diaz citing the example of Tesco, which discloses the carbon footprint of di^erent foods. Such retailers will help producers tell their stories. Fish and shrimp welfare, fresh quality, farming and processing excellence were mentioned as creating consumer value.

Diaz said there are some very strong fundamentals for shrimp, which the industry should take advantage of, i.e., short cycle, good carbon footprint, flexible and easy-tocook. Building trust through traceability and transparency is essential. Consumers want to scan a code and know the origin of the shrimp, which fish meal was used, certifications and sustainability parameters such as footprint.

Precision farming, from art to science

Farming conditions are changing and precision farming, from an art to a science, uses emerging technologies and automated systems. While cameras are used in

In terms of exports, Ecuador showed a 2% increase growth trend but the 2024 Q2 exports of 344,000 down of growth rate is likely a long-term trend not recover but have slightly stabilised since with exports to China in 2024 and the US and China's market share could drop to 50%. Ecuador’s share in 2023.

Global supply (from export data and HS codes) from the top 4 countries in tonnes.

Santa Priscilla 216,423

Omarsa 136,771

Songa 119,963

Expalsa 73,892

Ecuador’s Top 4 exporters in 2023 in tonnes.

Diaz said there are some very strong fundamentals for shrimp, which the industry should take advantage of, i.e., short cycle, good carbon footprint, flexible and easy-to - cook. Building trust through traceability and transparency is essential. Consumers want to scan a code and know the origin of the shrimp, which fish meal was used, certifications and sustainability parameters such as footprint.

Figure

Comparing the carbon footprint of Ecuadorian shrimp against Norwegian salmon. Presented by Carlos Diaz, GSF, 2024.

Willem van der Pijl, Board Member and Managing Director of the Global Shrimp Foundation (middle left) with from right, Balasubramaniam V, General Secretary of the Prawn Farmers Federation of India; Barbara Janker, Commercial Director Europe & Asia-Pacific, ASC and Lief Lief Hendrikz, EMEA Market Development Lead, The Global Dialogue on Seafood Traceability.

In 2023, India’s farmed shrimp exports increased by 3%. This year, in H1, exports are 5% ahead YoY. In 2023, India’s exports to the US slightly recovered and other major markets remained stable, while China continues to grow YoY. Vietnam’s nine biggest export markets in 2023 were 23% down YoY but 1H 2024 has shown some stabilisation.

2022 2023

US 779,772 722,743

China 945,791 1,049,631

EU27 328,674 320,650 (Penaeid shrimp only

Japan 213,140 190,189

Global demand from the top 4 countries in tonnes. (Note trade stats are not HOSO equivalent).

In 1H 2024, USA showed a slight 3% decrease in import volumes. Imports have continued to fall since 2022. After a jump during COVID-19, the average import value has fallen since 2022. While the imports of raw frozen shrimp stabilised in 2023, HLSO (Headless Shell On) and value-added shrimp have dropped. Since May 2024, imports of peeled frozen have stabilised further, but imports of shell on and value-added continued to fall. In 1H 2024, India and Ecuador maintained export volumes, but Indonesia saw a further drop.

After stunning growth in H2 2022 and H1 2023, van der Pijl showed four quarters of YoY drops in China’s import volumes. He added that 2024 will probably end with an 11% drop compared to 2023 imports of 1,049,631 tonnes. Despite temporary improvements in 2023 and early 2024, average import values are at an all-time low. Imports from Ecuador were almost 700,000 tonnes in 2023. However, this year, India was 9% ahead and Ecuador was 9% behind. Vietnam’s exports to China have decreased by 22% in 1H 2024.

For the EU market, although the growth rates of 2021 and 2022 for raw Penaeid shrimp not sustained, the volume has stabilised and van der Pijl expected 2024 to end with 330,337 tonnes. Contrary to Latin America, Asian suppliers failed to continue the upward trend in shipments to the EU with Vietnam experiencing a particularly significant drop. While 2022 set recordhigh price levels, the current prices are close to all-time lows.

The H1 2024 Trade Data Update is available at https://www.shrimpinsights. com/report-series/h1-2024-trade-data-update.

Andrew Campbell, CEO, AQ1, Australia (left) with Loc Tran, Founder/Director, ShrimpVet, Vietnam (middle) and Rizky Darmawan, CEO, Delta Marine Indonesia and co-Founder & President of Petambak Muda Indonesia (PMI). The latter two were in the panel on “Asian Farmers’ Perspectives.”

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Assessing the environmental footprint of commercial shrimp operations

A conversation with Benedict Standen and Thiago Soligo on the introduction of Sustell™ for shrimp aquaculture, environmental footprinting made easy

The global aquaculture industry has come under increasing pressure to embrace sustainability, as environmental impact and resource efficiency rise to the top of both regulatory agendas, including consumer preferences and impact criteria for investors. Within aquaculture, shrimp farming has often been scrutinised for its environmental impacts.

In 2021, dsm-firmenich (then DSM) introduced to its customers Sustell™, a SaaS (software as a service) full life cycle assessment (LCA) solution for animal protein. It provides the food value chain with a credible, sciencebased approach to collecting farm data, measuring the environmental footprint, and mapping a course for sustainability of the animal protein industry. There are already modules for feed, salmon and marine fish. In June it launched a shrimp module for Sustell, a first online life cycle assessment (LCA) platform tailored to commercial shrimp farming.

In September, during the Global Shrimp Forum (GSF) 2024, Utrecht, The Netherlands, Zuridah Merican sat down with dsm-firmenich’s Benedict Standen , Head, Aqua Marketing and Thiago Soligo , Sales Manager, LATAM, to learn more on this shrimp module and its benefits for the value chain.

Working along the value chain Benedict responded to why dsm-firmenich started Sustell. “Our customers are increasingly confronted with the need to report environmental footprints, which involve managing a large amount of data. As a company, we want to offer a full solution-based portfolio, combining services and products.

“Sustainability reporting across the supply chain is evolving quickly. Sustell makes it easy and rewarding for every company to be involved,” added Benedict.

The duo agreed that the task for companies can be enormous, especially as Europe introduces Corporate

Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) regulations on reporting. This is a game changer for companies of all sizes because it makes environmental footprinting easy, with no need for in-house LCA expertise. Sustainability is becoming a market differentiator; the ability to offer a transparent, verified environmental footprint is more than just a regulatory necessity—it could be the key to long-term excellence in a rapidly shifting industry.

Unlocking the value of precision sustainability

This new shrimp module offers on-demand environmental footprint metrics for all shrimp production stages, from hatchery, nursery and grow out, in addition to a feed module which is a critical contributor to LCA. It allows producers to input data and recognise the environmental footprint of their operations and look at ways to reduce it, through interventions. Coming soon there will also be a processing module.

“Sustell’s strength lies in its ability to move beyond industry averages and offer a personalised environmental assessment tailored to each farm’s unique operations. It factors in 19 different metrics across four critical areas: land use, human impact, water scarcity, and climate change,” said Benedict. “It prepares customers for potential or existing regulation, differentiating their product with eco-labels, and making the invisible, visible.”

This granular data allow shrimp farmers to understand where inefficiencies lie and to target specific areas for improvement. Performance, health and welfare are the base line to all sustainable operations. Feed inputs, which typically account for up to 80% of a farm’s environmental footprint, are a crucial focus, with the shrimp module tool offering actionable insights into how interventions can significantly reduce a farm’s overall impact by changing the feed formulation.

Leading the charge with Grupo Almar

Grupo Almar, in the top five of Ecuador’s leading shrimp producers, was instrumental in working together with dsm-firmenich as they developed and validated the shrimp-specific module of the Sustell platform. Thiago said, “Grupo Almar has a genuine desire to know its own footprint and sees it as a requirement for best practice. We developed the module for shrimp together with them; it is now available to other customers anywhere in the world where shrimp farms operate.”

According to Wolfgang Harten, General Manager/COO of Grupo Almar, the company knew that it wanted to go beyond measurement by taking ownership of its full environmental footprint and with this new module for shrimp, it could take its sustainability efforts one step further.

According to Benedict, the customisation of Sustell is noteworthy; the platform is independently verified by a third party certified to ISO standards for LCA, ISO14040 and ISO 14044, and the data input from individual farms is customised to reflect the specifics of each farm’s production conditions. This allows for high precision in the footprint analysis, especially crucial given the vast differences in shrimp farming methods across geographies. “Another unique advantage of the platform is that it allows customers to create “what if” scenarios and then interventions to address the different scenarios.”

Thiago added, “An outcome with working with Grupo Almar is also to simplify the platform and customisation for each module. In Grupo Almar’s case, it is from hatchery, nursery, farm and processing. We are now at the stage where Grupo Almar has the numbers and can now work at interventions at selected phases to lower even more their environmental footprint and plan for the future.”

Benedict said, “In integrated operations, it is easy to work across the value chain, from nursery to farming to

“Every

shrimp farm is different - different pond sites, different parameters, so we have to make customisations.

It’s certainly very different from our salmon product.”

- Thiago Soligo

processing. But in the case of only farming enterprises, they need to work with suppliers across entire value chain, so it takes this platform Sustell to bring everybody together.”

Regulatory and market drivers

The value of the module goes beyond environmental metrics. Benedict explained, “By helping producers quantify their sustainability efforts, it also paves the way for access to green investment. In markets like the US and Europe, where consumers and regulators are increasingly paying attention to the origins of their food, shrimp farms utilising Sustell can better position their products through eco-labelling and certifications.”

Thiago continued, “The ability to track and manage environmental performance opens the door to financial benefits. Financial institutions are increasingly factoring sustainability into their lending criteria, and having a verifiable environmental footprint helps companies navigate this evolving landscape.”

Benedict noted, “When you’re looking for an investment, sustainability is now a criterion - whether it is high risk, low risk or medium risk, according to the FAIRR Initiative or other industry benchmarks on animal protein.”

The road ahead for shrimp farming: new tools, new challenges

“The adoption by shrimp producers like Grupo Almar marks an important shift in the industry, signalling a broader movement towards precision-driven, datainformed sustainability at the company level. As more producers embrace such tools, the aquaculture sector is likely to see a transformation in how environmental impact is managed and reduced,” said Benedict. “This is a roadmap for shrimp farming to become more sustainable and ultimately, more profitable in a world that demands greater environmental responsibility.”

“It prepares customers for potential or existing regulations, differentiating their product with ecolabels, and making the invisible, visible.”

- Benedict Standen

dsm-firmenich is a pioneering sponsor of the Global Shrimp Forum. Together with Thiago Soligo and Benedict Standen, was the dsm-firmenich team from Asia, From left, Dr Rutchanee Chotikachinda, Manager, Aqua Technical Expert (Asia Pacific), Evelyn Feliciana, Key account Manager, Indonesia, Liew Chiow Yen, Regional Marketing Aqua and Abung Maruli Simanjuntak, Technical Expert Manager –Aquaculture (left).

Comparing to the work for the salmon module, Thiago commented that for shrimp, it is more complex. “Every shrimp farm is different; different pond sites - even ponds within farms and parameters are different. So, we must make customisations. You can also compare different footprints, using different feeds.” Working closely with the team at Grupo Almar, Thiago emphasised how he was impressed by some of the findings.

Resources for data inputs

However, such thoroughness comes with significant challenges. Not every company is willing or able to invest the time and resources needed to compile the necessary data. This is where the true difficulty lies. But with Sustell customers are not alone and dsm-firmenich has a team of LCA experts to lend support in the journey.

Thiago said, “Once you log into your dashboard, you can complete the data line by line, and customers can try the demo before committing. We help them identify what inputs need to be uploaded. Customers can have access to see how easy it is to use, compared to excel files. With Grupo Almar, we worked with them to identify which data to upload.”

Trust, credibility and anonymity

These are crucial elements. The platform allows companies to maintain proprietary data without disclosing sensitive information; it also preserves the trust between feed manufacturers and producers. However, achieving credible results requires full participation from across the value chain and a standardised methodology.

Customers’ data are closely guarded intellectual property, and by using this platform and its secure data handling criteria, companies can work together to submit data, without risk. Such systems are important to map together the information on environmental footprint. Benedict said, “Feed companies are increasingly willing to collaborate, knowing that being able to demonstrate the sustainability of their feed could offer a competitive edge in an increasingly environmentally conscious market. We are also working with formulation programs suppliers. The best formulations are not just from a nutritional profile standpoint, but also recipe based on footprint.”

Thiago added, “Feed producers use the feed module and develop their environmental footprint metrics and provide to the shrimp producer.”

In fragmented markets like Asia, where producers and suppliers are often disconnected, this adds an extra layer of complexity. Integrating feed supply data from different regions, whether it is soy from Brazil or the US, means understanding and combining different footprints, but Sustell makes the management of these changes easy and traceable.

Valuation of sustainability

“With the shrimp module, we believe that it can be the go-to standard for the industry, but the customers will be the testament! We are excited to get customer traction in Asia Pacific and open a conversation with these important players in the global shrimp market,” said Thiago. “We want the product to be accepted and understood by the customers, and that the customers can recognise its value. This will help the industry improve its sustainability credentials.”

The standout players- “the benchmark of the industry,” as Thiago described—are those with vision. “They have, ambitious forward-thinking teams that are quick to adapt to digital tools and are already fluent in the language of sustainability. They see sustainability not just as a buzzword but as a pathway to long-term viability.”

“The challenges are complex in accounting for all the inputs. But we must adjust for each case, each customer and each site. New customers have a lot of front-end loading of data, so taking the time to ensure the initial data are correct is an important step in the process.”

Towards gaining ground in Asia

Benedict was clear that the uneven pace of adoption is particularly evident in Asia’s aquaculture sector, where many farms are run by individuals rather than companies. “A smallholder farmer may have neither the resources nor the know-how to implement cutting-edge sustainability technologies. Convincing these stakeholders requires working through networks, with a support system in place, possibly through industry initiatives and distributors, to collectively elevate standards.”

This challenge emphasises the need for tailored approaches. While multinational corporations with large teams may have sustainability divisions ready to implement best practices, small-scale operators in fragmented markets often need more support. Innovation, especially in sustainability, is rarely a onesize-fits-all solution.

Optimism for the future

Benedict acknowledged that despite these challenges, the vision remains, and with the help of Sustell, the obstacles to widespread sustainability are not insurmountable. “It is a question of finding the right partners, working in the right way, cultivating early adopters, and slowly building momentum across industries and geographies.”

The future, they seemed to suggest, will not come without challenges—but the seeds of change have already been planted and the future is bright.

From strain to gain

In aquaculture, the right nutrition makes all the difference. Aquafeed can account for up to 70% of total production costs, and 80% of the environmental footprint. Our full range of aquaculture solutions and services improve water quality, maximize productivity, and optimize feed cost, reducing overall financial strain. Ready to feed your way to performance gains and healthy profits?

Feeding the future: The critical role of early-stage nutrition in aquaculture

The nursery stages require micro feeds with precise and functional nutrition to support a strong start for fish and shrimp grow-out

By Marc Campet

Deeply intertwined with the region’s cultural traditions, farmed fish and shrimp play an important role in seafood supply to the Asia-Pacific region, serving as a major source of protein and nutrition. According to FAO (2024), total aquaculture production in the region, grew 193% from 2000 to 2022. In fact, the region accounted for more than 88% of global production in 2022 (FAO, 2024). From 2000 to 2018, the average annual growth rate was 5.1% (De Silva and Yuan, 2022).

Over the last 50 years, the average consumption of fish has nearly doubled across the world, spotlighting farmed fish and shrimp as one of the fastest growing sources of protein globally (New Scientist, 2021). FAO (2024) estimated an apparent seafood consumption at 20.7kg/capita/year for 2022. To meet the growing nutritional needs of the rapidly increasing population in the region and across the world, while also improving profitability, it is crucial to ensure that fish and shrimp receive adequate nutrition to reach their full genetic potential. Precision nutrition is essential in the early critical stages of development for all animals, including fish and shrimp, as the conditions experienced early in life can have impacts on their developmental trajectory, lifetime health and performance such as their physiology, behaviour, resilience and vulnerability to disease.

“..nutrition in their early life cycle is crucial for growth, organ development, resistance to pathogens, and ultimately, fillet yield at harvest.”

Challenges during the early stage

While there is need for precise and balanced nutrition at all stages for fish and shrimp, optimal nutrition in their early life cycle is crucial for growth, organ development, resistance to pathogens, and ultimately, fillet yield at harvest.

In the first days and weeks of life, fish and shrimp are particularly sensitive and vulnerable to fluctuations and stressors related to farm management, including environmental changes caused by transportation, transfer, vaccination, handling, population mixing, and variation in water conditions and temperatures. These commonly occur during the nursery stage where fish and shrimp are still developing their digestive and immune systems, hence resulting in mortality or reduced performance, with ultimate effect on the entire production cycle.

The nursery stage of fish and shrimp is therefore a key phase that aquafarmers need to look out for to achieve greater resistance to diseases among juveniles and increased productivity for farmers. For fish and shrimp in the nursery stage, a balanced and proper diet can help to reduce feed conversion ratios (FCRs), improve the survival of juveniles, support increased growth, as well as counteract stress factors that may come with counting, transportation and transfers into new environments.

Precise nutrition solutions to boost performance outcomes

Starting from early feeding, producers need to ensure that the nutritional needs of aquaculture species are met through specialised and high-quality feed dedicated to supporting healthy growth and performance. Precise feed formulations are particularly effective, by delivering adequate amounts of protein, amino acids, lipids, vitamins, minerals, digestive enzymes, and functional additives to maximise aquaculture success and profit.

A crop success begins at first feeding. With complete feed as their main source of nutrients, it is critical for feed millers to tailor the feed profile to meet the nutritional and physiological requirements of the specific species at every life stage. This involves not only adjusting the amount of feed, but also considering factors such as digestibility, particle size and its behaviour and stability in water. High-quality feed is typically adapted to hyper intensive culture conditions where good water stability for young fish and shrimp is critical. Precise nutritional solutions during the nursery stages can help increase fillet ratio, support size homogeneity and improve profitability for farmers in the region.

A study on the effects of initial feeding on rainbow trout (Alami-Durante et al. 2014) demonstrated that an early decrease in dietary protein to energy (P:E) ratio, achieved by adding lipids to feed, had a long-term effect on the muscle growth of juvenile rainbow trout. Trout that were fed a high-fat diet maintained higher body weights even after three additional months of feeding on a commercial diet during the first 75 days of life (Alami-Durante et al. 2014). The persistent effect of initial feeding with the high-fat diet on the muscle growth of rainbow trout juveniles might also result in improved fillet quality at harvest.

Hatchery specialist examines fish larvae conditions to support healthy growth in the early stages.

Early targeted measures, such as ensuring sufficient nutrition can also help decrease the risk of secondary disorders by improving the resilience and resistance to diseases, hence resulting in improved aquaculture performance.

To help farmers meet their production and profit objectives, ADM has developed a specialised and functional nutrition range to support fish and shrimp during their juvenile life stages. Manufactured using advanced micro-extrusion technology in specialised nursery feed production lines, the NANOLIS range is formulated to deliver a precise blend of functional additives, vitamins and minerals to enhance the feed palatability and digestibility for nursery fish and shrimp. The advanced micro-extrusion technology helps preserve essential nutrients and ensure particle size homogeneity to meet the physiological demands of young fish and shrimp.

In 2022, a dedicated tilapia trial was conducted at the ADM Aquaculture Research and Development Centre in

Nhà Bè, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, under the guidance of Dr Pham Minh Anh, Regional R&D Director. During the trial, fry tilapia fed with NANOLIS saw increased growth, higher feed intake, and improved feed efficacy compared to competitor mash and micro extruded pellet formulations. For the trial, 2,400 tilapia fry (a day post yolk sac absorption) were divided into three experimental groups with 800 fish in each group and given different feed mixtures four times a day. The three test groups were fed either ADM’s micro diet or mash/micro extruded pellet throughout the 40-day trial.

