NUTRITION & HEALTH even more scientific papers addressing As I write to you from my home in these novel ingredients for aquaculture Plymouth, Devon, the UK is still when they reach the critical levels effectively under lockdown and I am required to make viable impact on reminded almost daily of the power marine ingredient dependency. of the internet and the rampant New technologies are being explored advances of technology. Although I with the major feed producers to have been a frequent user of such include insect-based meals, algal platforms as Skype the rise of Teams biomass and alternative oils in this and Zoom has enabled me to keep my Professor Simon Davies strategy. I too have undertaken recent academic activities at the forefront Nutrition Editor, International Aquafeed trials with insect meal and high with online interviews with students protein distillers’ grain to evaluate and colleagues at my university and their potential in fish feed and will beyond. I see aquaculture and my report on findings in a coming issue. subject of fish nutrition benefitting greatly in this way In another development, using a specific strain of and I have used these systems for discussing business heterotrophic produced microalgae to partially compensate and research interests with parties globally. It is now for the fish oil content contained in shrimp feeds can enhance impossible to imagine life without such applications the growth rates and feed efficiency of whiteleg shrimp as and the speed of the internet. I work with groups in reported recently by researchers in Brazil. The microalgae many countries and the development of scientific papers diets were able to elevate long chain polyunsaturated fatty requires much dialogue and the exchange of ideas, acid docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) in shrimp muscle tissue manuscript corrections, text, images and data sharing. from 10.0 percent to 14.3 percent. DHA is very high in such Sometimes drafts of potential papers pass between algal biomass but is low in EPA, so these will need to be continents several times a day with corrections and considered in respect of shrimp fatty acid requirements and refinements between myself and various collaborators. health. Other news concerns the type of feeding strategies that Such things were unheard of in my early academic life should be used for the growth of lump fish for the salmon and how the world has changed over the last few decades! industry with recommendations of using feed blocks in The pandemic has really affected the way we all work and preference to pellets in salmon rearing pens. This approach conduct our affairs. Indeed, this editorial will be conveyed seems to provide more even and improved growth rates at lightning speed to the publishers for checking and some and reduces stress and potential diseases that have been additional material before it appears on-line or move to problematic in a number of farms. Maybe it’s ‘back to the the printing stage and to your eyes. The magazine is online future’ here with lessons learned from the aquatics and and published when the final version leaves Cheltenham, ornamental fish industry where small blocks pressed onto the England for the big wide world. This allows for the most sides of tanks have been fed to various ‘fussy’ fish species updated news and features to reach you every month. Our kept by the hobbyist for years. editorial specialist Rebecca Sherratt keeps me on my toes Other notable news is whether we can use our knowledge and is so helpful in maintaining the tempo and contributing of salmon nutritional metabolism to better understand the so much to our success along with all the other hardmobilisation of fat in humans and effects on obesity. There working staff at Perendale Publishers, led by Roger Gilbert are many areas of overlap and scientists in Norway (Nofima) and Tuti Tan. are evaluating the clinical significance based on tissue culture Now turning to the world of fish nutrition, we see rapidly techniques as models using salmon fat cells in vitro. This shifting grounds with advances in the development of would be intriguing and mirrors the excellent exploitation of feeds for fish based on a new source of SCP from a microzebrafish in medical research and where there is very high fungus called Pekilo growing on wood sulphite pulp as a demand for research on this fish species to help improve our by-product from the forest industry. This is the concept of a knowledge of many disease processes in humans. new Finnish start-up company Enifer Bio. Microbial-based As we settle into the mid-summer/winter wherever you protein ingredients have been around since the 1980’s but are, my hopes are that you all keep well and safe and enjoy it’s all about cost and the scaling factor to produce sufficient our magazine either as a hard copy, on your mobile phone quantities of biomass for economic viability. or tablet format and appreciate the World Wide Web that There is also news from Washington State about mealworms magically connects us all. Please relish all our news items, from a new company, Beta Hatch as another insect protein special topics, features and articles at the centre of this option to consider in specialist aquafeed formulations. There vibrant industry. is indeed much going on in this buzzing topic and we await
4 | July 2020 - International Aquafeed