Use of insect meal and algal oil in Chinook feeds

21-P-04

Description

Atlantic salmon are a popular fish species for culture worldwide. The diets of farmed fish have relied on the use of fishmeal and fish oil. These ingredients generally come from small pelagic species (for example, anchovy). In recent years, the availability of marine products has declined. While the demand for aquaculture and aquafeeds increased. As a result, the amount of fishmeal and fish oil in farmed fish diets have been lowered. They have been replaced with several different plant meals and oils, for example:

• soy
• wheat
• rapeseed
• corn

These feeds generally have less desirable nutritional profiles for Atlantic Salmon. This is because plant materials are often deficient in essential amino acids and lack long chain n-3 fatty-acids. The use of black soldier fly larvae meal (protein) and algae (lipids, EPA DHA) could create an effective diet supplement. This combination would help reduce the demand on marine resources. This will also maintain the organic status for this species while providing healthy food for humans.

The goal of this project is to explore the use of black soldier fly larvae meal combined with algal oil, while:

• maintaining superior fish health
• maintaining high nutritional quality
• keeping to organic standards

Program Name

Aquaculture Collaborative Research and Development Program (ACRDP)

Year(s)

2021 - 2024

Principal Investigator(s)

Ian Forster, Research Scientist, Fisheries and Oceans Canada, Pacific Region

Email: Ian.Forster@dfo-mpo.gc.ca

Collaborator(s)

• Barb Cannon, Biology Manager, Creative Salmon
• Wendy Vandersteen, Manager of Research and Development, Taplow Feeds
• Brad Hicks, Executive Vice-President, Taplow Ventures