After 40 days, there was a marked difference in the growth of the tilapia fed this micro diet as compared to the group fed two other commercial brands of mash/ micro extruded pellet. The average weight of the tilapia fed NANOLIS was 6.8g, 60% and 31% more than fish in the other experimental groups (Figure 1). During the trial, an increase in feed intake was observed between the group fed NANOLIS and the fish in the two other groups, as shown in Figure 2. The test group also demonstrated better feed efficiency with a feed conversion ratio of 1.01, as compared to 1.39 and 1.25 for brand #1 and #2, respectively.

The results of the trial demonstrated how NANOLIS supports a strong start for fish and shrimp by promoting growth, increasing feed intake, and reducing the feed conversion rate.

Here we show that precise and balanced nutrition during the early stages of the production cycle for aquatic species are vital in supporting productivity, profitability and sustainability and to prepare juveniles beyond the nursery gate. As a global leader in animal nutrition with decades of research and development experience, ADM designs holistic nutritional solutions for aquaculture producers with quality feed ingredients. Its expansive ingredient sourcing network, manufacturing expertise, distribution system and blending capabilities enable each product to meet the unique nutritional needs of aquatic animals during their critical early life stages, hence promoting long-term positive outcomes for aquaculture producers. Ensuring success in aquaculture from the first feeding goes beyond just biomass gain; it also supports the growth and quality of fish and shrimp, ensuring optimal results at harvest.

References

FAO. 2024. The State of World Fisheries and Aquaculture 2024 – Blue Transformation in action. Rome. https://doi.org/10.4060/cd0683en

De Silva, S.S. and Yuan, D. 2022. Regional review on status and trends in aquaculture development in Asia-Pacific – 2020. FAO Fisheries and Aquaculture Circular No. 1232/6. Rome, FAO. New Scientist, 2021. https://www.newscientist.com/article/2290082global-demand-for-fish-expected-to-almost-double-by-2050/ Alami-Durante H, Cluzeaud M, Duval C, Maunas P, Girod-David V, Médale F. Early decrease in dietary protein:energy ratio by fat addition and ontogenetic changes in muscle growth mechanisms of rainbow trout: short- and long-term effects. British Journal of Nutrition. 2014;112(5):674-687. doi:10.1017/S0007114514001391

Marc Campet is Aquaculture Business Development Manager, Asia, ADM.

Figure 1. Comparison of final weight of tilapia fed NANOLIS and competitor mash/micro extruded pellets after 40 days of feeding

Figure

Figure 1. Comparison of final weight of tilapia fed NANOLIS and competitor mash/micro

Figure 1. Comparison of

Figure 2 Feed

Figure 2. Feed intake (g/day/fish) of tilapia fed NANOLIS versus two groups

mash/extruded pellets

Optimising aquafeed formulations

The potential of using enzyme technology to improve sustainability in Asian aquaculture

By Vivi Koletsi

Op$mising aquafeed formula$ons

The poten)al of using enzyme technology to improve sustainability in Asian aquaculture

By Vivi Koletsi

Asia is leading global aquaculture production, with 83.4 million tonnes in 2022 to meet the rising demand for protein-rich food, in turn driven by population growth and increasing consumer preference for seafood. Incredibly, the supply of fish and shrimp per person in Asia is even higher than the growing human population, thanks to the increased production of freshwater and pond-farmed fish through aquaculture, while other regions still mostly depend on wild marine fisheries (Tacon and Shumway, 2024).

for alternative protein sources (Kantha and Prachoom, 2024). Replacing fish meal in aquafeeds is not a new trend. Historic data from Norway illustrates how diet formulations for carnivorous species, such as Atlantic salmon and rainbow trout, have evolved over the past 30 years, with the inclusion of marine ingredients dropping from 89.4% in 1990 to 22.4% in 2020 (Aas et al., 2022a).

Asia is leading global aquaculture produc3on, with 83.4 million tonnes in 2022 to meet the rising demand for protein-rich food, in turn driven by popula3on growth and increasing consumer preference for fish and seafood. Incredibly, the supply of fish and shrimp per person in Asia is even higher than the growing human popula3on, thanks to the increased produc3on of freshwater and pond-farmed fish through aquaculture, while other regions s3ll mostly depend on wild marine fisheries (Tacon and Shumway, 2024).

Asia also accounted for 71% of the global consumption of aquatic animals in 2021 (FAO, 2024). Carp, tilapia, catfish and shrimp are among the most farmed and consumed aquatic animals in Asia. These species rely on fed aquaculture systems. New advancements in the aquafeed industry will be essential in order to maintain and increase seafood production across Asia.

Aquafeeds and production costs

Asia also accounted for 71% of the global consump3on of aqua3c animals in 2021 (FAO, 2024). Carp, 3lapia, caOish, and shrimp are among the most produced and consumed aqua3c animals in Asia. These species rely on fed aquaculture systems New advancements in the aquafeed industry will be essen3al in order to maintain and increase seafood produc3on across Asia.

Aquafeeds and produc$on costs

Data from the 2024 Alltech Agri-Food Outlook revealed that aquafeed production in Asia-Pacific reached 35.7 million tonnes in 2023, reflecting a 7.08% decline compared to production in 2022. This decrease can be traced back to several factors, including rising raw material costs and declining fish prices, which led farmers to decrease their stocking densities. Adverse weather conditions and disease outbreaks also negatively impacted fish health and performance, which further affected aquafeed production.

Feed costs account for 40–70% of the total operational expenses in aquaculture, so any rise in raw material prices affects farmers economically. Fish meal, commonly used in aquafeeds due to its rich nutritional profile, have experienced a significant price increase, now often exceeding USD1,600/tonne (Kantha and Prachoom, 2024). This surge is mainly driven by reduced availability due, in part, to environmental factors, such as El Niño. Even with the anticipated return of La Niña in the second half of 2024, fish meal prices may see only a modest decline, with no full-price normalisation (Rabobank, 2024).

Prachoom, 2024). Replacing ﬁsh meal in aquafeeds is not a new trend. Historic illustrates how diet formula3ons for carnivorous species, such as for Atlan3c salmon have evolved over the past 30 years, with the inclusion of marine ingredients dropp 1990 to 22.4% in 2020 (Aas et al., 2022a).

As shown in Figure 1, plant-based ingredients dominated the typical salmon and trout diet in Norway in 2020 (Aas et al., 2022b; Aas et al., 2022c). In the diets of the species farmed most often in Asia, such as tilapia, plant-based ingredients such as soybean, copra, peas, corn, palm kernel, microalgae and seaweed have either partially or entirely replaced fish meal in cost-effective formulations. However, their use as a primary protein source is hindered by anti-nutritional factors (Magbanua and Ragaza, 2024). These natural compounds — particularly phytates (i.e., phytic acid) and non-starch polysaccharides (NSPs) — interfere with nutrient absorption, making them a key concern to fish nutritionists (Francis et al., 2001).

As shown in Figure 1, plant-based ingredients dominated the typical salmon and 2020 (Aas et al., 2022b; Aas et al., 2022c). In the diets of the species farmed most 3lapia, plant-based ingredients such as soybeans, copra, peas, corn, palm kernel seaweed have either par3ally or en3rely replaced fish meal in cost-effec3ve formula3ons. use as a primary protein source is hindered by an3-nutri3onal factors (Magbanua These natural compounds par3cularly phytates (i.e., phy3c acid) and non-starch (NSPs) interfere with nutrient absorp3on, making them a key concern to fish al., 2001).

Data from the 2024 Alltech Agri-Food Outlook revealed that aquafeed produc3on in the Asia-Pacific region reached 35.7 million tonnes in 2023, reflec3ng a 7.08% decline compared to its aquafeed produc3on in 2022. This decrease can be traced back to several factors, including rising raw material costs and declining fish prices, which led farmers to decrease their stocking densi3es. Adverse weather condi3ons and disease outbreaks also nega3vely impacted fish health and performance, affected aquafeed produc3on.

NSPs are complex carbohydrates found in plant cell walls. Due to their viscous nature, NSPs negatively affect nutrient digestion and absorption (Sinha et al., 2011). Most aquatic species lack the enzymes required to break down NSPs, limiting their ability to utilise NSPs as an energy source (Kaushik et al., 2022). For instance, wheat, a key carbohydrate source in aquafeeds, contains 119g/kg of NSPs in its dry matter, while soybean meal,

Feed costs account for 40–70% of the total opera3onal expenses in aquaculture, material prices affects farmers economically. Fish meal, nutri3onal profile, have experienced a significant price increase, (Kantha and Prachoom, 2024). This surge is mainly driven by environmental factors, such as El Niño. Even with the an3cipated return of La Niña in the second half of 2024, fish meal prices may see only a modest decline, with no full

Plant-based ingredients in aquafeeds

The Asian aquaculture industry is the world’s largest consumer of fish meal, but rising costs and growing sustainability concerns have created an urgent need

The Asian aquaculture industry is the world’s largest consumer of ﬁsh meal, but rising costs and growing sustainability concerns have created an urgent need for alterna3ve protein sources (Kantha and

NSPs are complex carbohydrates found in plant cell walls. Due to their viscous nature,

nutrient diges3on and absorp3on (Sinha et al., 2011). Most aqua3c species

Figure 1. An example of the dietary composi3on and plant-based ingredients used in Norway in 2020.

Figure 1. An example of the dietary composition and plant-based ingredients used in diets for salmonids in Norway in 2020.

a primary plant-protein source, contains 217g/kg NSPs (Sinha et al., 2011).

Aquatic animals also have a limited ability to break down phytate, the primary storage form of phosphorus in plants (Shankaran and Kumari, 2024). As a result, phosphorus in the form of phytate cannot be utilised and is excreted into the environment instead (Cao et al., 2007). Meanwhile, in the gastrointestinal tract, phytate binds to minerals and interacts with them, reducing their bioavailability and raising further concerns about water pollution and the environmental impact of aquafeeds (Kumar et al., 2011).

Use of exogenous enzymes

The current methods for processing these ingredients are not very effective at reducing levels of antinutritional factors. One potential solution to this issue is to incorporate exogenous enzymes into aquafeeds (Kaushik et al., 2022). This nutritional strategy can enhance feed utilisation while also aligning with the industry’s sustainability goals.

Ingredients Substrates Enzymes

Almost all plants Phytic acid Phytase

Wheat Arabinoxylans (NSP) Xylanase

Almost all plants Cellulose, hemicellulose (NSP) Cellulase

Soya, sunflower, lupins Pectins Pectinase

Soya, sunflower, rapeseed Oligo-saccharides α-galactosidases

Soya, sunflower, rapeseed ß-galactomannans ß-mannanase

Barley ß-glucans ß-glucanase

All protein Protease

Corn, rice, wheat, etc. Starch Amylase

Several studies of the supplementation of exogenous phytases, carbohydrases and proteases in aquafeeds have concluded that these additives contain a significant potential for improving the nutritional value of aquafeeds (Castillo and Gatlin, 2015; Zheng et al., 2020; Liang et al., 2022; Chen et al., 2024), including those for tilapia farming (Gule and Geremew, 2022). Different plant-based ingredients might be included in aquafeed formulations alongside various substrates that need to be broken down by enzymes that might be absent or limiting (Table 1). As such, using a combination of enzymes — commonly known as a cocktail of enzymes — may be more effective than using a single enzyme (Zheng et al., 2020). A multi-enzymatic solution from Alltech, for instance, is derived from the solid-state fermentation (SSF) of a select strain of non-GMO Aspergillus niger

The potential of multi-enzyme technologies to improve nutrient utilisation, growth and mineral bioavailability while minimising nutrient excretions to the environment and reducing phosphorous requirements while enhancing feed cost-savings has been demonstrated for major farmed-fish species (Figure 2).

2. The beneficial role of multi-enzyme supplementation includes the breakdown of various substrates in aquafeeds.

Nile tilapia

Table 1. Feed ingredients, substrates and enzymes.

A recent study on Nile tilapia (Furuya et al., 2023) demonstrated the benefits of SSF supplementation — including not only its ability to improve growth and feed efficiency, as shown in the results of an earlier study of SSF with tilapia (Moura et al.,2024), but also its ability to minimise nutrient losses and environmental impacts.

Figure

The latest study aimed to evaluate the efficacy of SFF in the pre-grow out diets of Nile tilapia using a typical (control) diet with a high content of plant-based ingredients (including corn at 27.6%; wheat bran at 12.4%; soybean meal at 15%; low-tannin sorghum at 4%; and soybean oil at 3.4%) either without the supplementation of exogenous enzymes or with the addition of SSF at 0.0225% (225mg/ kg diet) or at 0.0450% (450mg/kg diet). According to the results (Table 2), including Allzyme SSF at 0.0450% in plant-rich diets for Nile tilapia improved the digestibility of the protein and phosphorus in the diet, as well as the digestibility of essential and non-essential amino acids, compared to the digestibility exhibited by the Nile tilapia fed either the control diet or a diet supplemented with a lower dose (0.0225%) of the enzyme. These improvements in digestibility were also evident in increased body weight gains and a better feed conversion ratio (FCR) in tilapia that were fed the diet with a concentration of 0.0450% SSF. The study by Furuya et al. in 2023 also showed that enzyme supplementation in the diet at a rate of 0.0450% improved the efficiency of nitrogen and phosphorus utilisation by reducing the excretion by Nile tilapia (Figure 3).

Efficacy of a multi-enzyme supplementation

Previous SSF studies in other important aquatic-farmed warm-water species in Asia, such as pangasius catfish, shrimp, seabass and red seabream, have also confirmed the efficacy of multi-enzyme technologies as a sustainable solution for improving aquafeed efficiency in Asian

aquaculture. The optimal supplementation dose may depend on several factors, including the species-specific digestive physiology, the diet composition, the water temperature and other environmental conditions.

Based on the findings in research across different aquatic species, a minimum dose of 0.04% could be recommended and could reach as high as 0.2%. Additionally, the efficacy of the enzymes also seems to rely on the method of application. The inclusion of enzymes in diets with a high amount of plant-based ingredients and byproducts is generally recommended, and post-spraying application is advised to maximise enzyme stability (Liang et al., 2022).

Generally, multi-enzyme technologies provide flexibility in animal feed formulations by targeting multiple substrates and enhancing nutrient absorption. The global market for animal feed enzymes surpassed USD1.3 billion in 2021 and is expected to grow even more by 2028, thanks to their cost-efficiency and sustainability advantages (Liang et al., 2022). Applying research-proven enzyme technologies in aquafeeds can foster economic and environmental sustainability in the Asian aquaculture industry.

References are available on request

Dr Vivi Koletsi is a global technical support specialist within Alltech’s Technology Group.

Email: Vivi.Koletsi@alltech.com

Table 2. Apparent digestibility coefficients (%) of protein, phosphorus and (essential and nonessential) amino acids.

Figure 3. Reduced nitrogen and phosphorus waste exhibited by Nile tilapia fed the diet supplemented with SSF at 0.0450%.

Research on enhancing quality and reducing melanin spots

By Marianne Nergård

Quality issues arise when dark pigments accumulate in the fillet which lead to downgrading or discarding of the entire fillet. Aquabench reported that as much as 20% of the harvested salmon is impacted in Norway, and in Chile almost 30% of downgraded fillets is due to melanosis. Photo credit: Turid Mørkøre

Atlantic salmon is one of the world’s most popular seafood, renowned for its nutritional benefits that support human health. The salmon farming industry significantly contributes to the economies of the producing countries, providing employment and supporting related sectors such as feed production, processing, and equipment manufacturing.

Fillet quality: A key success factor

High performance during production, as well as resilience against diseases and stress, are important success factors in Atlantic salmon farming. Good health and welfare are keys to both profitable and responsible farming and are also the critical factors that influence the flesh quality of the final product. The quality and appearance of the fillet are important as they influence consumer purchasing decisions.

Processing plants classify quality based on several characteristics, including pigmentation, texture, and uniformity. One major issue that reduces the share of premium product is the presence of dark spots known as melanin spots or melanosis in the fillet.

Melanin is a naturally occurring pigment in salmon, forming dark spots on the skin, and occurs in the immune system as part of the fish’s immune defence against pathogens. The quality issues arise when these dark pigments accumulate in the fillet, appearing as spots or a diffuse discolouration through the whole fillet. This requires their removal during processing, leading to increased labour costs and reduced product yield. Diffuse discolouration can result in downgrading or, in the worst case the discarding of the entire fillet, causing significant economic losses.

Issues with melanin accumulation affect operations in several major salmon producing countries. In Norway, reports indicate that as much as 20% of the harvested salmon is impacted, and in Chile almost 30% of downgraded fillets is due to melanosis, according to Aquabench. Melanin spots have a significant impact on the salmon industry as a whole, and any tool that can reduce the occurrence of these spots will be of great importance to the industry. To understand the available solutions, and why krill meal might be part of the answer, it is essential to understand the mechanisms behind the formation of these dark spots and the underlying causes of their development.

The link to inflammation

Melanin pigments in the flesh of salmon are linked to inflammation in the fillet. While the exact cause of the problem is unclear, the process typically begins with a bleed or trauma in the flesh, triggering melanin-producing cells – melanomacrophages, as a part of the immune response to fight or seal off the pathogens and clean up the damage caused by the trauma. Recent science has also linked the initiation to hypoxia and necrosis of fat cells that trigger the inflammation cascade in the fillet. If the inflammatory response is optimal, the immune system cleans up the damage, and the fillet returns to a healthy state. However, if the inflammatory process becomes chronic and the fish does not return to a healthy state, the pigments continue to accumulate in the fillet, thus compromising the fillet quality.

Chronic inflammation in animals, including salmon, has been linked to long term exposure to stress. Stressors in intensive farming environments include diseases, rough weather, and handling procedures. One way to combat chronic inflammation is by ensuring sufficient omega-3

measures, Nofima, Norway.

Reducing the severity of melanin spots

There is the meal made from Antarctic krill with a rich source of EPA and DHA in a highly effective phospholipid form (QRILL Aqua, Aker BioMarine ASA, Norway) which ensures the uptake of the fatty acids in the digestive system and their deposition in cell membranes in the tissues, where they help balance the inflammatory process.

In an internal trial by Aker BioMarine, researchers found that higher EPA and DHA levels from krill meal in the feed had great impact on melanosis in the fillet. The trial showed that the addition of 7.5% of Qrill Aqua in a diet fed to Atlantic salmon from 1.2kg to 2.2kg eliminated the occurrence of dark spots in the fillet. These results align with previous studies with krill meal (Figure 2).

The benefits of krill meal and the reasons behind its ability to reduce dark spots go beyond its high levels of EPA and DHA in phospholipid form. Krill meal also provides selenium and zinc in organic form, key minerals linked to melanosis reduction. Additionally, krill meal contains natural antioxidants like astaxanthin, vitamin E, and vitamin C, which are beneficial for reducing melanin spots.

Figure 1. In trials, higher EPA and DHA levels clearly reduced the severity of the melanosis. Source: Rapport+27-2022+EX-spot: Dark spots in salmon fillet. Cause of dark spots and preventive measures, Nofima, Norway.

Reducing the severity of melanin spots

fatty acid intake, specifically EPA (eicosapentaenoic acid) and DHA (docosahexaenoic acid). These fatty acids are part of the anti-inflammatory pathways in the immune system and may reduce the chance of an inflammatory process becoming chronic and harmful. Research has shown that low levels of EPA and DHA in fish feed are associated with less robust fish that are prone to chronic stress. Access to antioxidants will also influence the oxidative state in the muscules and may also impact the development of dark spots in the fillet.

