Algae: Ingredients for a Healthier Fish Feed
Over the last 50 years, fish farming, also known as aquaculture, has boomed. In fact, we now produce more seafood through aquaculture than through wild fishing.
This is good news for the health of global fish stocks, but there can be problems associated with aquaculture that algae might just help to solve.
- Video: Envato
The world produces around
of fish and seafood every year.
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Some countries in the world eat close to
of seafood per person each year.
Other countries average at only a few kilograms.
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As demand for aquaculture continues to grow, the industry is rising to meet the challenges.
Where fish live close together, opportunistic parasites and diseases can spread more easily due to their proximity. This is especially true during stressful periods, when the fish's immune system might be weakened.
Traditionally, these issues have been dealt with pharmacological solutions.
The challenge here is that fish farms are often located in or near open water. Global regulations aim to limit pollution from nutrients, waste and pharmacologicals from these farms, but some still reaches the surrounding waters.
Here algae can be part of the solution!
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Functional Feeds
In aquaculture, fish are traditionally fed pellets. These pellets are designed depending on the nutritional needs of the fish.
What are fish food pellets normally made off?
Proteins: Necessary for growth
Lipids (Fats): Provide energy, brain function, and cellular structure.
Carbohydrates: Provide energy
Vitamins and Minerals: Essential for immune function, growth, and metabolism.
Functional feeds take this a step further: designed diets enriched with bioactive ingredients that go beyond basic nutrition. They are designed to improve fish health, growth, stress resistance, and environmental sustainability.
This is where algae can help!
Finding the Right Algae
Often, not the whole algae is used, but only compounds produced by the algae. Researchers need to find and test these algae compounds.
- Bild: Niva
Ex Vivo — Testing outside of the Fish
- Video: ESCI - Fish Farming
Algae use in functional fish feed is a relatively new research field. Therefore, researchers use existing knowledge to search for parts that could be beneficial.
Before testing the beneficial algae parts directly on live fish, researchers use ex vivo simulations. The term 'ex vivo' literally means 'out of the living'.
Testing outside the living fish allows researchers to test for specific, bioactive effects of the algae and predict how they might work in the functional feed. This lets them check whether the algae compound has the desired effect, such as improvements in the health of the skin, gills, and gut, without having to test it directly in the fish.
After the ex vivo simulations show a promising effect, that algae compound is added to the feed. Only then is the algae based functional feed tested on live fish, to see if the predicted improvements can also be found under realistic conditions.
Examples
(will come soon, would also love you're input)
Algae-based Functional Feeds
- Video: ESCI - Fish Farming
If the simulations show a promising effect, the compound is added to the feed and tested on live fish, to see whether the predicted benefits hold up in reality.
Within LOCALITY we are now moving from screening nearly 70 candidate ingredients to producing industrial-scale prototypes ready for field trials. The top-performing algae extracts showed promising results across immune response, wound healing, and skin health.
The next step is a field trial in sea cages in Norway, testing whether these benefits hold up under real farming conditions.
Benefits of Algae-Based Functional Feed
Algae-based functional feed is designed to boost the immune system, promote wound healing, and improve the health of the skin, gills, and gut. These benefits can also lead to higher resistance to parasites and faster recovery after infection, contributing to healthier and more resilient fish.
Immune boosting
Algae-based additives can help the immune system respond more effectively and recover faster. Building resilience from within.
Wound healing
By incorporating algae-based additives into fish feed, the aim is to help shift the body from defence to repair, supporting cell regrowth and faster recovery.
Mucosal health
Algae-based functional feeds show promise in strengthening the mucosal barrier in the skin and gut, reducing inflammation and supporting a healthier microbiome.
Parasite resistance
By improving immune function and strengthening the skin barrier, algae-based additives could help fish recover faster from parasite infestations. This stronger barrier could also protect against secondary infections while reducing the need for chemical treatments.
The goal is clear: Healthier fish, more sustainable farming, and a smaller environmental footprint: all starting with algae in the feed.
- Video: Envato
Circularity Powered By Algae
- Video: Envato