WHITE PAPER
Insect Protein
A Promising Feed Ingredient
for the Future of Sustainable
Aquaculture
Aquaculture, the farming of fish and other aquatic organisms, is poised to be a game-changer in addressing this future food crisis. Fish stands out as a superior protein source, boasting lower emissions, reduced water usage, and higher protein retention efficiency compared to traditional livestock.
With these prospects, the global aquaculture industry has been on a meteoric rise, with production surging over 530% from 1990 to 2020. Today, this sector supplies more than half of the world’s seafood, overtaking wild-caught fish. The FAO predicts this upward trajectory will continue, projecting aquaculture production to hit 109 million tons by 2030.
This remarkable growth has been fueled by technological innovations. Advances in breeding, feed efficiency, disease management, and environmental monitoring have all contributed to higher yields and greater sustainability in aquaculture operations.
Norway, a global leader in salmon aquaculture, has ambitious plans to produce 5 million tons of salmon by 2050, necessitating a colossal 6.2 million tons of feed ingredients. However, feed remains a critical and costly component of salmon production, significantly impacting greenhouse gas emissions. The need for sustainable and affordable feed solutions is more pressing than ever to ensure the future expansion of salmon aquaculture.
Compounding these challenges, the Norwegian government has set a bold target: by 2030, all feed used in aquaculture must come from sustainable sources. This ambitious goal is driving local producers to innovate and transform their practices to meet this pressing demand for sustainability.
Current Challenges with Fishmeal and Fish Oil
Commercial fish feeds rely heavily on fishmeal and fish oil, ingredients derived from wild-caught fish, in a manner far from sustainable. This dependence on forage fish, such as anchovies and herring, has driven these populations to the brink, with some species experiencing dramatic collapses. The unsustainable nature of this practice raises serious concerns about the long-term viability of industrial fish feed production.
The European Commission underscores the urgency of this issue in its strategic guidelines for aquaculture. The guidelines emphasize that producing sustainable fish feed is crucial for the environmental performance of the EU aquaculture sector.
For feed producers, the guidelines advise that feed ingredients should be sourced in a way that respects ecosystems and biodiversity. At the same time, feed ingredients must ensure the health and welfare of the animals themselves. Also, the European Commission states that feed producers should limit reliance on fishmeal and fish oil taken from wild stocks. Instead, alternative protein ingredients such as algae, insects or waste from other industries should be used.
Alternatives to Fishmeal and Fish Oil
Some alternative feed ingredients include soy and corn-based feeds. However, these ingredients have also been criticized for being unsustainable. For example, soy farming on a large scale requires mass deforestation and causes water pollution. Not only that, but fish can also struggle to fully digest soy-based feeds, and these feeds can even harm their digestive system over time. If indigestible, soy-based feeds can end up in the aquaculture wastewater, leading to nutrient pollution.
Other feed ingredient alternatives are more sustainably sourced. These include plant proteins and oils from plants, yeast, insects, and algae. For example, using oils from algae enables the nutrient requirements of the feed to be maintained without depending on fish oil. Another example is farmed seaweed, which has significant growth potential as a source of fiber for aquaculture feed.
Spotlight on Insects as a Solution
Insect meal, derived from Black Soldier Fly (BSF) farming and utilizing a Waste-to-Feed concept, offers substantial sustainability benefits by converting low-value waste streams into valuable proteins and organic fertilizer, making it a key ingredient.
Black Soldier Fly (BSF) farming, a fast-growing industry, has caught the attention of all major aquaculture producers globally, and for a good reason. BSF meal has improved performance in many fish species and is increasingly available as companies scale production.
Studies have demonstrated tangible benefits such as enhanced growth rates, improved feed conversion ratios, and strengthened immune responses in fish and shrimp fed with insect-based diets. As a result, some leading aquafeed production companies, such as Cargill, Nutreco, and Biomar, have started incorporating insect ingredients into their feed formulas.
While the sustainability aspects and functional benefits support demand growth, high production costs and limited production capacity are the main factors limiting the growth of insect protein use in aquaculture.