Therefore, including krill meal in the feed not only enhances palatability and increases feed intake and growth, it also supports the overall robustness of salmon and improves the final product quality. For salmon farmers, key drivers of cost-effectiveness are growth, health, and premium product quality. Adding Qrill Aqua to salmon diets can significantly contribute to these success factors and lead to better results, and thus play a role in the success of the farmer.

References:

Several researchers have investigated the impact of increased EPA and DHA levels on melanin occurrence in the fillet. In a comprehensive report (EX-spot 2022), the authors concluded that higher EPA and DHA levels clearly reduced the severity of the melanosis. They also found that DHA seems to inhibit tyrosinase, an enzyme that is involved in the production of melanin pigments in the cells (Figure 1).

Aquabench Melanosis Project. (2022, September 5). Melanosis Project Description. https://aquabench.com/en/2022/09/05/ melanosis-project/

Bjørgen, et al. (2024). Deciphering the pathogenesis of melanized focal changes in the white skeletal muscle of farmed Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar).

Bjørgen, et al. (2015). Piscine orthoreovirus (PRV) in red and melanised foci in white muscle of Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar). Veterinary Research, 46(1), 1-12.

Färber, J. (2017). Melanin spots in Atlantic salmon fillets – An investigation of the general problem, the frequency and the economic implication based on an online survey.

Lutfi, et al. (2023). Increasing dietary levels of the n-3 long-chain PUFA, EPA and DHA, improves the growth, welfare, robustness, and fillet quality of Atlantic salmon in sea cages.

Mørkøre, T., Larsson, T., Jiménez-Guerrero, R., Moreno, H. M., Borderias, J., Ruyter, B. S., … & Bæverfjord, G. (2022). EX-spot: Mørke flekker i laksefilet. Årsak til dannelse og tiltak som hemmer utvikling. Nofima Rapportserie.

Wakamatsu, K. (2023). Eumelanin Detection in Melanized Focal Changes but Not in Red Focal Changes on Atlantic Salmon (Salmo salar) Fillets. International Journal of Molecular Sciences, 24, 16797. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms242316797

Figure 2. The addition of 7.5% of QRILL Aqua in a diet fed to Atlantic salmon (1.2 kg to 3.2 kg) eliminated the melanin spots.

Source: Internal trial, Aker BioMarine.

Marianne Nergård is a veterinarian and Product Director with Aker BioMarine ASA, Norway

Figure 2. The addition of 7.5% of QRILL

spots. Source:

In an internal trial by Aker BioMarine, researchers found that higher EPA and DHA levels from krill meal in the feed had great impact on melanosis in the fillet. The trial showed that the addition of 7 5% of QRILL Aqua in a diet fed to Atlantic salmon from 1.2 kg to 3.2 kg eliminated the occurrence of dark spots in the fillet. These results align with previous studies with krill meal (Figure 2)..

IMPACT, BANGKOK, THAILAND

Co-located with Organized by

How can Asia’s core fish farming industry enter the mainstream investor portfolio

A discussion during the Industry Dialogue: Industry challenges = startup opportunities = venture capital investments at TARS 2024

While aquaculture’s potential is undeniable, its investment landscape remains elusive. Asia has not recently seen a large influx of venture capital investment into aquaculture core farming, although it is often heralded as the future of sustainable food production. There is substantial funding for startups for alternative feed ingredients, AI and disease mitigation but no one focuses on core farming

At TARS 2024 on Finfish Aquaculture: Steering an Industry into Focus, held on August 14-15, in Bangkok, the questions raised were: Is this too risky - i.e. is the investment amount too high or not sexy enough? How do we package our industry for investment and are we not telling our story?

This year, the industry dialogue featured Michael Sweeny, Partner, Bluegrass, Hong Kong SAR; Le Ngoc Tien, Director, Vinh Technology, Singapore; Andreas von Scholten, Group Chief Commercial Officer, Grobest Group Holdings Ltd, Hong Kong and formerly CEO of the Barramundi Group, Singapore; and Haydar H. Al Sahtout, Founder, Blue BioEconomy Holdings, Saudi Arabia. Moderator Ronnie Tan, USGC’s aquaculture consultant asked the panel to explore why nobody wants to invest in core finfish farming in Asia, while there are lots of investment in salmon and Mediterranean seabass and seabream farming. What are Asia’s strengths?

The aquaculture paradox: Volume without efficiency

Asia produces the largest volume of aquaculture products globally, with an immense variety of species, so this is attractive. Yet, as Andreas noted, the region struggles with inefficiency and fragmentation: they are millions of small, local farmers, often lacking in technological expertise and plagued by disease management issues, often resulting in inconsistent output. He added that these inefficiencies have tarnished Asia’s reputation in Western markets, where EU and US consumers perceive products as low-quality with improper labour practices, and excessive antibiotic use. This combination of factors creates a significant hurdle for investors seeking predictability and reliability.

On the other hand, Haydar added that for a corporate investor, it is about opportunity as there is a large market for the fish products within the region and globally. There are investors with social responsibility and noble objectives.

The rest of the panel agreed that the aquaculture sector in Asia is deeply fragmented - a factor that discourages large-scale institutional investment. However, this challenge presents an opportunity for startups to address inefficiencies by bringing in new technologies, farming methods, and sustainable practices.

Risk vs. Reward: The investor’s dilemma

Ronnie posed the question of whether the risks are too high versus the rewards.

Aquaculture has the distinction of being one of the riskiest sectors globally, a sentiment echoed by the entire panel. Haydar argued, “It is not market demand but disease, which can decimate fish populations and disrupt supply chains.”

“Some are willing to invest, but they struggle to find strong, scalable farming businesses.”

- Michael Sweeney

According to Michael, aquaculture farming faces unique challenges that make it less attractive to institutional capital compared to other sectors. The

At TARS 2024, panellists at the Industry Dialogue were, from right, Haydar H. Al Sahtout, Blue BioEconomy Holdings; Andreas von Scholten, Grobest Group Holdings Ltd; Le

Ngoc Tien, Vinh Technology, Singapore, Michael Sweeny, Bluegrass and moderator, Ronnie Tan, USGC (left)

Ponds at Vinh Hoan, Vietnam from a promotional video on making the Mekong River more green and cleaner in celebration of World River Day 2024. (Source: From a presentation by Mai Chung, ADM, TARS 2024).

Risk vs. Reward: The investor’s dilemma

Ronnie posed the question of whether the risks are too high versus the rewards.

risks, including disease threats, scalability issues, and regulatory uncertainties in Asia, such as land reform and environmental, import and export regulations create a climate of unpredictability. Moreover, governance, management, and sustainability concerns further deter investors. He added that the risk reward is not present. “However, what makes an investment attractive and believing in it, is when the investor grew up with aquaculture. Whereas for institutional investors they must commit long term and into transformation. Without the notion that protein is player of the future, the risk reward is not attractive.”

According to Michael, aquaculture farming faces unique challenges that make it less attractive to institutional capital compared to other sectors. The risks, including disease threats, scalability issues, and regulatory uncertainties in Asia, such as land reform and environmental, import and export regulations create a climate of unpredictability. Moreover, governance, management, and sustainability concerns further deter investors. He added that the risk reward is not present. “However, what makes an investment attractive and believing in it, is when the investor grew up with aquaculture. Whereas for institutional investors they must commit long term and into transformation. Without the notion that protein is player of the future, the risk reward is not attractive.”

“Investors from western markets have been historically burnt by aquaculture ventures, particularly in species other than salmon, leading to a collective reluctance to re-enter the space. This "risk contagion" has compounded negative perceptions, deterring potential capital inflows. When you look at deal flow, it's almost not happening,” said Andreas.

“Investors from western markets have been historically burnt by aquaculture ventures, particularly in species other than salmon, leading to a collective reluctance to re-enter the space. This “risk contagion” has compounded negative perceptions, deterring potential capital inflows. When you look at deal flow, it’s almost not happening,” said Andreas.

Although aquaculture is known to be vital for future protein supply, specific deals often expose labour, water quality, and reporting issues, thus driving investors away. As a result, ancillary businesses, like genetics or feed inputs, become more appealing due to higher margins and simpler business models.

The interest in alternative feeds and AI

Why is venture capital flowing into ancillary industries like alternative feed ingredients and artificial intelligence (AI), rather than core farming operations? “Ancillary businesses have simpler models, higher margins, and fewer regulatory and operational uncertainties,” explained Michael. “These sectors do not face the same environmental, regulatory, and disease-related risks that plague fish farming itself.”

This bifurcation in investment interest highlights a crucial point: while core farming may not attract institutional capital in its current form, there are immense opportunities for startups in adjacent industries. AI for fish health monitoring, sustainable feed alternatives, and disease mitigation technologies are all ripe for disruption.

Tien echoed these sentiments, noting that venture capital tends to favour companies with predictable revenue streams and safer margins — criteria that core aquaculture farming often struggles to meet. However, startups addressing fish health and climate change challenges offer promising solutions.

She added, “It comes down to trends. Right now, it is AI but food security is always big, such as during COVID. It depends on the pitch to investors in the first few minutes, such as a compelling story to make people believe in farming and why they should invest.”

Overcoming the trust deficit

One of the more provocative questions raised at the dialogue was whether there is a fundamental trust issue between Western investors and Asian aquaculture players. Both Andreas and Haydar dismissed the notion that trust is the primary issue. “It’s more about prior bad experiences with aquaculture investments,” Andreas explained. Michael added that trust in governance, sustainability, and reporting standards remains a concern for Western investors, particularly when evaluating Asian projects.

To bridge this gap, Michael suggested that local players (investors) who understand the nuances of the market should take the lead in helping to build up these companies, and design infrastructures that can foster trust through better governance structures and transparent reporting. “The salmon industry took 50 years to build the credibility it now enjoys. A similar trajectory is possible for Asia,” he argued.

“When you look at deal flow, it’s almost not happening. It’s been unfortunately the case that there have been a lot of investors that have been hurt by this unpredictability.” - Andreas von Scholten

The need for “Patient Capital”: Learning from past experiences

Andreas’ experience with his former company, Barramundi Group, offers important lessons for the future of aquaculture in Asia. Andreas, as the former CEO of the company, reflected on its ambitious attempt to replicate the success of the salmon industry in Asia. For the Barramundi Group, the vision was to apply salmon farming methods—such as ocean cages to farm Asian seabass, a fish typically farmed in coastal waters. However, while the concept was innovative, the high costs of ocean farming and the need for patient capital presented significant challenges.

There is also the importance of long-term investment and government support, explained Andreas, citing Norway’s multi-billion-dollar investment in building the salmon brand. “Additionally, there are 200-300 startups all working on perfecting all things around salmon in Norway. If we can have similar resources committed to Asian aquaculture, particularly in terms of genetics, marketing, and collaboration, barramundi and other species would thrive.”

The Barramundi Group’s experience highlights the need for patient investors who understand the long-term potential of aquaculture and are willing to back innovative, large-scale projects.

“Happy fish make happy people. Improving fish welfare, through innovations in health and environmental efficiency, could lead to greater stability and profitability.”

– Le Ngoc Tien

Building a story around core farming to attract investment

One of the recurring themes throughout the dialogue was the importance of storytelling. “If you create the right story, investors will come,” Michael said. He emphasised that aquaculture needs to position itself not just as a food production sector but as one that provides a positive impact on local communities and economies, supports sustainable practices, and offers healthier protein alternatives for the future.

This story is critical as core farming continues to suffer from an image problem. It is often seen as “unsexy” compared to AI-driven startups or alternative proteins. Tien noted that she was lucky to witness the hard work farmers put into their operations, with one season sometimes lasting 8–19 months.

“Happy fish make happy people. Improving fish welfare, through innovations in health and environmental efficiency, could lead to greater stability and profitability. Essentially, happy fish are a metaphor for sustainable, predictable, and profitable farming operations. Ultimately, there is great potential in farming, but it’s crucial to find the right farmers and support systems to harness it.”

Tilapia and pangasius:

Saturation today,

salmon’s rival tomorrow?

Ronnie questioned whether specific species are reaching market saturation, such as pangasius and tilapia. Generally, the panellists were optimistic about further growth potential of these fish. Haydar expressed scepticism about the negative reputation surrounding pangasius, arguing that with better marketing and health positioning, it could become more valuable. “It’s an open market,” he said, suggesting that the fish’s poor reputation could be reversed with the right branding.

Andreas, however, emphasised the need for the industry to focus on species with more growth potential and perfect their production methods. This strategic focus, he argued, could unlock the potential for fish to become a more dominant protein source, rivalling poultry in terms of consumer preference.

“The first aquaculture project to produce 100,000 tonnes of fish using a fully integrated model would be a game changer...”

- Haydar H. Al Sahtout.

A bold new vision to rival poultry production

Despite the booming global demand for fish, no aquaculture project has yet achieved the same scale as poultry production. Haydar argued that while poultry farms regularly produce millions of tonnes, no fish farming project has reached that level. The key difference, as pointed out was, “There is the lack of fully integrated systems in aquaculture. The poultry industry’s integration allowed it to scale quickly, with investors flocking to the sector after the first large-scale projects demonstrated profitability.”

He added that aquaculture can follow the same path if it embraces a fully integrated approach and sets ambitious production targets from the outset. “The first aquaculture project to produce 100,000 tonnes of fish using such a model would be a game-changer, unlocking massive potential for the industry. By attracting the same level of investment that poultry enjoys, aquaculture could finally rival its counterpart in both scale and profitability.”

Fully integrated systems: The key to unlocking profitability?

As aquaculture seeks to rival industries like poultry, experts are increasingly advocating for fully integrated systems. The model, which encompasses every aspect from hatcheries to processing and distribution, is seen as vital to achieving profitability and scalability. Aquaculture has traditionally faced margin capture challenges, with core farming often receiving the lowest returns. Integration offers a solution by streamlining the value chain and capturing more value at each stage.

In the salmon industry, which serves as a blueprint for aquaculture, full integration has led to significant efficiency gains and profitability. Haydar argued that the path forward for aquaculture lies in creating a fully integrated project from day one, targeting large-scale production rather than incremental growth. By using cutting-edge technology and innovative approaches throughout the value chain, aquaculture can replicate the success of poultry and build investor confidence.

An innovative path forward

Barramundi, tilapia, and pangasius have room for growth, but the road to profitability requires addressing key issues like scale, genetic diversity, and production methods. Andreas argued that each species has its own genetic challenges, focusing on perfecting and branding a select few species could help achieve the level of efficiency and profitability seen in the salmon industry.

31 Finfish Aquaculture

Tien, reflecting on the pangasius market, emphasised that while the industry has matured, there are opportunities in value-added products and innovative approaches, such as sashimi-grade pangasius.

Tien added, “This whole concept of sushi for pangasius is not from us. We have already seen this in Japan. We were in Japan in March and saw how a Japanese sushi chain already started using pangasius sashimi.”

For marine fish to become a leading protein source, the industry must prioritise collaboration, innovation, and consumer education on the benefits of sustainable seafood. With the right strategies, marine fish farming could one day rival poultry in scale and significance.

Salmon as the gold standard

The salmon industry’s 27% operating profit margin, as reported by salmon producer MOWI, stands as a shining example of what aquaculture in Asia can achieve. Michael noted that “salmon’s success is due to cultural penetration, strong branding, and significant investments in technology and genetic improvement.” The industry has reduced costs through innovations in feed, disease control, and production methods, allowing it to achieve profitability unmatched by any other aquaculture species. “People usually don’t wake up in the morning, thinking “I want to eat tilapia for dinner today. My daughter, however, loves eating salmon.”

While Asian aquaculture can learn from salmon’s example, Andreas pointed out that some farmers in the region are already achieving similar margins, though not consistently. He said, “some of the farmers we work with, have this 27% profit rate.” He added that the challenge for Asian aquaculture is to stabilise production and adopt more sustainable practices. As Haydar emphasised, fully integrated, large-scale, and innovative operations are the key to replicating salmon’s success and bringing aquaculture into the mainstream.

As we look to the future, it is clear that the path to success in aquaculture will demand a combination of bold investment, innovative technology, and strategic collaboration. Furthermore, by embracing fully integrated systems and addressing the current limitations, the industry can unlock new opportunities and elevate seafood to the same level of prominence as poultry and salmon. The key will be to foster an environment where patient capital and visionary strategies can thrive, driving aquaculture to new heights.

Nigiri sushi served at conveyor belt sushi restaurants Kura in Japan.

A phytobiotic-based functional additive to reduce the impact of EHP-WFS in shrimp

Shrimp farming in Asia is confronted with significant challenges due to disease outbreaks, particularly white faeces syndrome (WFS)

By I-Tung Chen, Khin Thiri Khit, Phuc Hoang, Maria Mercè Isern-Subich, Loc Tran and Waldo G. Nuez-Ortín

Shrimp farming faces significant challenges due to frequent disease outbreaks that undermine profitability. One particularly severe shrimp disease is white faeces syndrome (WFS), a gastrointestinal disorder commonly reported in Asia. WFS is characterised by a white discolouration in the shrimp gut and the appearance of floating white faecal strings in pond water.

Studies indicate that the co-infection of pathogenic Enterocytozoon hepatopenaei (EHP) and Vibrio spp. is necessary to induce WFS in shrimp (Aranguren Caro et al., 2021). EHP acts as a primary pathogen, intensifying the impact of opportunistic bacteria such as Vibrio spp., resulting in WFS. Shrimp infected by WFS exhibit retarded growth, significant size variation, elevated feed conversion ratios, and, in severe cases, increased mortality. These issues collectively heighten production costs and pose substantial economic risks for shrimp farmers.

Addressing WFS requires improved pond management strategies along with health management strategies via feed. The latter involves using health-promoting additives to maintain shrimp immunocompetence. Sanacore® GM (Adisseo) is a phytobiotic-based additive with broadspectrum health-promoting effects. It regulates pathogenic bacteria and parasites while enhancing non-specific immune responses to mitigate the severity of infections on multiple levels.

Combating EHP-WFS through an optimal application strategy

This report presents a detailed evaluation of Sanacore® GM’s efficacy on white shrimp, Penaeus vannamei , co-challenged with EHP and Vibrio spp. The trial was conducted in collaboration with ShrimpVet Laboratory, Vietnam. The application strategy was based on a continuous preventive dose of the additive, boosted with a corrective dose when disease symptoms arise.

Two experimental groups, control and treatment, were established. The treatment group received a preventive dose (0.3%) of the additive during the pre-challenge phase (14 days), and the preventive dose was boosted with a corrective dose of 0.5% during the disease challenge period of 10 days (Figure 1). The treatment group returned to the preventive dose during the postchallenge period (35 days). During the challenge phase, EHP-infected shrimp were used as inoculant donors and cohabited with the experimental shrimp for 7 days. After cohabitation, inoculum donor shrimp were removed, and the recipient shrimp were subsequently challenged with Vibrio spp. via the per os method.

Figure 1. The experimental design schematic illustrating the use of phytobiotic-based additives as a preventive strategy against EHPWFS challenge in shrimp.

Figure 2. The immunological responses induced by Sanacore® GM, shown by EHP copy numbers in the hepatopancreas (A) and total haemocyte count in haemolymph (B) in shrimp during EHP-WFS infection. Results were analysed by one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) and presented as mean ± standard deviation.

Figure 3. The growth-promoting effects of Sanacore® GM, demonstrating reduced size variation at 7 dpc (A), improved final average daily gain (B), enhanced FCR (C), and increased survival rate at 35 dpc in shrimp under EHP-WFS co-challenge (D). The results were analysed by one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) and presented as mean ± standard deviation.

HEALTH IS AT THE HEART OF OUR CONCERNS

BOOST YOUR BUSINESS BY OPTIMIZING YOUR HEALTH ADDITIVE STRATEGY

RESTRICT inappropriate use of antibiotics and chemicals

REDUCE losses from subclinical disease and outbreaks

INCREASE economical and ecological sustainability

BOOST feed perfomance and farm productivity

The evaluation of the efficacy of this phytobiotic-based functional additive was carried out at two time points. The first at 7 days post-challenge (dpc) at the early infection stage. The second was at 35 dpc at the end of the infection. During early infection, size variation was monitored as the typical syndrome caused by EHP, resulting from metabolic and immune impairment (Zhang et al., 2023). Mortality was assessed at the end stage, where the combined effects of EHP and Vibrio severely damaged the digestive system, leading to high mortality.

Mitigating the severity of WFS by reducing EHP replication and enhancing shrimp immunity

The EHP load in the hepatopancreas is a key indicator of the severity of EHP-WFS infection. Sanacore® GM showed remarkable efficacy in inhibiting EHP replication, reducing its load by 97.5% and 39.6% at the early and late infection stages, respectively(Figure 2A). Such reduction indicates that the additive effectively curbs EHP replication from the outset, thereby attenuating disease progression and offering shrimp protection against EHP.

Haemocytes are central components of the shrimp immune system, involved in pathogen-removal mechanisms such as phagocytosis and encapsulation, as well as in humoral responses such as the release of prophenoloxidase (proPO) or antimicrobial peptides. Recent studies have shown that EHP-WFS infection alters the innate defence immune mechanism, specifically reducing total haemocyte counts (THC), as well as catalase and lysozyme activities (Subash et al., 2022 & 2023).

Enhanced immunocompetence

In the present study, THC levels increased by 23.5% and 14.6% at both early and late stages of infection, respectively, indicating enhanced immunocompetence (Figure 2B). These results suggest the activation of haemocyte proliferation and effective antimicrobial activity against EHP-WFS infection.

Reduced size variation

The use of the phytobiotic-based functional additive resulted in benefits in terms of performance parameters. At the early infection stage, supplementation reduced size variation by 17%. Additionally, average daily gain was improved by 8% and FCR by 1.6%. Notably, after 35 days of infection, the survival rate of shrimp in the treatment group increased by 17%. These improvements clearly demonstrate the additive’s efficacy in promoting growth and resistance to EHP-WFS infection.

Conclusion

References

Aranguren Caro, L. F., Mai, H. N., Cruz-Florez, R., Marcos, F. L. A., Alenton, R. R. R., & Dhar, A. K. (2021). Experimental reproduction of White Feces Syndrome in whiteleg shrimp, Penaeus vannamei . PloS one, 16(12), e0261289. https://doi. org/10.1371/journal.pone.0261289

Chen, I., Mamora M., Isern-Subich, M. M., & Nuez-Ortín W. G. (2023). Efficacy of a phytobiotic-based additive to reduce the severity of EHP-WFS outbreaks in field conditions. AQUA Culture Asia Pacific, May/June, P31- 33. bit.ly/3BO1ZDc

Subash, P., Chrisolite, B., Sivasankar, P., George, M. R., Amirtharaj, K. V., Padmavathy, P., ... & Mageshkumar, P. (2023). White feces syndrome in Penaeus vannamei is potentially an Enterocytozoon hepatopenaei (EHP) associated pathobiome origin of Vibrio spp. Journal of Invertebrate Pathology, 198, 107932. DOI: 10.1016/j.jip.2023.107932

Subash, P., Uma, A., & Ahilan, B. (2022). Early responses in Penaeus vannamei during experimental infection with Enterocytozoon hepatopenaei (EHP) spores by injection and oral routes. Journal of Invertebrate Pathology, 190, 107740. https:// doi.org/10.1016/j.jip.2022.107740

Zhang, L., Zhang, S., Qiao, Y., Cao, X., Cheng, J., Meng, Q., & Shen, H. (2023). Dynamic Interplay of Metabolic and Transcriptional Responses in Shrimp during Early and Late Infection Stages of Enterocytozoon hepatopenaei (EHP). International Journal of Molecular Sciences, 24(23), 16738. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms242316738

The present study demonstrated a feed-health management strategy to effectively support shrimp growth and survival in WFS infected shrimp, caused by the co-infection of EHP and Vibrio spp. The preventive supplementation of this phytobiotic-based functional additive Sanacore® GM supports non-specific immunity and provides broad spectrum activity, which are crucial during the early and more susceptible stages of the grow-out period. When disease pressure increases and symptoms appear, boosting feed with a corrective dose of the additive mitigates pathogens proliferation. Sanacore® GM provides feed mills and shrimp farmers with a tool to reduce the impact of disease outbreaks and improve farm profitability by reducing losses associated with WFS.

I-Tung Chen, PhD, is Project Research Manager Aquaculture Health, Adisseo. Email: i-tung.chen@adisseo.com

Maria Mercè Isern-Subich, DVM, is Global Product Manager Health Aquaculture, Adisseo.

Waldo G. Nuez-Ortín, DVM, PhD, is Global R&D Manager Aquaculture, Adisseo.

Khin Thiri Khit, R&D Specialist, ShrimpVet Laboratory, Vietnam

Phuc Hoang, Managing Director, ShrimpVet Laboratory, Vietnam

Loc Tran, Founder & Director, ShrimpVet Laboratory, Vietnam

Disease mitigation in marine fish and tilapia

Pushing the boundaries of current knowledge in managing outbreaks in marine fish and the uptake of vaccination for tilapia against bacterial diseases

Industry’s growth and productivity are constantly constrained by current bacterial and viral diseases as well as parasite infestation. Additionally, the aquaculture industry is saddled with emerging pathogens. Preceded by presentations on managing diseases in marine fish and tilapia, and developing next generation biotech solutions, the panel on disease mitigation and innovations at TARS 2024 deliberated on how the industry can adopt presentday solutions to overcome these problems. Aside from presenters mentioned below, panel members were Jessica Kaye Turner, Assistant Managing Director, Nam Sai Farms Co Ltd, Thailand, and Dr Ei Lin Ooi, Regional Manager, Aquaculture Asia-Pacific, Adisseo Asia Pacific, Singapore. Dr Jarin Sawanboonchun, Aquaculture Nutrition and Feed Specialist, Thailand, was the moderator.

A science and an art in disease management

Dr Susan Gibson-Kueh, Associate Professor (Aquatic Animal Health), Tropical Futures Institute, James Cook University, Singapore, presented on “Diseases in Tropical Finfish Aquaculture: Busting Myths, Pushing Borders”. Farms experiencing disease outbreaks are often after a quick cure. However, there is seldom a secret remedy. Farmers need to focus on early detection and intervention. She emphasised that disease management in aquaculture is both a science and an art. “Science because effective disease control should be based on facts from accurate diagnosis. Using information to manage disease is an art based on experience and a good grasp of the disease process in fish in the aquatic environment. The current thinking on pathobiome is that maintaining the diversity of bacteria in the gut and water through optimal nutrition and husbandry practices can be more effective than trying to eliminate a single pathogen.”

Scale drop disease

Scale drop disease (SDD) in Asian seabass Lates calcarifer is characterised by skin and scale loss, multifocal tissue deaths, and splenic infarcts. The disease spreads in the population, with clinical disease seen in older fish (>200-300g, Figure 1). “The loss of extensive areas of skin results in fish dying from dehydration in seawater. Bringing fish species tolerant to lower salinity to freshwater or lowering salinity to 15‰ to control the dehydration reduces mortality rate. But this is not easy as some farms do not have access to large volumes of freshwater.” She added that any pathogens that damage skin will cause dehydration in fish in seawater.

SDD also causes severe inflammation and blockage of blood supply. “The spleen is an important immune organ in fighting diseases. Loss of the spleen means that fish becomes more susceptible to infection by bacteria commonly present in the water. Fish with SDD may die from dehydration or secondary bacterial infection. Vaccination can prevent fish from succumbing to bacterial infections.” Gibson-Kueh’s message was, “To know not only the pathogens but also understand how they affect and why they kill the fish.”

Big belly

This is a chronic, granulomatous bacterial enteritis and peritonitis, first reported in 3-4 week old seabass. “The on-going inflammation progresses to gut perforation and severe inflammation in the abdominal cavity. Fish die because in seawater the gut plays a key role in water absorption to counter dehydration. Moving the fish to freshwater will reduce losses,” said Gibson-Kueh.

Parasites

Figure 1. Scale drop disease (SDD) in Asian seabass. Source: Susan Gibson-Kueh, Diseases in Tropical Finfish Aquaculture: Busting Myths, Pushing Borders, TARS 2024.

Figure 1 : S cale drop disease skin and dehydration in ﬁsh in seawater. Bringing reduce the mortality rate. Source: Susan Gibson Aquaculture: Busting Myths, Pushing Borders,”

Parasite control can be quite a struggle, especially when the life cycle of parasites is never broken. It is not just a matter of treating with the right chemicals, but treatment frequency must target susceptible parasite stages and break the life cycle. Eggs are very resistant to chemicals. It is critical to monitor the effectiveness of treatment which can vary with temperature and salinity.

Big belly

“One of the reasons that some tropical fish farms struggle with parasite control is because they do not coordinate treatment of the whole farm or site due to limited manpower. Re-infection by hatching eggs or cysts needs to be considered to effectively treat parasites. In Norway, for sea lice, there is a very coordinated strategy to treat the entire site all at once.” Gibson-Kueh added that what is needed are efficacious oral medications to allow farms to treat the whole farm at any one time.

This is a chronic, granulomatous bacterial enteritis old seabass. “The on-going inﬂammation progresses in the abdominal cavity. Fish die because in seawater absorption to counter dehydration. Moving the Gibson-Kueh.

Parasites

The panel on Disease Mitigation and Innovation at TARS 2024, held on August 14-15, Bangkok. From left, Dr Jarin Sawanboonchun (moderator), with speakers: Dr Susan GibsonKueh, Tropical Futures Institute, James Cook University; Dr Roberto Cascione, Virbac Asia Pacific; Dr Rishita Changede, Teora Pte Ltd and panellists; Jessica Kaye Turner, Nam Sai Farms Co Ltd, and Dr Ei Lin Ooi, Adisseo Asia Pacific.

Parasite control can be quite a struggle, especially broken. She said that it is not just a matter of frequency must target susceptible parasite stages resistant to chemicals. It is critical to monitor with temperature and salinity.

“One of the reasons that some tropical ﬁsh farms

E[ective treatment strategies depend on knowing the duration of each parasite stage to determine the frequency of treatment. More research is needed on parasite life cycle studies.

2. Participants were challenged on the reasons behind these clinical signs

Monitoring and biosecurity

Effective treatment strategies depend on knowing the duration of each parasite stage to determine the frequency of treatment. More research is needed on parasite life cycle studies.

Monitoring and biosecurity

Country Serotypes in major producing areas Others

Bangladesh S.agalactiae (no information on serotype)

Indonesia S.agalactiae, all three (Ia, III, Ib)

TiLV, ISKNV and Francisella noatunensis

Keeping farms disease-free can be expensive. Representative fish samples and test selections are important in disease diagnosis. The farmer suspected a viral disease on their fish recently transferred to grow- out tanks (Figure 2). Clinical signs generally appear more than 2-3 weeks after viral infections, and based on the face lesions it is more likely that cannibalism and recent transfer stress are responsible for poor health in these fish.

Keeping farms disease-free can be expensive. Representative fish samples and test selections are important in disease diagnosis. Gibson-Kueh cited a case where a farmer suspected viral disease on fish. She said, clinical recently transferred to grow-out tanks. signs generally appear more than 2-3 weeks after viral infections, and based on the face lesions it is more likely that cannibalism and recent transfer stress are responsible for poor health in these fish.

“We need to find the reasons why fish succumb to infections. Sometimes, bacteria in the water do not cause diseases at all; at other times they do. Proper diagnosis is necessary to guide disease management as there is no one-size-fits-all solution. Understanding the progression of specific diseases is important in effective management.”

Dr Roberto Cascione, Key Account Manager Asia & Middle East, Virbac Asia Pacific, Thailand, discussed “Tilapia Disease Pathogen Mapping: Challenges, Trigger Points and Possible Solutions”. He started with a pathogen mapping for tilapia in Southeast Asia, developed after years of epidemiological observations.

“Overall, we see that Streptococcus agalactiae serotypes Ia, III, Ib have spread all over farming areas in the last 10 years, evolving into a multivalent serotype scenario in Asia as well as in Africa and Latin America. For decades, the Philippines and Indonesia were decidedly monovalent with type Ib only. Today, S. agalactiae serotype Ia and Ib are infecting tilapia with Streptococcus iniae in Calabarzon in the Philippines. In Indonesia, there is S. agalactiae Ia, III and Ib in Java and Sumatra.”

“One of the reasons that some tropical fish farms struggle with parasite control is because they do not coordinate treatment for the whole farm or site due to limited manpower.”

– Susan Gibson- Kueh

Thailand S. agalactiae , all three (Ia, III, Ib) TiLV, F. noatunensis

Malaysia S.agalactiae, two ( Ia, III) TiLV, ISKNV

Philippines S.agalactiae, two ( Ia, Ib) Streptococcus iniae

Vietnam S.agalactiae, all three ( Ia, III, Ib) Edwarsiella ictaluri

Table 1. Summary of prevalence and impact of various pathogens affecting fish in different regions of Asia. Source: Roberto Cascione, Tilapia disease pathogen mapping: Challenges, Trigger Points and Solutions, TARS 2024.

“Disease patterns are becoming unpredictable. We need regulatory changes to permit an open market for autogenous vaccines or simplify the accessibility to commercial vaccines”Roberto Cascione

“In Thailand, there is the prevalence of specific serotypes of S. agalactiae with tilapia lake virus (TILV) in various districts in Khon Kean, Nong Kai, Petchaburi, Samut Prakan, and with Francisella noatunensis in Uttaradit. In Malaysia, S. agalactiae (Ia, III) are found together with TILV and spleen and kidney necrosis virus (ISKNV).”

Tilapia lake virus (TiLV) was a challenge 10 years ago, affecting especially at the hatchery and nursery stages. In red tilapia the infection is at varying pathogenicity and virulence. It is a serious limiting factor in the fry of black tilapia in Malaysia. These pathogens affect different stages of production.

Cascione said, “It is now clear that we often observe multiple infection scenarios in tilapia farming, an outbreak can include 1-3 pathogens at one time. Finding the pathogens is only the first step of the diagnostic process, because the simple detection does not give us the answer. We need to analyse farming history and seasonal changes, weather, temperature, and clinical signs together.”

Figure

Figure 2. Participants were challenged on the reasons behind these clinical signs

Streptococcus infection in tilapia and granuloma in spleen in a tilapia infected with Francisella spp

Trigger factors

“This can be the way forward to manage the multiple pathogens affecting fish.”- Rishita Changede

Jessica Kaye Turner said “What we did was allow our broodstock to faced diseases and develop natural immunity... such that today mortality is less than 5% in summer.”

Cascione attributed the spread of these diseases to the global market and globalisation of diseases. There is the influence of climate change, fish movement, biosecurity lapses and production increases. “Tilapia has shown the fastest growth rates at 8.7% in the last 12 years. Farmers increase stocking density to produce more fish. We also note that vaccinated fish have shown a significant (30% average) better survival rate during outbreak seasons and at final recovery.”

New pathogens

The list is led by Francisella noatunensis , which is becoming more aggressive, especially in Indonesia, when water temperature drops below 25°C. ISKNV affects early or nursery stages. Edwardsiella ictaluri in north Vietnam does not allow farming in November to February as mortality is too high. ISKNV is an iridovirus affecting early stages. Indonesia, Malaysia and Vietnam are heavily affected by this virus with serious impacts on production. Parvovirus was recently reported by Dr Win Surachetpong, Kasetsart University in Thailand. It was detected in China and is lethal when associated with other disease such as TiLV.

Solutions

Vaccination helps to reduce mortality costs and harmonise the growth and predictability of crops. The limit, though, is the absence of multiple vaccines to overcome the current multiple pathogen situation. “However, Asia can learn from Brazil which has a massive growth rate at 8.3% which is related to a vaccination rate of 35%. In comparison, the vaccination rate is 1% in Southeast Asia and there are only three companies with vaccination programs: Manit Farms in Thailand, Regal Springs in Indonesia, and Trapia in Malaysia. In Colombia, there was a national vaccination program because of a large outbreak of S. agalactiae.”

Vaccination plays a key role in farming with differences in mortality rate with vaccinated and non-vaccinated fish. Other solutions include the Thai model of low-density and large surface farming, stocking in 3x3m or 6x6m cages, 2,000 to 6,000 fish. Recirculating aquaculture systems (RAS) and biofloc technology are options to overcome weather woes.

Cascione concluded, “Disease patterns are becoming unpredictable. We need regulatory changes to permit an open market for autogenous vaccines or simplify the accessibility to commercial vaccines. We need improved genetics on disease resistance and fish quality. There is no solution for all, but each system can find its own solution compatible with its needs.”

Interestingly, Turner shared her experience at Nam Sai Farms, where the philosophy is to let nature play a key role. “What we did was allow our broodstock to faced diseases and develop natural immunity. We also

let natural selection take its course—weak fish do not survive, while the stronger ones continue to thrive. In 1998, we lost 50% of the stock when a Streptococcus outbreak broke out. Resistant genes were passed to subsequent stocks, such that today mortality is less than 5% in summer.” Nam Sai now supplies disease resistant fry to farmers.

Next generation biotech solutions

Teora Pte Ltd, Singapore is a startup involved in developing next generation biotech solutions for disease management. CEO Dr Rishita Changede gave information on what it has in terms of solutions. “The current vaccines; primarily whole inactivated bacteria; if applied as orally can increase risk of disease. Viral vaccines are few, as they require specialised cell lines to produce. Injection vaccines may not be scalable for non-high margin species.”

The question is how to bring safe solutions from the human pharmaceutical industry to manage fish disease in Asia. “It is possible to create vaccines for bacterial and viruses. What we do is just use nanopeptides – a small portion, enough to trigger the immune system and anti-viral solutions to curb viral spread. Delivery is oral via top coating at the feed mill or farm. This allows us to protect against multiple different strains at the same time and give boosters.”

Trials were conducted against S. iniae and against SDD in Asian seabass at Thai Union and Asian Institute of Technology (AIT) in Thailand. These showed high survival rates and no adverse effects on production parameters such as weight gain and average daily growth. Rishita also introduced the SOLAQ platform where together with industry, the company can develop preventive biotech solutions against specific virus, parasites, and bacteria. “This can be the way forward to manage the multiple pathogens affecting fish.”

Ooi ended the conversation with, “We could be always chasing pathogens. Therefore, early detection or even good husbandry are key. Vaccination is very specific. Since we cannot foresee diseases coming, prevention and strengthening immunity will help.”

According to Ei Lin Ooi, “We could be always chasing pathogens. Therefore, early detection or even good husbandry are key.”

Too late to prevent a shrimp disease outbreak

A caution on Point of Care testing after clinical signs of disease in shrimp

By Jade Naumann

In shrimp disease management, timing is most critical. Shrimp pathogens start their destructive effect long before any visible signs of disease appear. Without regular surveillance testing, it is impossible to foresee a disease outbreak.

Clinical signs of disease in shrimp are not warning signs but are often indicators that the fight against pathogens has already been lost, with loss of stock and with adverse impacts on profits. When shrimp are infected, the pathogen load has already significantly increased and the opportunity for effective intervention may have been lost. This is the harsh reality many shrimp farmers face by relying on Point of Care (POC) testing to determine the presence of diseases before the pathogens devastate entire crops.

During the incubation period, disease pathogens multiply and are likely to be transmitted to other shrimp within the pond and even throughout the farm. By the time clinical symptoms are evident, often the pathogen has spread widely. This complicates control measures and increases the potential for significant crop losses.

Why is early detection paramount?

Identifying a pathogen at the earliest stages — before it has had the chance to proliferate — can make the difference between a contained incident and a full-scale outbreak. In high-density culture systems, delayed disease detection exponentially amplifies the rapid spread of pathogens.