According to a Rabobank report, insects have the potential to bring new value-added propositions based on their nutritional, functional, and environmental benefits:
1. High protein content (50% to 80% dry matter basis)
2. When used as a feed ingredient, insect proteins bring health benefits to fish, pets, and other animals
3. Insects can help build circular food systems as they can upcycle low-value agri-food material, including former foodstuffs, wastes, and residues, into high-value proteins, oils, and fertilizers
4. When local, underutilized resources are used as feed substrates to farm insects, not only is the food-waste challenge tackled, but a local feed production system is created, and the feed supply chain is shortened
5. Insects are part of the natural diet of most animals
6. Insect farming is a highly efficient protein production system with a small environmental footprint, requiring less water, less land, and less production time compared with other species
Challenges and Solutions
The industry’s first challenge is the lack of scale. Current volumes of insect-derived feed products are more than 20,000 metric tons globally, led by a few larger-scale producers and many small-scale players. These plants are striving to ramp up production to meet strong demand, with some already operating at or near full capacity and others yet to open. As an average insect farm today produces around 3,000 tons of insect meal per year, much larger amounts must be supplied consistently for broader aquaculture adoption. Aquafeed companies state that the lack of available volume is one of the key reasons for not using insect proteins.21
High selling price is an additional factor limiting the demand for insect protein. The current price of insect meal ranges between EUR 2,500 to EUR 4,000 per metric ton, which is significantly higher than fishmeal. Fishmeal prices, volatile due to supply issues and consistency, sell at around USD 1,750 per metric ton. While sustainability values are clear, the aquaculture market will not take the additional cost, as feed costs can go up to 70% of the production cost, and customers’ willingness to pay for the additional added values is limited.
Production consistency is another issue holding back the wider adoption of insect meal in the aquafeed industry as a viable protein alternative. As there is no benchmark for insect protein, when feed producers purchase insect protein from their suppliers, they may receive varied products from different producers. There are no clear homogeneous nutritional profiles or quality measures that can ensure consistent input and, thus, output.
Several solutions can assist the insect farming industry to evolve to overcome these challenges:
1. A Decoupled Model for More Efficient Production
This model separates reproduction from rearing and protein production, enabling insect farming companies to reduce infrastructure costs while improving operational performance and yield.
2. Proximity to Waste Streams and Aquafeed Factories
A facility close to a good-quality and economical waste source and a fish feed production facility promotes a more efficient and commercially viable operation.
3. High-quality breeding in Combination with Robust Rearing Systems
This improves the efficiency and consistency of insect meal production at scale.
This product helps the insect industry reach efficient production capacities, achieve price parity with traditional protein sources, and fulfill its potential in addressing the protein gap. By enhancing insect production, FreezeM supports the growth of sustainable protein sources for aquaculture feed.
Summary
In conclusion, the rapid growth of the aquaculture industry underscores the critical need for sustainable feed ingredients to address the looming food demand driven by a growing global population. However, the reliance on traditional fishmeal and fish oil poses sustainability challenges, urging the exploration of alternative feed sources like insects, algae, and plant proteins.
The emergence of insect meal, particularly from Black Soldier Flies (BSF), presents significant sustainability benefits, including waste reduction and efficient protein production. Despite challenges such as production scalability, cost, and consistency, innovative solutions like decoupled production models and strategic facility locations can propel the insect farming industry forward.
Companies like FreezeM, with their expertise in insect farming and high-quality BSF neonates, play a crucial role in advancing sustainable practices in aquaculture feed production. The industry can meet growing protein demands by adopting these solutions while safeguarding marine ecosystems and promoting economic viability.
Sources:
https://www.statista.com/statistics/262875/development-of-the-world-population/
https://research.wri.org/sites/default/files/2019-07/WRR_Food_Full_Report_0.pdf
https://nofima.brage.unit.no/nofima-xmlui/handle/11250/2608436
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https://www.nature.com/articles/s41893-018-0077-1
https://theconversation.com/taking-fish-out-of-fish-feed-can-make-aquaculture-a-more-sustainable-food-source-150728
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