Limitations of POC testing

POC tests — including miniaturised in-house real time PCR machines with kit-based reagents, and single use test strip kits — are widely used in the shrimp farming industry.

“Identifying a pathogen at the earliest stages — before it has had the chance to proliferate — can make the difference between a contained incident and a fullscale outbreak.”

These are easy to use and especially, often used in the field to provide rapid results when the farmer suspects a disease occurrence. However, while POC tests are useful in certain situations, it is important to understand their limitations, particularly with regard to early detection and surveillance.

Viral loads

One of the primary issues with POC tests is their sensitivity. Many of them require a substantial viral load (often around 1000 copies of the virus) to produce a positive result. In disease management, this is a significant drawback. By the time a shrimp’s viral load reaches this threshold, the pathogen may have already begun to spread throughout the entire population.

Study on efficacy of several POC tests

In 2023, CSIRO (Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation, Australia) carried out a study on the efficacy of several POC tests. According to the study, these are not sufficiently sensitive to detect low levels of pathogens. This means that they are not suitable for early detection purposes. This is particularly concerning when considering the expectations many farmers have of POC tests as tools for early warning and prevention. While POC remains a useful tool for shrimp farmers, the toolkit is not complete if POC tests are the only disease control method in use on a farm.

This study also highlights the gap between the manufacturer’s claims of a test kit’s sensitivity as shown on the packaging, and what is achievable in the farm with real-world shrimp samples.

“The lack of sensitivity of these POC testing systems creates a false sense of security for farmers,” said Dr Melony Sellars, CEO of Genics Pty, Australia, and a leading expert in shrimp disease management. “The CSIRO study identified vital issues with the evaluated POC testing kits, which means that they are not, in fact, a solution for early warning and prevention of many common shrimp pathogens.” Sellars added, “Based on comparative laboratory data, two examples include white spot syndrome virus (WSSV) and infectious myonecrosis virus (IMNV).”

Fit for purpose PCR tests

PCR tests are designed for specific purposes, and it is essential that they are used appropriately to avoid giving false negatives, or other inaccurate results. For example, PCR tests designed specifically to confirm clinical diseases are not necessarily suitable for early detection. Tests designed for early detection and surveillance are optimised to identify pathogens at very low levels, well before clinical signs appear.

“The reason our industry has never been able to achieve early detection and early risk mitigation, as prior to MultiPath, there were no cost-effective tools that could achieve this level of accuracy and sensitivity at scale.”

Alternatives to POC tests

Farmers, understandably, want quick answers when their shrimp’s health is on the line. However, the convenience of POC tests comes at a price — their lack of sensitivity, and lack of ability to detect multi-factorial infections.

Sellars explained that MultiPath 2.0 represents a significant advancement in the field of shrimp disease diagnostics (pathogen surveillance). This technology allows for the simultaneous detection of 18 different shrimp pathogens in a single sample, providing a comprehensive overview of the health status of a shrimp population.

A key advantage of MultiPath 2.0 is that it can differentiate between genetic subvariants of major pathogens. This capability is critical in managing multi-factorial pathogen scenarios, where shrimp may be co-infected with multiple pathogens. Multi-factorial pathogen scenarios are tricky to diagnose, even trickier to manage and unfortunately very common in shrimp farming.

In the context of shrimp farming, the most sensitive PCR tests, such as those endorsed by the World Organisation for Animal Health (WOAH), can detect as few as ten copies of a pathogen.

“Highly sensitive and specific diagnostic tests are necessary to confirm the presence of pathogens in apparently healthy shrimp. Shrimp MultiPath 2.0TM, a PCR-based assay developed by Genics, requires on average only two copies of a pathogen for detection. This level of sensitivity is crucial for the early identification of pathogens and the prevention of disease outbreaks,” says Sellars.

“This cannot be achieved with many of the POC or on-farm use tests in the market simply as they are not sensitive enough when used on shrimp tissue, which contains various PCR inhibitors such as chitin.

Moving forward: A shift in disease management practices

The findings of the CSIRO study highlight the need for a reassessment of disease detection practices in shrimp farming. POC tests do have a role to play in pathogen detection but farmers must be aware of their limitations.

Shrimp farmers must prioritise the use of highly sensitive and specific diagnostic tools that can detect pathogens at the earliest stages of infection. This is a necessary step to safeguard the sustainability and profitability of our shrimp farming industry.

The stakes are too high to rely on inadequate testing methods. As the industry moves forward, it is imperative that farmers adopt the use of highly sensitive and accurate diagnostic tools to ensure the health and success of their farms. The lesson is clear: when it comes to disease detection, sooner is always better.

Reference Valdeter, S.T., Moody, N.J.G., and Wesche, S.J. 2023. Evaluation of point of care (POC) tests for White Spot Syndrome Virus (WSSV). FRDC 2019-089 Final Report, CSIRO Australian Centre for Disease Preparedness. CC BY 3.0.

Jade Naumann is Marketing and Communications Manager, Genics Pty, Australia.

Email: jade.naumann@genics.com.au

Dr Melony Sellars, CEO of Genics and a leading expert in shrimp disease management.

Schematic illustration on pathogen load throughout the incubation and early infection period is not detected with Point of Care Testing. Copyright: Genics Pty Ltd.

Pangasius catfish farming in India: Developments and challenges

A popular fish but recently, in marketing, frequent lows in farmgate prices pushed by seasonality and mismatch in demands; in grow-out, a lack of quality fry and fingerlings

By Laxmappa Boini and Ravinder Rao Bakhsi

While the “three major carps”, referred to as Indian Major Carps (IMC), make up around 50% of India’s farmed freshwater fish production, pangasius catfish production is a close second, at an estimated 100,000 tonnes/year. Endemic to the Mekong River Delta in Southeast Asia, Pangasianodon hypophthalmus, was introduced under an aquaculture diversification plan to several other Asian countries, including India, in 19951996 from Thailand, via Bangladesh and was named Pangasius sutchi

There has been a steady increase in pangasius farming by small-scale to progressive farmers, in monoculture or polyculture, at high density in ponds, cages and recirculation aquaculture systems (RAS). Its farming became popular among farmers and aquaculture entrepreneurs due to an array of culture traits; resilient to diverse habitats, a wide food spectrum, adaptability to stocking in high density and amenable to artificial breeding. Another attribute is the high demand in the domestic and export markets. Along the production chain, broodstock rearing, fry and juvenile production technology, improved feed, and transportation have, over the years, made pangasius farming feasible in West Bengal, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Bihar, Tamil Nadu, and Odisha. Today, pangasius farming in Andhra Pradesh represents the fastest growth of a single species recorded so far in India’s aquaculture sector.

A

short history and “Blue Revolution” initiative

Large-scale culture began in West Bengal and Andhra Pradesh. Hatchery technicians from West Bengal

acquired early breeding techniques from Bangladesh. Today, West Bengal is the main hub of hatchery production, generating over 900 million pangasius fry. There are some commercial nurseries and hatcheries in Andhra Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Odisha and erstwhile Uttar Pradesh. However, some farmers continue to buy fry from Bangladesh.

The government of India has been promoting its farming, particularly in cages in reservoirs through the “Blue Revolution” initiative, which has funded and supported several cage farming projects in India. This is a welltimed initiative to promote increased fish production and livelihood support for the inland farmers.

Production systems

Ponds, tanks, cages and net pens are the major production systems for the pangasius in Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, West Bengal, Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh, Maharashtra, Gujarat, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Madhya Pradesh, Bihar and Uttar Pradesh. The fish is predominantly farmed in small ponds of 0.4ha to 4ha, at water depths of 1.5m to 2m. Nevertheless, large ponds up to 50ha are also used, especially in Andhra Pradesh.

It is estimated that over 44,500ha of ponds and tanks are used for its culture. Out of this, 26,000ha are in Andhra Pradesh, followed by Bihar and West Bengal (Figure 1). There are over 2,500 cages in reservoirs for pangasius farming spread over 1,800ha in Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh and Maharashtra.

Pangasius culture in cages in a reservoir in Jharkhand

over 2,500 cages in reservoirs for pangasius farming spread over 1,800ha in Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh and Maharashtra.

Pangasius culture area in hectares

West Bengal, 6500, 15%

Telangana, 600, 1%

Bihar, 8500, 19%

Other states, 2800, 6%

Andhra Pradesh, 26000, 59%

Andhra Pradesh is the major producer of pangasius due to its favourable natural resources. Approximately 10-15% of the farming area in the Krishna-Godavari Delta is used to farm the pangasius and production was 60,000 tonnes in 2023. Productivity is around 15 to 50 tonnes/ha/year. There is also enthusiasm in Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand and Bihar to farm this catfish.

Cost of production

Figure 1. Area of ponds used for pangasius farming in ponds in India. The total area is 44,500ha of ponds and tanks.

Figure 1: Area of ponds used for pangasius farming in ponds in India The total area is 44,500ha of ponds and tanks.

The production costs and returns in pangasius farming depend on the production technology, feed and pond management. Production costs vary from farm to farm, location to location, and depend mainly on the differences in biophysical factors, input use and socioeconomic conditions. Farm yields are around 20-25 tonnes/ha and higher production of 50-60 tonnes/ha is not uncommon. The fish are harvested at 0.8-1.5kg, after a grow-out period of 6-8 months. Some common farming practices for this fish in India are given in Table 3.

Monoculture of pangasius is predominantly in over 82% of ponds Polyculture is with the Indian major carps (Labeo rohita, Catla catla and Cirrhinus mrigala) as well as Amazon redbellied pacu (Piaractus brachypomus) in different combinations

Monoculture of pangasius is predominantly in over 82% of ponds. Polyculture is with the Indian major carps ( Labeo rohita, Catla catla and Cirrhinus mrigala ) as well as Amazon red-bellied pacu ( Piaractus brachypomus ) in different combinations.

The main stocking season is from January to May. The cost of fingerlings is high at INR5,000-6,000/1000 fry (USD6071) during this season. Prices fall to a low of INR3001,000/1000fry (USD3.5-12/) from June to December. For grow-out, the stocking density depends on water depth. Farmers in Andhra Pradesh stock fingerlings of 50-150g (100-150mm) at 10,000-15,000 fingerlings/ha. Table 2 shows the cost of fry and fingerlings, according to sizes.

Stocking density 5000-10,000/acre (12,500-25,000/ha)

Stocking size 30-100g

Culture duration 6-8 months

Feeding rate 3-5% body weight

Feed type Commercial floating feed & local farm-made feed

Feed cost INR33-40/kg (USD0.39-0.48)

Harvest type Batch harvest (mostly 2-3 harvests in one crop)

Harvest fish size 0.8-1.5kg

Total production 4-6 tonnes/acre (10-15 tonnes/ha)

Farm gate price INR65-75/kg (USD0.77-0.89)

Table 3. Common farming practices for the pangasius catfish in India.

Farming practices

Pond culture

*Prices as per local enquiry in September 2024 in Andhra Pradesh

Table 2. Prices (INR) for pangasius fry and fingerlings in India. (USD 1 = INR83.95).

Ponds are usually from 1 to 20ha and the stocking density is about 5,000 to 15,000 fry, or even more. Pond farmers use improved pond preparation protocols, such as the addition of fertilisers for plankton development, and extruded and pelleted feeds as well as locally produced feeds. Probiotics are administered after 15 to 20 days of culture, depending on pond water conditions and water exchange.

Cage

culture

Pangasius is now farmed in cages at high stocking density to maximise returns and productivity. These cages are fixed in river streams, reservoirs and lakes. Recently, cage culture has been carried out in Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh, Gujarat, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Maharashtra, etc.

The stocking density is regulated at 5,000 to 6,000 fingerlings in each cage compartment (96m3) for growout culture over 6 to 8 months. The best management practices include regular cleaning of cages to prevent algae from clogging the nets and for better water flow. Regular cleaning of the inner net in the cages, once every month, removes settled organic matter. Application of water sanitisers during the culture period (when the water turns an abnormal colour) must also be carried

Feeding pangasius catfish with pelleted feed in a culture pond in Andhra Pradesh.

out. Feed additives consisting of probiotics, yeast and vitamins are given for 4-5 days in a month for optimal feed consumption and healthy growth.

Feed and feeding practices

Feed comprises about 70% of farming costs. The fish is fed with formulated floating feeds, once or twice a day (in the morning and/or evening) for pond and cage culture. Feed rations vary with age and size of fish. Feed conversion ratio (FCR) is 1:1.4 to 1.6 when culture conditions are optimal. During adverse farming conditions, FCR goes up from 1:1.7 to 2.0.

Farm-made versus commercial feeds

Some farmers use farm-made feeds prepared with locally available materials, such as soaked or boiled corn and broken rice during the grow-out in ponds. In a few areas, farmers feed fish with poultry by products (intestines, skin, stomach, etc) in addition to farmmade feed to lower production costs. Table 4 gives the protein content, feed size and daily feeding rate as % fish body weight. These can be slightly modified at frequent intervals, depending on the situations related to the plankton production, health condition and growth rate of fish.

Pangasius requires commercial feeds to achieve the expected growth-to-market size rates. Floating feed is sold according to crude protein levels of 24%, 26%, 28%, and 32%. Indian farmers often choose the cheapest feed options or will even devise their own mixes to save costs. Prices for floating feeds can vary, depending on the brand and the protein/fat percentage per kilogram. Table 5 shows the composition of some commonly used extruded floating fish feed in India.

Common disease during

culture

Deteriorating water quality, poor management practices and extremely variable water temperatures (both high and low) result in heavy bacterial and parasitic infections. Furthermore, high stocking densities and unhygienic culture conditions are conducive for the spread of pathogens,

4. Feeding practices for the

based on average body weight.

eventually leading to high mortality rates. Northern Indian farmers have incurred heavy losses of up to 70% mortality by stocking pangasius during colder seasons. They also reported 10-30% fish fry mortality due to disease outbreaks from injury and transportation stress.

Parasitic infections are followed by haemorrhage or red spot, anal protrusion, pop eye, tail and fin rot, ulceration and white spot. Common parasitic infections are Trichodina spp and Epistylis spp. The bacterial infection “Red Disease” is caused by Aeromonas hydrophila, A. salmonicida and Pseudomonas fluorescens Vibrios are prevalent in pangasius culture.

The most common bacterial diseases observed are red spot disease caused by motile Aeromonas septicaemia and BNP (Bacillary Necrosis of Pangasius) caused by Edwardsiella ictaluri . These infections cause loss of appetite, therefore weakening fish and increasing mortality rates and reducing growth rates.

Water quality

Optimal water conditions are prerequisites, but this is often disregarded by pangasius farmers who continue farming with significantly poor water quality arising from high stocking density and indiscriminately increasing feeding rates and intake of polluted water. Farmers also repeatedly stocked ponds and tanks without any prior treatment and use probiotics. It is common practice to discharge polluted pond effluents into shared water resources.

Usually, pond water is drained weekly and replenished with fresh water at 10% for the initial stages and 25% during the later stages. If there is water scarcity, probiotics are used to improve water quality. Homemade inoculums are prepared by fermenting jaggery (200g) and rice bran (800g) with yeast powder (10g) in a container with 10L water for 36-48 hours and then applied to 100m3 pond water once a week to accelerate the growth of natural food organisms and keep the pond environment healthy.

Table 5. Composition and cost for commonly used extruded floating fish feeds (Source: Growel Feeds Private Limited).

Table

pangasius

When needed, agricultural lime and sodium bicarbonate are added to raise pH and alkalinity, respectively. The use of dolomite stabilises both pH and alkaline levels. Inorganic fertilisers are added at frequent intervals of 1-4 weeks to maintain plankton growth, and the frequency of application is adjusted according to the primary productivity level. When there is sufficient plankton, the application is delayed, and farmers know that it is critical not to allow the plankton population to fall too much before the next fertiliser application. Growth assessment is carried out monthly with a scoop net.

Harvesting

Generally, during a culture period of 6-8 months, the fish grows to 1.2-1.5kg. Starving the fish for 2-3 days prior to harvest improves the flesh quality. A high productivity of 30 tonnes/ha in a crop with a survival rate of 80% was achieved in Andhra Pradesh. The partial harvest of large-size fish from the sixth month onwards is carried out to regulate pond biomass and for better market prices.

“Many farmers are struggling with regards to production due to the lack of compensatory prices.”

Marketing trends and price fluctuations

Currently, pangasius is available for sale in domestic markets from Kerala (south) to Arunachal Pradesh (northeastern) as chilled whole fish with adequate packaging to extend shelf life. Farmgate prices vary by region, depending on costs - transport, feed and the average size of the harvest.

Farmgate prices in Uttar Pradesh and Delhi are better, mainly because of the higher demand. In Punjab, Himachal Pradesh and Haryana, farmers stopped its farming due to very low margins. The low price of fish in northern India affected the imports of fish from Andhra Pradesh. In summary, we see that many farmers are struggling with regards to production due to the lack of compensatory prices.

Fluctuations in farmgate prices over the last couple of years revealed significant seasonality in the market. Prices remain steady from January to April each year and steadily rise from May to August to reach their annual peak. In October, prices fall due to an increase in supply at year-end.

Currrently, farmgate prices fluctuate between INR68 - 80/kg (USD0.81-0.95), depending on the intensive farming, stocking densities and harvesting patterns practised by farmers. On average, selling prices range from INR68-74/kg (USD0.81-0.88).

Pangasius fingerlings.

Floating feeds for grow-out culture.

A harvest of pangasius from a culture pond in Andhra Pradesh

In 2024, the pangasius industry encountered a sudden price collapse. The average price in the major producing areas was approximately INR72 for 1.2kg fish (i.e. INR60/kg or USD0.71/kg). In Andhra Pradesh, high pond rental costs, expensive feed and low fish prices prompted many farmers to reconsider the restocking ponds and farming of this fish.

In the Indian market, farmgate prices vary according to the size of fish at harvest. Pangasius farmers face hurdles in selling market-size fish because of low demand in many states for less than 1.2kg fish. Many farmers had to look at markets further from their native region for higher prices. This, in turn, brought about several issues with the freshness of fish and high transportation costs.

Challenges

Below are some of the challenges faced by farmers:

• The spawning grounds for the pangasius are located near open waters. Fish escapees are now visible in natural water bodies in several states, including Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Kerala and Maharashtra.

• This inexpensive fish with few bones is very popular. However, there are concerns on food safety when the fish are raised in polluted waters and fed with poultry by products.

• As its farming expands, overfeeding, and the careless use of fertilisers and chemicals for fish health have had an impact on pond eutrophication.

• Yields have been affected by production costs, lack of quality fry, water quality, nutrition and, especially, substandard farming practices and poor disease management.

• There are many potential sources of contamination of farmed pangasius with various pollutants throughout the production cycle due to unethical agricultural practices, low levels of hygiene, inappropriate technological adaptations and lax regulations. To promote its farming, a set of guidelines has been developed. However, they must be updated to assist farmers maintain standards in culture practices.

• A lack of oversight in farming ethics has raised concerns on environmental safety, biodiversity, and health. These necessitate a more careful strategy to develop a more sophisticated and sustainable method of farming, accompanied by strict regulatory measures.

• Stakeholders and aquaculture ecologists must be informed on sustainable production methods by following Best Management Practices (BMP) for managing the culture environment, controlling pollution and pathogenic bacterial loads to manage diseases, prevent escapees from farms, periodic removal of wastes from the culture areas and exploring new markets.

References

https://vikaspedia.in/agriculture/fisheries/package-ofaquaculture-practices-fisheries-1/production-of-Pangasiuscatfish https://www.aquastarmagazine.com/downloads/ northernIndiaPangasiuspromise.pdf https://www.globalseafood.org/advocate/Pangasiusaquaculture-in-india/ Laxmappa B et al (2016): Pangasius in Indian reservoirs. Aqua Culture Asia Pacific Magazine, Volume 12, Number 4, p54-56. Singh AK (2020): Emerging Sustainability Issues and Management Needs of Booming Aquaculture Production of Introduced Pangasianodon hypophthalmus (Sauvage 1878). J Aquac Fisheries 4: 032.

Dr Laxmappa Boini is Assistant Director of Fisheries, Department of Fisheries, Wanaparthy, Telangana, India.

Dr Ravinder Rao Bakhsi is Assistant Professor, Department of Zoology, MVS Govt. Arts & Science College, Mahbubnagar, Telangana, India.

January/February 2025

Issue focus: Nursery & Hatchery

Industry Review: Marine Shrimp

Functional Feeds/Additives/ Controlled Systems

Deadlines: Articles/Adverts – November 30

March/April 2025

Issue focus: Health and Disease Management

Industry Review: Marine Fish

Fish Meal/Lipids/Industrialisation

Deadlines: Articles/Adverts – January 24

Email: zuridah@aquaasiapac.com/enquiries@aquaasiapac.com

Harvested pangasius catfish in Andhra Pradesh.

Carp culture in Nepal receives a postCOVID boost

Local feed company spearheads innovation across the supply chain

By Moushumi Shrestha, Pradip Paudel, Anton Immink, Bishal Gautam and Miroslav Kostecki

Nepal’s leading agri business and feed company, Shreenagar Agritech Industries Limited (SAIL), in partnership with the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) through the Business Partnership Platform (BPP), Science Technology Engineering Maths Social Enterprise Learning (STEMSEL) Foundation (Australia) and ThinkAqua (UK) have been implementing the project “Mitigating COVID-19 Impact by Introducing Digital and Innovative Technologies to the Aquaculture Sector in Nepal: Engaging women, youth and returnee migrants”.

Over the last three years, the project team has worked with more than 3,000 smallholder farmers in the Rupandehi, Nawalparasi, and Kapilvastu districts of the Lumbini Province of Nepal to improve production. The team has delivered training on improved practices, piloted various digital and production technology solutions, eased access to quality inputs, strengthened cooperatives, connected financiers with farmers, and explored how to grow the market for local fish.

Although blessed with an abundance of natural resources, the aquaculture sector in Nepal has not reached its full potential and cannot yet compete with imports to service a growing demand for fresh fish. The situation, before the project launch, was that farmers used traditional, lower-productivity farming systems with limited access to innovation technologies and training on best practices. Quality feed had not yet penetrated the market and there was a lack of organisation in the marketing of fish with a lack of access to funds. The project addressed these multiple factors comprehensively to support the Government of Nepal’s ambitions to increase the productivity of the agriculture sector as part of the COVID-19 recovery.

The team

The BPP team visiting in early 2024 to review progress with farmers in Butwal district.

As a responsible company in the agriculture sector in Nepal, Shreenagar has supported the development of the poultry and egg sectors and wanted to bring that experience to the aquaculture supply chain through a range of interventions. Their role is to make a transformative shift in Nepal’s aquaculture sector moving from a challenging post-COVID situation to a more promising future through the use of balanced feed, use of digital/innovative technologies and market linkages engaging rural women, youth and returnee migrants.

STEMSEL has helped to create digital monitoring solutions in developing country contexts before, although the challenges of the aquaculture sector were new. ThinkAqua has previously worked in Nepal but also brings experience from carp farming in India and Bangladesh and technical developments elsewhere in the world. DFAT and BPP provided financing but were also active in guiding project implementation and increasing participation from women and other marginalised groups.

Activities

The team introduced a range of interventions aimed at increasing farmer confidence and profitability. Through a training of trainers model, improved production practices were shared, including water management, stocking, harvesting and health management. Automated feeders and aerators were tested and an IoT device to monitor water quality was developed. These technological innovations went through various iterations because of challenges with component availability and cost in the post-COVID era, as well as functionality in farmer trials.

Shreenagar has also supported the establishment of five agricentres to improve access to inputs, provide guidance to farmers and serve as hubs for fish sales. As part of market innovation, the team trialled new product forms of fish in the market, particularly processing and freezing the fish in more convenience-focused packaging. Uptake has initially been limited, with consumers still preferring fresh fish, but Shreenagar will continue to work with market partners on future strategies.

Access to finance for farm improvements was a hurdle that the project team has been able to overcome for some farmers through stronger engagement with, and guidance to, financial service companies in Nepal. On the feed raw material side, Shreenagar has also worked more closely with local maize producers to ensure cost-effective supplies in the face of current global challenges with price and availability.

Project impact

Over the lifetime of the project, 3156 farmers (705 females, 1678 disadvantaged groups) reported improved skills and knowledge that they can apply in their fish farming activities. Some 259 (64 women, 152 DAG) lead farmers were trained in new technologies and farming approaches, which they have shared with their neighbours in a range of training.

At the end of the project, 215 farmers were surveyed as a representative sample of all the farmers who had participated in the project. From this sample, it was evident that:

• Some 86% of farmers valued the training and support they received to help them be more productive, up from only 36% in the baseline.

• Average fish production increased from 3.66 tonnes/ ha to 4.49 tonnes/ha, with households reporting an average income from fish sales of AUD6,679 (USD4481) per annum (compared with the baseline average of AUD4,500 (USD 3020).

A successful partialharvest for some of the farmers involved in the project

• Commercial feed use has increased by around 9% on baseline numbers, contributing to the commercial success of the farmers, alongside the use of technology and improved practices.

• During the project lifetime, the percentage of farmers able to access finance has doubled because of Shreenagar’s engagement with local financial institutions.

• The support of the five agricentres installed into target areas, which offer a range of support, access to inputs and a route to market has given more farmers confidence to increase production.

Women farmers trained and producing more fish

A key focus for the project team was to understand and improve the role of women in aquaculture. Most smaller farms in Nepal are operated as family businesses, but women do not always take part in the training because of social norms and the timing, structure and location of the training. Following a gender audit, the team was able to structure project activities in a way that would increase women’s participation. This has resulted in greater impact across the project’s activities.

Installation of IoT devices at Paklihawa Agriculture College for field testing and improvement.

A great example comes from the Bardiya district, nestled in the fertile Terai plains, covered with agricultural land and forest. Bardia is known as a tourism destination, although most people living in this district are farmers. A group of passionate women decided to embark on a journey to start a fish farming venture to not only boost the local economy but also showcase the pristine beauty of Bardia to tourists.

With support from the community, the women set up a cooperative dedicated to fish farming. They took part in training on modern fish farming techniques. As the women implemented these newfound practices, their fish farming venture thrived beyond expectations. Through their dedication, collaboration, and willingness to adapt, the women of Bardia not only transformed their local economy but also set an inspiring example for other farmers in the area.

“Shreenagar Agritech wants to make a transformative shift in Nepal’s aquaculture sector ..”

What the future looks like

This project has had a measurable impact on the farmers engaged in this one province, but Shreenagar and the team have learnt a lot too. As the DFAT funding winds down, the feed company is committed to building on what they have learnt to support more fish farmers across the country. Partnerships within financial institutions, government agencies and the Nepal Fisheries Society will be strengthened; more farmers will be trained and new agricenters developed in more districts; and more innovations will continue to be tested with farmers and across the supply chain.

Training of trainers participants in Bardia district.

Moushumi Shrestha is Director, Email: moushumi@safnepal.com

Pradip Paudel is Program Development Advisor. Email: pradip.paudel@safnepal.com

Bishal Gautam is Data& Innovation Manager. Email: bishal.gautam@safnepal.com

Anton Immink is CEO of ThinkAqua, UK. Email: anton.immink@thinkaqua.org

Miroslav Kostecki is CTO at Science Technology Engineering Maths Social Enterprise Learning (STEMSEL) Foundation (STEMSEL), Australia () . Email: miro@stemsel.com

The case for marine tilapia aquaculture in Singapore

By Shubha Vij, Joe Ng and Rajesh Joshi

Since the announcement of Singapore’s ambitious “30 by 30” food security vision in 2019, which aims to produce 30% of the country’s nutritional needs locally by 2030, there has been a mix of progress and setbacks. While local poultry egg production has exceeded expectations, the farming of vegetables and fish has declined, especially in the post-pandemic era. Despite constraints like limited space and high operational costs, Singapore’s aquaculture sector has the potential to thrive through innovative farming techniques, effective resource management, skilled workforce development, continuous research, and exploring new aquaculture species. Let us dive into the current landscape and the potential path forward for Singapore’s aquaculture.

The current state of aquaculture in Singapore

Singapore’s aquaculture landscape primarily includes species like the Asian seabass, red snapper, grouper, mullet, milkfish, and tilapia. Of these, Asian seabass has long been the preferred choice among local farmers and consumers. A selective breeding program for Asian seabass was launched in 2004 by Temasek Life Sciences Laboratory (TLL) and the Agri-Food and Veterinary Authority of Singapore (AVA), with broodstock sourced from various locations in Southeast Asia. This has spurred ongoing research and efforts to boost Asian seabass production.

However, other species, including tilapia, have struggled to gain popularity. Although widely farmed globally, tilapia has been met with reluctance from consumers in Singapore due to a commonly perceived “muddy” or “earthy” taste caused by compounds like geosmin and 2-methylisoborneol. These compounds, produced by algae and bacteria, respectively, in the water, are absorbed by tilapia raised in environments with high organic content. However, modern aquaculture practices, including improved water quality management, optimised feeding, and advanced pond systems, are helping to mitigate these off flavour issues.

Rethinking tilapia: from muddy waters to market success

Globally, tilapia ranks among the top three aquaculture species, alongside carp and salmon. In Singapore, the perception of tilapia is evolving - thanks to local farms growing marine tilapia in coastal waters such as along the western part of the Johor Straits. The shift to marine farming removes the muddy taste, making tilapia more palatable to local consumers and positioning it as a strong contender to help achieve the ‘’30 by 30” vision.

Marine tilapia in Singapore. Photo credit: Joe Ng, Century Aquaculture, Singapore

Harvesting tilapia. The fish takes only 6 months to reach harvest size compared to 9-11 months for red snapper. Photo credit: Joe Ng, Century Aquaculture, Singapore

The marine tilapia edge

One significant advantage of farming marine tilapia is its relatively shorter production cycle. Tilapia takes only about 6 months to reach harvest size compared to 7-9 months for Asian seabass and 9-11 months for red snapper. This faster turnaround allows for more frequent harvests, thus enhancing productivity and offering economic benefits.

Initial trials in Lim Chu Kang have shown promising results, with survival rates of 80-85%. The culture of marine tilapia has garnered interest from supermarkets, restaurants, and other industry players, resulting in high demand that currently outstrips supply. Century Aquaculture’s founder, Joe Ng, reported that in 2024, the farm supplied nearly 500,000 fingerlings to local farmers, with an anticipated harvest of 300 tonnesten times the production of the previous year. Farmers are also enjoying a slight premium for the product over imported tilapia.

Investing in aquaculture innovation

To support the aquaculture industry, the Singapore Food Agency (SFA) has invested over SDG23 million (USD17.6 million) in projects focusing on sustainable urban food production, with a significant portion dedicated to aquaculture. These initiatives aim to tackle key challenges such as genetics, disease management, and nutrition, laying the groundwork for future growth. A critical component for the sector would be the establishment of dedicated national breeding facilities and hatchery centres to ensure a steady supply of highquality fingerlings, reducing reliance on imports.

SFA’s AquaPolis initiative is a notable step in this direction, seeking to create a hatchery technology centre for tropical marine fish in collaboration with local institutes of higher learning (IHLs) and fish farms. This effort, along with potential expansions into broodstock and pathogen-free hatchery centres, will bolster production efficiency and support the broader goal of local food security.

The road ahead

With growing demand and industry support, local farmers are motivated to ramp up production. Marine tilapia, in particular, presents a viable path to enhance local fish production - thanks to its fast growth, adaptability, and improved consumer acceptance. To maximise its potential, resources should be dedicated to fully understand and optimise production through continued research on genetics, breeding, and feed optimisation. This includes exploring the development of all-male, sterile fingerlings to boost productivity and reduce competition.

Valuable lessons can be drawn from the selective breeding success of black tilapia, where companies like GenoMar have developed superior strains such as GenoMar 1000 and GenoMar STRONG, known for their 30% faster growth rates and improved survival, compared to the other available commercial strains. Incorporating such advanced breeding techniques could transform the production landscape for marine tilapia in Singapore.

While tilapia holds promise, it is essential to maintain support for established species like Asian seabass, red snapper, and groupers to ensure a diversified and resilient aquaculture sector. Continued investment in research, breeding programs, and market development for these species will help balance risks and provide a stable supply of high-quality fish.

Conclusion

Marine tilapia’s adaptability, rapid growth, and compatibility with Singapore’s aquaculture conditions make it an invaluable addition to the local industry. Embracing tilapia alongside the Asian seabass and other species will foster a robust, diverse, and self-reliant agri-food sector, propelling Singapore closer to its vision on food security. Strategic collaborations, technology transfer, and partnerships with leading aquatic animals breeding companies will accelerate this transformation, hence supporting a sustainable and thriving future for local aquaculture.

Email: shubha_vij@rp.edu.sg

Joe Ng is Owner of Century Aquaculture Pte Ltd, Singapore.

Rajesh Joshi is a Senior Researcher at GenoMar Genetics Group, Norway.

Shubha Vij is Head, Sustainable Aquaculture Tech Centre, Republic Polytechnic/Adjunct Associate Professor, Tropical Futures Institute, James Cook University Singapore.

Century Aquaculture supplied nearly 500,000 fingerlings to local farmers, with an anticipated harvest of 300 tonnes in 2024.

AQUA 2024: Blue Food, Green Solutions

The joint European Aquaculture and World Aquaculture AQUA 2024 in Denmark was a resounding success, exceeding attendance from previous meetings—with 3,684 participants from 103 countries compared to the 3,003 participants from 109 countries for Aqua 2018 in Montpelier, France. “Quality was everywhere”, said some participants and exhibitors were impressed with the hive of activity in the trade show with 235 booths. These joint events are held every six years. Past events were held in Nice (2000), Florence (2006), Prague (2012) and Montpellier (2018).

Challenges to grow and AI

The theme for Aqua 2024, held on August 26-30, was Blue Food, Green Solutions. There were two exciting plenary speakers. Dag Sletmo, Senior Vice President of the Seafood Division, DNB, gave the opening plenary, “Growing aquaculture— what are the challenges?” On seafood demand, Sletmo said, “The force is with us as all megatrends are with aquaculture. The demand is to feed the 10 billion global population, and we need to produce 56% more food in 2050 than today. Supply growth for salmon farming is trending down and salmon supply can no longer keep up with demand.”

On building markets, he said that acceptable prices are key to growing aquaculture volumes. He suggested that a figure of USD~5/kg to the consumer be a “magical” level in many countries, which means an equivalent to farmgate prices of USD~3/kg. Other factors cited were efficient farming operations, building customer preferences and sustainability and consistent weekly volumes. On where finances will come from, Sletmo gave insights into the financial aspects and investment opportunities. within the aquaculture sector.

On the last day of the conference, Dr Signe RiemerSørensen, Research Manager Analytics and AI, SINTEF, gave her views on “Artificial Intelligence with Knowledge.” While walking the audience through what AI is and its potential for aquaculture, she stressed that despite the current impact of AI copilots and chat-bots, these will not revolutionise aquaculture, as there is a need-toknow for health, growth, etc. She stressed that AI mimics intelligence, but it is not just one thing but a range of subunits. “Therefore, we require a model to join complex happenings,” said Riemer-Sørensen.

The closing also saw Dr Manoj Sharma, Mayank Aquaculture, Gujarat, India, receiving the World

Aquaculture Society’s Global Impact Award for his role in shrimp farming in India. Bjørn Myrseth, Chair of AQUA 2024 Steering Committee, received EAS’ Honorary Life Membership for his pioneering work in fish farming in Europe and beyond (see issue September 2024).

Technical seminars

Some 945 presentations covering a wide range of topics were made during the conference. Gold sponsor, Biomar organised a technical seminar with 4 presentations. In Denmark, 80% of trout farms use recirculation aquaculture systems (RAS). The BioFarm, part of the BioMar Baltic team, covered stress factors in modern intensive RAS farming. It was a sharing of knowledge in running a farm with RAS raceways and looking at aspects such as water and faeces collection, layout of biofilters for ammonia, oxygen saturation relative to temperature and oxygen distribution relative to fish swimming behaviour.

In the “fairy tale of phosphorus”, Mikkel Detz showed changes in phosphorus (P) output per tonne of trout with the earliest Biomar feeds in 1965 compared to 2020 with a 50% reduction in P output with the Blue Impact program. He discussed dietary phosphorus requirements and listed P digestibility in different raw materials and how the addition of phytase improved P digestibility. Phytase did not affect P digestibility of fish meal but improved that of soybean meal from 48% to 85% and corn gluten from 45% to 72%.

Erik Olav Gracey explored commercial solutions with applied sustainability in feed development and transformation within Biomar. A reduction in fish meal from 50% in feeds in 1990 to less than 5% by 2035 is expected. Plant meals made up 35% of feeds in 2020; it will reduce to around 25% in 2035, with single-cell proteins and alternative ingredients. Gracey said that more recently, the transformative potential of regenerative agriculture will revitalise aquafeed supply chains. Biomar will use more byproducts, trimmings, single-cell proteins and ingredients from lower trophic levels (insect meals). “Regenerative agriculture offers a sustainable path forward. It contributes to reforestation, water conservation, biodiversity enhancement, and soil health improvement, thereby making aquafeed production more sustainable.” He highlighted how these reduce the environmental footprint of aquafeed production but also bolster ecosystem services, ensuring a sustainable future for the aquaculture industry.

Dr Manoj Sharma and Vidya M. Sharma; Mayank Aquaculture, India with , from middle to left, Yahira Piedrahita Executive Director National Chamber of Aquaculture, Ecuador; Annabel Palacios, General Manager, Agrimmingold S.A. Ecuador and Maryam El Bakali, Associate Professor, Université Abdelmalek Essaâdi, Morocco.

Sustainable feeds

In “Sustainable aquafeed ingredients? The devil is in the details”, Bjorn Kok, University of Stirling, said that in aquafeed formulations, driven by economic and sustainability incentives, there has been a shift from marine ingredients towards plant-based ingredients, and smaller inclusions of byproducts and novel feed ingredients. Using an Index Decomposition Analysis (IDA) to assess the changing environmental impact of European aquaculture from 2000 to 2020 for five species, he reported there were increases in global warming potential (320%); land use (595%); water consumption (256%); marine eutrophication (624%) and freshwater eutrophication (436%), while fish use was reduced by only 13%. Substituting marine ingredients with plant-based ingredients to date has not been an environmentally sustainable transition. The pressure has disproportionally shifted towards terrestrial systems, which was attributable to the use of soy protein concentrates and rapeseed oil as a replacement for fishmeal and fish oil.

Denmark’s Aller Aqua is a family-owned company, producing aquafeeds for the past 60 years. It was part of a collaborative public-funded project on sustainable aquafeed. At the conference, a presentation by Professor Turid Mørkøre from NMBU (Norwegian University of Life Sciences) showed research results of Aller Aqua feed with the inclusion of black soldier fly meal. The findings underscored the success of including insect meal improving taste, firmness, growth and overall efficiency.

Aller Aqua has a wide range of aquafeeds, including temperature-adapted feeds, such as the spring edition for carps, sea bass, seabream and trout; and the summer edition for sea bass and sea bream. Feeds for RAS are designed for optimal water quality through high pellet stability, minimising pellet dust content and fast sinking rate of faeces. As shrimp cultured in RAS is becoming very popular, especially in Europe, it produces shrimp feeds, in partnership with premix specialist VDS. These feeds are tailored for each specific growth stage.

Aller-Aqua.com

At the U.S. Soybean Export Council (USSEC)’s booth; Professor Delbert Gatlin, Texas A&M University, USA (middle right) with the USSEC team, from left, Brent Babb, Regional Director Europe & Middle East/North Africa; Lukas Manomaitis, Global Aquaculture Coordinator; and Sirri Kayhan, USSEC Turkey.

Fu Ci Guo, Global Sales and Marketing at CBS Bio Platforms, Canada (right) and Nuttapong Muangsuwan, Charoen Pokphand Group, Thailand

Aller Aqua’s Kenneth P.G. Madsen, Group Marketing Manager (left) and Roar Tomassen Sales Manager Norway (middle).

Korupu Venkata Raju, General Manager, Avanti Feeds, India with Ronnie Tan, USGC Aquaculture Consultant, Malaysia.

From left, Jessica Gionnoumis, Ireland Aquatech Community Manager, Hatch Blue; Linda Chen, Hatch Blue and Hatch Innovation Services and Sergio Zimmermann, Zimmermann Aqua Solutions, Norway. Chen presented on emerging protein rich ingredients for aquaculture.

Hatchery feeds and feeding systems

Greece’s Rich has been producing feeds for hatcheries since 1990. There are bioencapsulated hatchery diets for fish and shrimp under the Replace brand, such as Artemia, replacement with particle sizes of 50-100µm and early weaning diets of sizes 200-400µm. The phytoplankton replacement diets have below 2µm sizes for feeding rotifers in fish hatcheries and zoea stage in shrimp hatcheries. Rich also has a range of enrichment diets for rotifers and artemia. rich.gr

Pty Ltd has been innovating a hatchery feeding system in Western Australia. The latest is an upgraded version of the Hatchery Feeding System’ (HFS) – a purposedesigned complete feeding system for all hatchery feeds, dry and liquid (algae and live feeds). The HFS can deliver very small doses of microdiets and weaning diets, live feed and microalgae to maintain constant levels in larvae tanks. The system works for fry and nursery feed of up to 2mm pellets. A recent addition is connections for control via mobile phones.

HFS has an automatic controller, which can be 50m away, for up to 48 microdiet feeders. A smaller system is for 4 tanks. Nutrakol also produces NutraFeed, a semi-moist diet for crustacean maturation, promoting better growth and stress resistance, which its Director and Co-Owner, Dr Sagiv Kolkovski said is perfect for shrimp in RAS. nutrakol.com

In 2025, Aquaculture Europe will be in Valencia, Spain on September 22-25. World Aquaculture China will be in Qingdao, April 24-27.

Nutrakol’s team, Sagiv and Judith Kolkovski showed the upgraded version of the Hatchery Feeding System, a purpose designed complete feeding system for all hatchery feeds.

Nutrakol

Mathieu Castex, President and General Manager (left) and Stephane Ralite, Aquaculture Market Manager, Lallemand Animal Nutrition, France.

The team from Avanti Feeds Ltd, India, from left, Rangareddy Koppula, Product Manager; Ravi, Ome Enterprises; Ratipaili Satish; Paresh Kumar Shetty, General Manager, Marketing; Sambasivayya Dangeti, Team Manager and K S Ranga Babu, Area Manager.

IAFET 2024 - Empowering the regional aquabusiness

The 10th edition of the Int’l Aquaculture & Fisheries Expo Taiwan (formerly the Taiwan International Ocean & Fisheries Show) was a milestone event, successfully bringing together over 400 exhibitors from 20 countries and over 18,000 visitors from 47 countries, including Brazil, El Salvador, Malaysia, Indonesia, Philippines, Thailand, US and UK. It was held over three days from September 11-13 at TaiNEX 1, Taipei.

The focus was on sustainable fisheries. Under the guidance of the Fisheries Research Institute, Ministry of Agriculture, key players and startups in Taiwan have been researching and developing innovative technologies and solutions to promote a healthier environment and effective sustainable aquaculture practices.

IAFET serves not only as a B2B solution platform for industry leaders, experts and startups, but also as a platform for exchanging ideas, fostering collaboration, and driving the future of sustainable aquaculture and fisheries.

Innovative technologies for sustainable aquaculture

The show brought together leading institutions in aquaculture and fisheries technology such as the National Taiwan Ocean University, Fisheries Research Institute, and Fish Breeding Association of Taiwan, alongside companies such as Violon Biotech, GenderAqua Biotech, Opportunity Biotech, Quadlink Technology and SeeWhat Tech. It was mainly on AI (artificial intelligence) - driven precision breeding and capacity-enhancement technologies for aquaculture, aimed at the modernisation and sustainable development of the industry. AI is already adopted into various industry sectors and substituting traditional aquaculture farming practices. In Taiwan, this effectively introduced innovative and easier ways to manage aquaculture farms and keep farming sustainable.

In this specific segment of the show, the range of products include carbon capture technology (Violon Biotech); healthy, mostly-male giant freshwater prawn (Macrobrachium rosenbergii) juveniles (Gender Aqua Biotech); genotyping and precision breeding such as for high quality tiger grouper

juveniles (Opportunity Biotech); IoT systems and sensor for water quality monitoring (Quadlink Technology); disease resistant Murray cod juveniles and aquaculture technology for Murray cod, silver perch, koi and other species (Mo De Bau); aquaculture technology for outdated farms (JFY Co); farming of high-quality probiotic white shrimp in both indoor and outdoor farms (Great Glow Aquaculture); and aquaculture solar systems (Solar Infinity Co., Ltd).

Google of aquaculture

With approximately 42,000ha of aquaculture land, Taiwan has adopted AI technology, contributing to 28% of Taiwan’s farm production. This technology is one of the drivers for its aquaculture industry. A mention must be made of the collaboration between the National Sun Yat-Sen University (NSYSU) and SeeWhat Tech Ltd on projects such as the AI Aquaculture Management System, which won the Merit award at APICTA 2023. The work is at the intersection of AI and aquaculture which utilises advanced algorithms to monitor and optimise fish farming operations. It helps farmers improve productivity, reduce waste, and maintain fish health. They also explored digital content and multimedia technology to enhance educational tools and virtual experiences. The target is to transform aquaculture to save manpower, optimise fish farming with real-time data analysis, reduce risk, and increase production value and efficiency.

B2B matching

The PetFood and AquaFeed Extrusion & Production Conference during IAFET 2024. It focused on the latest innovations and advancements in extrusion technology for pet food and aquaculture feeds. Industry expert speakers shared insights on maximizing the use of extrusion machinery and aqua feed systems.

They have validated the system successfully in 10 field trials. Verification was conducted by the Aquaculture Research Center of the Fisheries Research Institute in Tungkang Township, Pingtung County. The system can increase shrimp farming survival rates by 20%, enhance the feed conversion ratio by 6%, and boost overall production by 26%, serving as an outstanding example of applying AI to the traditional aquaculture industry. The vision is to become the Google of aquaculture by providing unique hardware, software and cloud technology solutions to provide the best aquaculture data services and a database of fishery aquaculture production and marketing systems.

Antibiotic-free farming

Research showed that the prevalence of diseases in intensive fish farms is associated with heavy usage of antibiotics. Several Taiwanese industry players and startups are pushing for the adoption of antibiotic-free farming practices.

Eubiotics, drawing from Academia Sinica’s expertise, focuses on “Phytogenics Technology” through scientific research and product development. They utilise natural edible herbal molecules and Taiwan Good Agricultural Practices(TGAP)-cultivated medicinal plants and conduct field trials for efficacy and safety.

BiomiXin Co. Ltd, has a pioneering automated precision feed production factory. With long-standing

collaborations with academic and research institutions, it developed cutting-edge products. The functional probiotics, polysaccharides, and plant-based formulations are integrated throughout the product series.

Green Wonder Biotech has developed a line of specialised feed additives suitable for various stages of livestock, poultry, and aquatic animal care. These are based on the Chinese herbal medicine principles, and incorporated with functional combinations of herbs, probiotics and peptides.

Linking innovative industries with international markets

This year, delegations from El Salvador, Indonesia, Malaysia, Nigeria, Philippines, Thailand, Singapore, and South Korea were introduced to Taiwan’s innovative aquaculture technologies. This is part of the plan to increase collaboration and trade between Taiwan and these countries.

Rully Setya Purnama, Executive Director, Shrimp Club Indonesia, gave his impression on Taiwan’s aquaculture technologies. “The breakthrough innovations and solutions provided by Taiwan startups and industry players can be adopted in Indonesia to improve the current challenges faced by Indonesian aquaculture farmers.”

B2B Platform for aquaculture industry

“After the show ends, we hope to foster new business partnerships, technology adoption, as well as create opportunities for Taiwanese aquaculture farmers to integrate with the global market,” said Irene Liu, General Manager, My Exhibition Co., Ltd, organiser of IAFET. “This opens the opportunity to solidify the connections made during the event, whether through sales, collaborations, or strategic alliances between Taiwanese companies and international markets.”

Participation of young farmers

Post conference, Liu was asked on the involvement of young farmers and how to encourage the younger generations to continue the lineage of farmers in Taiwan.

“By showcasing the potential of smart agriculture and the opportunities it provides, we hope to inspire younger generations to see farming as a viable and innovative career path. With the integration of new technologies, farming today is not just about traditional labour; it’s about data analysis, automation and sustainability—fields that are very attractive to tech-savvy young professionals. We believe that highlighting the achievements of young farmers at this event will encourage more young people to engage in the agricultural sector and preserve Taiwan’s rich farming heritage.”

The next Int’l Aquaculture & Fisheries Expo Taiwan will be on September 3-5, 2025.

larvi 2024: Academia and industry present early-stage solutions in fish and shellfish farming

The scientific committee of the 8th Fish and Shellfish Larviculture Symposium (larvi 2024), held on September 9-12 in Ostend Belgium, curated five sessions to delve into critical aspects of early-stage fish and shellfish farming. The committee selected 47 speakers from various regions to present a range of innovations and insights. Information on a selection of presentations is given below.

Broodstock management

Eric Hernandez Zuniga from INBIOGEN, University of Chile, said that Chile has decided to diversify to yellow tail Seriola lalandi but its aquaculture encounters problems with low temperatures. A joint privatepublic collaboration is looking into genetic markers to reconstruct pedigree as management of inbreeding is critical. A two-stage selection process was proposed.

There is interest in developing indoor vannamei shrimp farming in Europe, to be closer to markets. Evelien De Swaef from IMAQUA, a spin-off company from Ghent University in Belgium, discussed fine tuning Penaeus vannamei breeding in indoor conditions. With low temperatures in winter, hatcheries face high energy costs. Some trial results showed no significant difference in reproduction parameters (number of spawning, fertilisation rate, average number of nauplii and hatching rate) when temperatures were lowered by 3° from the traditional 27-30°C. Fine tuning broodstock feeding with commercial diets and polychaetes improved number of spawning.

In feeds for broodstock, long chain polyunsaturated fatty acids (LC-PUFAs), eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA), docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) and arachidonic acid (ARA) are important nutrients. A team from Spain, Malaysia, Australia and New Zealand investigated LC-PUFAs biosynthesis capacity of Namalycastis rhodochorde, a

freshwater polychaete native to Southeast Asia. The research looked at the function of enzymes - elongases to elongate C18 to C22 and desaturases to synthesise ARA and EPA. The question is whether these enzymes are sufficient for biosynthesis.

At the Marine Aquaculture Centre in Singapore, Xu Qun Ying and colleagues worked on oral delivery of an encapsulated hormone for fish spawning as an alternative to the traditional method of manual injection. After solving initial hurdles with fish accepting the feed and subsequent modifications to the feed, spawning was successful with the Asian seabass Lates calcarifer

Larval nutrition

In Indonesia, diatom culture is traditionally by batches and is problematic during the rainy seasons. Julie Ekasari, IPB University, Indonesia discussed improving productivity of the diatom Phaeodactylum tricornutum , its nutritional value and functionality as live feed for shrimp larvae. She said that increasing silicate in the culture medium enhanced the diatom’s capacity to inhibit Vibrio parahaemolyticus, Vibro harveyii and Vibrio alginolyticus biofilm formation. When given as live food for Penaeus monodon , there was robustness of the post larvae in a Vibrio challenge. The addition of organic carbon to a Thalassiosira sp. culture which was then fed to P. vannamei larvae resulted in improved growth and better resistance to salinity stress.

A keynote presentation on boosting hatchery success with effective live feed and microdiets protocols for fish larvae was by Keshuai Li, BioMar. The aim was to bridge gaps in larviculture techniques, through optimising enrichment protocols and microdiets feeding strategies for efficient nutrient delivery, better larval growth and robustness, and reduce deformities. The comprehensive study on larvae gilthead bream covered factors influencing n-3 HUFAs (highly unsaturated fatty acids) and total lipids fractions in Artemia and rotifers, four feeding strategies with the company’s larval and weaning microdiets and an evaluation of digestive enzymes. From these trials, Li recommended early weaning from 3dph and prolonged co-feeding of the microdiet Prostart to reduce production costs by up to 30%.

Professor Natrah Iksan, Universiti Putra Malaysia (right) with Dr Yeong Yik Sung, Associate Professor, School of Fisheries and Aquaculture Sciences, Universiti Malaysia Terengganu (middle) and Dr Kartik Baruah, Associate Professor & Group Leader of Aquaculture Nutraceuticals Research Group at Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, Sweden.

At the BioMar stand with Joana Amaral, Product Manager Marine Fish Hatcheries, the team from Devee Biologicals Pvt Ltd, India; Dhanunjaya Goud, Group Director - Sales (Domestic & International) and U Dushyant Kumar, Managing Director.

In Vietnam, the survival rate of pangasius Pangasianodon hypophthalmus fingerlings is generally low (10%), according to Ut Vu Ngoc at the College of Aquaculture and Fisheries, Can Tho University. He showed that feeding larvae with Artemia umbrella stage over 21 days, until the larvae reached pre fingerling stage significantly improved growth in length (9.8%/day). Other live feeds tested were: a combination of rotifers and Moina sp; Artemia nauplii only; and a combination of Artemia umbrella stage and nauplii. Survival (37%) was significantly higher in the group fed a combination of Artemia umbrella stage for 3 days and nauplii for 18 days as compared to only Artemia umbrella stage (23%).

Marisol Izquierdo, University of Las Palmas, Spain gave a comprehensive review on dietary vitamin D and vitamin K levels in fish larvae as well as their interactions. These vitamins are essential, for calcium homeostasis, which is critical during larval development. Low dietary levels delay digestive system development while high levels lead to impaired growth, high mortality and increase in skeletal anomalies. Vitamin K is required for absorption of lipids and is involved in the formation of low density lipo proteins. Feeding diets with low levels of vitamin K reduces bone mineralisation and increases skeletal anomalies. Both vitamins interact to maintain bone health and balanced mineralisation.

It is difficult to deliver to marine fish low molecular weight water soluble nutrients (LMWS) such as vitamin C and taurine, due to nutrient leaching. In trials, Matthew Hawkyard, Oregan State University, USA, used liposomes to enrich live feeds (rotifers) and subsequently determined the concentrations of dietary taurine and vitamin C,

respectively, for larvae of Californian yellowtail Seriola dorsalis. While elevated levels of taurine were beneficial to the larvae, high levels of vitamin C resulted in higher oxidative stress and lower growth.

Pathogen control

A keynote presentation by Natrah Ikhsan, Universiti Putra Malaysia discussed disease prevention via quorum sensing (QS) in several aquatic species. QS was explained as the process of cell-to-cell communication used by bacteria to coordinate their behaviour based on population density. The Microalgae Technology and Innovation Research Group isolated algae and combinations of bacteria and marine algae to act as QS inhibitors. The benthic diatom Halamphora sp has shown quorum quenching (QQ) attributes, which disrupt bacterial QS. In trials with P. monodon post larvae, algae and a consortium of probiotics improved survival in the presence of V. parahaemolyticus The inclusion of the diatom to a harpacticoid copepod enhanced its nutritional value and when fed to post larvae, growth and survival rate improved as well as resistance against V. parahaemolyticus

Indole is used as cell-to-cell communication in Vibrio bacteria. Tom Defoird at the Center for Microbial Ecology and Technology, Ghent, discussed how indole analogues interfere with indole signalling. There are several analogues - natural compounds such as auxins, and synthetic compounds.

More information: larvi 2024. 8th Fish and Shellfish Larviculture Symposium, September 9-12, 2024. Book of Short Communications, Edited by C. I. Hendry, Belgium. 2024.

Managing Director, Ananda Enterprises (India) Pvt Ltd, Dr Julie Ekasari, Associate Professor, IPB University, Indonesia and Dr Surendran V, Director - Technical, Vaisakhi Bio-Marine (P) Ltd, India.

Launch of ready-to-use copepods

After 10 years of prior collaboration, Skretting announced in 2023, that it will work with Zooca Calanus to develop high-quality, nutritionally optimised feeds using the copepod Calanus finmarchichus-based ingredients and whole fresh canned copepods. At larvi 2024, held in September 9-12 in Ostend, Belgium, the team from Skretting, led by Dr Eamonn O Brien, Skretting Global Product Manager LifeStart and Dr Philip Dhert, Senior Researcher and Hogne Abrahamsen, group CSO at Zooca Calanus jointly launched Ignis - 510g of concentrated pasteurised copepods in a can, manufactured by Zooca Calanus.

Present at the launch were around 45 larvi 2024 participants, including industry from the Mediterranean countries and India. Here, attendees saw how the product, a ready to use pasteurised copepods `seem to come alive once the can was opened. The copepods are of course not alive but exhibit a natural neutral buoyancy that keeps them in suspension with any water movement. The team said that this is a new level of convenience, as well as opportunities to refine larval production and shrimp broodstock feeding.

Dhert explained that the product is 95% water and does not need cold chain. Size-wise, it is 3mm and so it is not to replace Artemia. It can be fed to post larvae (PL12) or earlier and is immediately ingested. Attractability is very high. For fish, it can be a transition live feed after Artemia In an acclimation trial, Ignis was fed to PL12-PL18. According to Dhert, switching from the dry diet (Elevia) to wet diet (Ignis) and vice versa is not an issue.

A 4-week nursery trial with PL18-40 using 100L RAS tanks had three treatments diet Elevia, Ignis fed straight from the can and Ignis fed after rinsing out fast eating all the copepods resulting in reddish faecal pellets. In the ﬁrst 97% survival, an extra 3-4% survival over that of the group fed the control increased from 42mg/g (control) to 44mg/g (Ignis rinsed). After 3 weeks the Ignis rinsed group and body weight was close to 300mg. Dhert added remained in the water column.

Calanus ﬁnmarchichus is a tiny marine copepod rich in essential nutrients. resource oZers marine shrimp and ﬁsh juveniles high- quality nutrition, intake and digestion Ignis will be made available through the Skretting being rolled out in European hatcheries, with more countries to follow.

- end-

A 4-week nursery trial with PL18-40 using 100L RAS tanks had three treatments: control with dry diet Elevia, Ignis fed straight from the can and Ignis fed after rinsing out the water. Shrimp grew fast eating all the copepods resulting in reddish faecal pellets. In the first week, the result was 97% survival, an extra 3-4% survival over that of the group fed the control diet. Dry weight increased from 42mg/g (control) to 44mg/g (Ignis rinsed). After 3 weeks, survival was 93% for the Ignis rinsed group and body weight was close to 300mg. Dhert added that the copepods stay in the water column.

Page 2

Calanus finmarchichus is a tiny marine copepod rich in essential nutrients. This abundant resource offers marine juveniles high-quality nutrition, promoting efficient feed intake and digestion. Ignis will be made available through the Skretting network and is currently being rolled out in European hatcheries, with more countries to follow. Skretting.com

Director of Global Aquaculture Sales

Zeigler, a leading manufacturer of nutritional solutions for aquaculture has announce appointment of Aedrian Ortiz Johnson as Director of Aquaculture sales. Aedrian brings extensive expertise in shrimp hatchery operations and feeds sales, with a proven track record in key shrimp -producing countries.

Director of Global Aquaculture Sales

Zeigler, a leading manufacturer of nutritional solutions for aquaculture has announce the appointment of Aedrian Ortiz Johnson as Director of Aquaculture sales. Aedrian brings extensive expertise in shrimp hatchery operations and feeds sales, with a proven track record in key shrimpproducing countries.

Aedrian appointment aligns with Zeigler’s strategic expansion plans to enhance its presence in the global aquaculture market. As Director of Aquaculture Sales, Aedrian will spearhead the company’s efforts to grow and maintain its market share, driving sales and delivering nutritional innovation and value creation to customers worldwide.

Aedrian Ortiz Johnson’s appointment aligns with Zeigler’s strategic expansion plans to enhance its presence in the global aquaculture

As Director of Aquaculture Sales, Aedrian will spearhead the company’s eEorts to grow and maintain its market share, driving sales and nutritional innovation and value creation to customers worldwide.

“Aedrian’s expertise in shrimp hatchery operations and feed sales provides great benefit and resource to our global sales team,” said, Tim Zeigler, Vice President of Zeigler Company. “His appointment demonstrates our commitment to providing top-notch solutions and service to our customers and colleagues”.

“Aedrian’s expertise in shrimp hatchery operations and feed sales great beneﬁt and resource to our global sales team,” said, Tim Zeigler, President of Zeigler Company. “His appointment demonstrates our commitment to top -notch solutions and service to our customers and colleagues”.

Aedrian’s experience spans 20 plus years with a focus on shrimp hatchery operations, feed sales, and business development in major shrimp producing countries. His industry reach will enable Zeigler to deepen its relationships with key customers and expand its market reach.

“I am thrilled to join Zeigler and contribute to its mission on delivering innovative nutritional solutions to the aquaculture industry,” said Aedrian. “I look forward to working closely with our customers and internal teams to drive growth and success.” www.zeiglerfeed.com

“I am thrilled to join Zeigler and contribute to its mission on delivering innovative nutritional solutions to the aquaculture industry,” said Aedrian. “I look forward to

At larvi 2024, Skretting’s Eamonn O Brien (second right) and participants, from right, Murali Anand Varma Uddaraju,

Photo

The joint launch of Ignis, concentrated pasteurised copepods in a can, Calanus with Eamonn O Brien (left) and Philip Dhert.

The joint launch of Ignis, concentrated pasteurised copepods in a can, manufactured by Zooca Calanus with Eamonn O Brien (left) and Philip Dhert.

Adding broodstock diets to the hatchery and nursery portfolio

In 2023, ADM embarked on a rebranding journey to unify its animal nutrition business under a cohesive and modern corporate identity, reflecting the company’s vision of consolidating its diverse history into a singular, forward-looking brand positioned for long-term growth. This vision was prominently showcased at larvi 2024, held from September 9-12 in Ostend, Belgium, where ADM introduced its newly integrated hatchery and nursery feed range – previously marketed under the BernAqua label, acquired alongside Neovia in 2019.

Led by Marc Campet, Asia Aquaculture Business Development Manager and Gaetan Gutter, Regional Commercial Manager for Aquaculture Hatchery/Nursery, ADM’s global marketing and technical team was present at the event to introduce its comprehensive range of broodstock, hatchery and nursery feeds for fish and shrimp. The latest additions to ADM’s portfolio include semi-moist feeds for fish and shrimp broodstock nutrition, formulated with 55% crude protein (CP) and 15% lipids, ideal as an alternative to fresh feed. Additionally, the dry broodstock feeds, with 56% CP, are produced via a cold extrusion process that optimises spawning efficiency.

“We are proud to participate as a Gold sponsor at larvi 2024, marking a significant milestone for us as we join the event under ADM, reflecting our integration with our parent company,” said Campet. “ADM has developed a specialised and functional nutrition range designed to

meet the specific needs of young fish and shrimp. These are produced using the proprietary micro-extrusion and marumerisation process (MEM) at the plant in Olen, Belgium.”

Among the innovative products showcased was the liquid supplement, Royal Pepper Protein, designed to mitigate water pollution while supporting health during critical stages such as zoea, mysis and post larvae (PL) transition phases, as well as addressing zoea syndrome and PL stress. The line-up also featured Royal Caviar, a microencapsulated complete feed (5-500µm) tailored for shrimp larvae from zoea 1 to PL12, and Vitellus, a unique Artemia based feed (50-125µm) optimised for weaning and PL transport from zoea 3 to PL15. For nursery stages, feeds ranging 200-1200µm cater to shrimp from PL7 to juveniles, utilising an adapted micro-extrusion process followed by marumerisation. The MEM Nature is the solution for companies with organic certification.

The hatchery and nursery fish feed ranges include micro-encapsulated diets in the Caviar series, recently reformulated with krill meal for better palatability. These diets, available in sizes from 50-800µm, are suited for feeding fish at 15-70dph. The Red Pepper liquid live food enrichment is a supplementary feed for rotifers and Artemia, providing farmed fish with a necessary amount of fatty acids over 0-55dph.

The ADM team at larvi 2024; from right, Marc Campet, Aqua Technical Sales Director APAC; Tom Driesen, Bernaqua Operations Manager; Sam Valgaeren, Bernaqua Plant Manager; Annelies Vanbel, Customer Service; Gaetan Gutter, Aqua Commercial Manager APAC; Frederic Baron, Global Aqua Formulator; Navid Pormehr, Product Manager and Zhu Frank, Aqua Director China.

Small yet fast single cell protein production from agrifood side streams

The three-year-old Hamburg based, MicroHarvest GmbH is an innovative startup successfully producing single cell proteins (SCP), from a combination of fast growing microbes in current day bioreactors. The harvest is then dried to produce an inactivated and stable protein ingredient.

MicroHarvest introduced its products at the recent Aqua 2024 held in Copenhagen, Denmark from August 26-30. Katelijne Bekers, co-founder and CEO, explained, “What we offer through our fermentation process is a biomass in just 24 hours from input to output, using a fraction of the resources required for many other alternative proteins. This is a stable and sustainable protein ingredient.

“We grow them in an optimised way using agrifood side streams such as sugars. We know that feed millers need tonnes of products to run trials. Our technology enables a fast scaleup to one tonne/day capacity. Currently, we have successfully reached a tonne per day. As we scale up, we can have the fastest protein production technology in the world.”

This SCP comprises more than 60% crude protein with a good balance of essential amino acids as well as micronutrients like vitamin B2 and iron. In vivo trials with Atlantic salmon showed more than 89% digestibility. Trials with marine shrimp Penaeus vannamei at ShrimpVet in Vietnam demonstrated that feed conversion ratio can be down and palatability up. Bekers said that they focus on carnivorous species. “As we produce the SCP in a controlled environment, the nutritional profile of our SCP is very stable.”

A range of specialty ingredients can be produced from this harvest prior to drying by further enzymatic extraction and selective breakdown of the bacteria cells. There is the specialty feed material HILIX, with amino acids, peptides at more than 60%, free nucleotides at more than 14% and vitamins and minerals. This product has a broad functional effect to support immunity, digestibility, palatability and enhance growth in salmon and shrimp, even at a low inclusion rate of 800g/tonne of feed. Tests in European seabass and seabream are pending.

“The nucleotide market is an interesting market but it will be SCP market that can set MicroHarvest apart, said Bekers. “We started sales with a nucleotide product to demonstrate scalability and enter the market. We subsequently bring to scale the SCP with a competitive price. In contrast with other startups, that require long product and process development, we are already producing at a contract facility in Europe. This is impressive for a 3 year young company. With future funding, we will move ahead with our own facility.”

These two products from MicroHarvest are already in the market globally, for aquaculture and for pet food as feed ingredients with GMP+ certification. Product registration is ongoing in Southeast Asia, Central and Latin America and India.

MicroHarvest was set up by three co-founders; Bekers with a background in biotechnology and MBA, Luisa Cruz who was previously with Corbion and provides R&D expertise and Jonathan Roberts, a serial entrepreneur. The team does all the production R&D, prototyping and product applications in their two locations in Hamburg and Lisbon.

At the recent Aqua2024 held in Copenhagen, Denmark from August 26-30, MicroHarvest introduced HILIX (left), a specialty feed material with amino acids and protein at more than 60%, free nucleotides at more than 14%, and vitamins and minerals. They also developed SCP, as here produced in their own pilot scale bioreactor in Lisbon (right).

Bekers looks forward to reaching a unicorn stage. “We have raised over €10 million, comprising €8.5 million in its Series A led by Astanor Ventures and a €1.5 million extension from Simon Capital, for our novel, scalable, competitive, and sustainable protein ingredient for feed, pet food, or human food products. Next, we are now looking at raising more funds in our Series B round. This is to expand our production.”

Bekers gave the story behind MicroHarvest. “We experienced that the industry is in dire need of new ingredients. So, we looked at marine bacteria for aquafeed. Yes, there are lots of competitors in the market, but we are convinced that our right pricing for premium products and nucleotides gives us a competitive edge.”

She added that today’s food system contributes to 26% of global CO2 emissions, therefore their vision is to dramatically reduce this footprint by offering accessible nutrition for a healthier planet. “With our technology, we estimate a carbon footprint at 1.4kg of CO2 equivalent per kg of product. This is 2 times less CO2 eq/kg compared to plant-derived solutions.”

In 2023, MicroHarvest received a Bloomberg NEF Pioneers Award for its innovation in fermented ingredients. Early this year, it joined Food Fermentation Europe, a league of players in the transformative fermentation food and food ingredient sector. The mission is to unlock the potential of fermentation-

enabled food production technologies to position the European Union as a world leader in sustainable food innovation. On its future scaling, Bekers projected, “This will take place regionally, allowing our customers globally to benefit from short supply chains.” microharvest.com

Semi-automatic fish injection system

INOCA by Aqualife is a semi-automated vaccination delivery system. Aqualife started 28 years ago on the Isle of Skye before moving to Stirling University campus, which is also home to the Institute of Aquaculture. “We started developing vaccination systems since 2002 and over the years, we have refined our ideas,” said Gordon

Jeffrey, owner and CEO, at the stand during Aqua 2024, held in Copenhagen, Denmark from August 26-30.

Today, it is being used to vaccinate salmon, tilapia, European seabass and seabream. In Japan, the machine was used to vaccinate yellowtail and red seabream. Jeffrey recounted how several years ago, they went all the way to Singapore to vaccinate Asian seabass at Marine Life Aquaculture (MLA).

The machine is designed to be compact with a choice of up to twelve channels, each channel can vaccinate at least 2,000 fish per hour and with 6 channels and three operators, it can vaccinate a total of 12,000 fish per hour. Fish size range is 12g to 200g and is the only one in the market able to vaccinate fish of such as range. “The ones in the market can usually handle a size range of 25-150g,” said Jeffrey. “Another function is grading of the fish at the same time. We sell the machines as well as offer vaccination services, as we did for MLA.

“Another feature is the ability to accommodate up to three vaccines in one needle shot. For the salmon, we show that both intraperitoneal (IP) as required for vaccines against vibriosis in salmonids and intramuscular (such as the recombinant vaccines against pancreatic disease) injections can be done simultaneously. For the tilapia, vaccines against streptococcus are IP inoculations.” aqualifeservices.com

Katelijne Bekers, MicroHarvest at Aqua 2024.

At the Aqualife stand, Gordon Jeffrey (right) and Kristian Clezy showed how this semi-automatic fish injection system for simultaneous intraperitoneal (IP) and intramuscular (IM) vaccinations.

The Asian Fisheries Society (AFS) has announced that the 14th Asian Fisheries and Aquaculture Forum (14AFAF) will be held in New Delhi on February 1215, 2025. The venue will be the ICAR Convention Centre, Indian Council of Agricultural Research, DPS Marg, Todaphur.

AFAF is a scientific forum organised by the Asian Fisheries Society (AFS) once every three years to understand the global trends and address issues and challenges faced by the fisheries and aquaculture sector. The main purpose of this forum is to provide an international platform for scientists, young researchers, and other stakeholders across the globe to share their research experiences and innovative ideas.

By facilitating the exchange of a diverse range of knowledge and expertise, the forum with the Theme ‘Greening the Blue Growth in Asia-Pacific’ aims to address key issues towards developing sustainable fisheries and aquaculture.

Technical Sessions will include:

• Resource Assessment and Management for Sustainable Fisheries

• Sustainable Aquaculture Intensification and Diversification

Marketing and certifications

• SMART Aquaculture for Resource-use Efficiency

• Fish Genetics, Genomics & Biotechnology

• Aquatic Animal Nutrition, Feed Technology and Alternate Feed Resource

• Aquatic Animal Health Management and Antimicrobial Resistance

• Aquatic Biodiversity, Environment and Ecosystem Services

• Impact of Climate Change on Fisheries & Aquaculture and Resilient Strategies

• Post-harvest Processing, Value-addition, and Food Safety

• Socio-economic Dynamics & Extension in Fisheries and Aquaculture

• Gender in Fisheries & Aquaculture

• Fisheries Education, Skill Development and Technology Incubation

• Fish Marketing, Value Chains and Trade

• Fisheries Policy, Law, and Governance

Important dates are:

• Dateline for Abstract submission: 05 November 2024

• Acceptance of Abstract: 06 November 2024

• Early Bird Registration Closing Date: 10 November 2024

More information: 14AFAF website: https://14afaf.in/

EDITORIAL CALENDAR 2025

Look out for AAP’s annual report on trends in Asia’s production of marine shrimp and aquafeeds

Larval & Nursery Feeds/ Feed management Feed Enzymes

Market and product developments, post harvest processing, generic marketing, certifications, branding, food safety etc

Company/Product News News on activities at international, regional and local conferences and trade shows

Events

VIV Asia 2025, March 12-14 Bangkok, Thailand March 12-14

VietShrimp International Cantho City, March 26-28 World Aquaculture 2025 China Qingdao, April 24 – 27

Seafood Expo Global Barcelona, Spain May 6-8

Shrimp Aquaculture Conference, Bali, Indonesia, May 21-22 TARS 2025 Shrimp Aquaculture August 20-21

advertising/article contributions and guidelines contact: zuridah@aquaasiapac.com

Global Shrimp Forum 2025, Utrecht, The Netherlands September 2-4 International Aquaculture & Fisheries Expo Taiwan, Taipei September 3-5

This in person or online course allows participants to:

• gain training in principles and characteristics of extruders and support systems e8ective selection and operation

• review current practices for preparation of extruded feed, pet food, and aqua feeds

34th Annual Feed, Pet Food, & Aquafeed Extrusion Short Course

• gain familiarity with practical aspects of feeds extrusion

• examine ingredients for extruded feed, petfood and aqua feed.

34th Annual Feed, Pet Food, & Aquafeed Extrusion Short Course

This in person or online course allows participants to:

A one-week Practical Short Course on Feeds, Pet Food and Aqua Feed Extrusion will be presented on February 3-7, 2025, at Texas A&M University in person and live online via by sta8, industry representatives, and consultants.

The program will cover information on different extrusion systems such as dry extruder, single and twin-screw extruder, designing new feed mills and selecting conveying, drying, grinding, conditioning and feed mixing equipment. Current practices for production of pet foods, aquafeed, full-fat soy meal; recycling by-products, aqua feed nutrition principles ; spraying and coating systems, digests and preservatives; use of encapsulated ingredients and preparation of premixes are reviewed.

The program will cover information on di8erent extrusion systems such as dry extruder, and twin-screw extruder, designing new feed mills and selecting conveying, drying, grinding, conditioning and feed mixing equipment. Current practices for production of pet foods, aquafeed, full-fat soy meal; recycling by-products, aqua feed nutrition principles ; spraying coating systems, digests and preservatives; use of encapsulated ingredients and preparation premixes are reviewed.

This in person or online course allows participants to:

• gain training in principles and characteristics of extruders and support systems for e8ective selection and operation

• review current practices for preparation of extruded feed, pet food, and aqua feeds

• gain familiarity with practical aspects of feeds extrusion

• examine ingredients for extruded feed, petfood and aqua feed.

• gain training in principles and characteristics of extruders and support systems for effective selection and operation

Participants completing the course will be awarded a Certificate and are eligible for 27 Professional Development Hours (PDHs).

More information: https://foodscience.tamu.edu/https:// teesedge.tamu.edu/online/extrusion www.miannadeemriaz.com

Participants completing the course will be awarded a Certiﬁcate and are eligible for 27 Professional Development Hours (PDHs).

• review current practices for preparation of extruded feed, pet food, and aqua feeds

A one-week Practical Short Course on Feeds, Pet Food and Aqua Feed Extrusion will be presented on February 3-7, 2025, at Texas A&M University in person and live online via zoom by sta8, industry representatives, and consultants.

More information: https://foodscience.tamu.edu/https://teesedge.tamu.edu/online/extrusion www.miannadeemriaz.com

• gain familiarity with practical aspects of feeds extrusion

• examine ingredients for extruded feed, petfood and aqua feed.

The program will cover information on di8erent extrusion systems such as dry extruder, single and twin-screw extruder, designing new feed mills and selecting conveying, drying, grinding, conditioning and feed mixing equipment. Current practices for production of pet foods, aquafeed, full-fat soy meal; recycling by-products, aqua feed nutrition principles ; spraying and coating systems, digests and preservatives; use of encapsulated ingredients and preparation of premixes are reviewed.

Participants completing the course will be awarded a Certiﬁcate and are eligible for 27 Professional Development Hours (PDHs).

More information: https://foodscience.tamu.edu/https://teesedge.tamu.edu/online/extrusion www.miannadeemriaz.com

This one-week Practical Short Course on Feeds, Pet Food and Aqua Feed Extrusion will be presented on February 3-7, 2025, at Texas A&M University in person and live online via zoom by staff, industry representatives, and consultants.

2024

2025

February 3-7

34th Annual Practical Short Course on Feeds, Pet Food and Aqua Feed Extrusion; Texas A&M, USA teesedge.tamu.edu/online/extrusion

February 12-15

November 19-21

Asia-Pacific Agri-Food Innovation Summit Singapore agrifoodinnovation.com

March 12-14

VIV Asia 2025, Bangkok, Thailand vivasia.nl

March 26-28

VietShrimp International Can Tho, Vietnam vietshrimp.net

April 24-27

November 20-23 AFRAQ24 Hammamet, Tunisia was.org

November 29-30 Conacua 2024 Los Mocchis, Mexico conacua.com

August 20-21

TARS 2025

Shrimp Aquaculture tarsaquaculture.com

August 21-23

Vietfish 2025 Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam vietfish.com.vn

September 2-4

14th Asian Fisheries and Aquaculture Forum (14AFAF) New Delhi, India asianfisheriessociety.org

March 6-10

Aquaculture 2025 New Orleans, USA was.org

World Aquaculture 2025 China Qingdao was.org

May 6-8

Seafood Expo Global Barcelona, Spain seafoodexpo.com

May 21-22

Shrimp Aquaculture Conference 2025 Bali, Indonesia sac.pmindo.com

Global Shrimp Forum 2025 Utrecht, The Netherlands shrimp-forum.com

September 3-5

11th Aquaculture and Fisheries Expo Taiwan (IAFET) 2025 Taipei taiwanagriweek.com/en/

September 22-25

Aquaculture Europe 2025 Valencia, Spain aquaeas.eu

Register By February 3, 2025 Register online at Register here

• No.16-18-20, DT743 Road, Song Than II Industrial Zone, Di An Ward, Di An City, Binh Duong Province, Vietnam

• Tel: +84-274-3790811 (Ext: 1711)

• Fax: +84-274-3790819

• Email: aquafeed@upvn.com.vn