84 Fish as feed inputs for aquaculture – Practices, sustainability and implications
Over the over the last few years, Asian production of fishmeal (notably in the three
nations that rank within the top 16 globally) has not increased significantly, while
consumption has decreased by about 200 000 tonnes over the period 1999 to 2004
(Figure 12). However, in Viet Nam, which is an emerging aquaculture nation, fishmeal
consumption has increased to 82 000 tonnes from almost zero in 1999. By contrast,
importations by Thailand have decreased from 10 080 tonnes in 2004 to 4 800 tonnes
in 2006 (H. Kongkeo, NACA, personal communication, 2006). Increased domestic
fishmeal production is probably the main reason for the decline in imports to Thailand.
It is also claimed that there has been a gradual improvement in the quality of the
fishmeal produced in Thailand, particularly in those plants owned and/or managed by
Charoen Pokphand, one of the world’s leading animal feed producers (Gill, 2003).
In Viet Nam, it is purported that there is a specialized fleet for catching trash fish,
and a total of 300 000 to 600 000 tonnes of trash fish/low-value fish is landed, of which
about 280 000 tonnes are used by the fishmeal plants, a conversion rate of 3.5 (Dao,
Dang and Nguyen, 2005). By contrast Edwards, Le and Allan (2004) estimated the
trash-fish landings in Viet Nam to be 933 183 tonnes in 2001, valued at Vietnamese
dong (VND)1 390 416 million (US$99 315 428) (Table 4).
In Viet Nam, the commercial landings of trash fish/low-value fish vary depending
on the locality, season, species composition and demand. The price is very variable and
is linked to usage (also see Funge-Smith, Lindebo and Staples, 2005). Trash fish/low-
value fish used for fishmeal production, fish powder production and direct feeding
for cultured fish stocks range in price from VND700 to 1 800, VND500 to 800, and
VND 2 000 to 2 500 per kg, respectively (US$1=VND14 500), conceivably reflecting
the quality of the trash fish.
In some countries, fishmeal manufacturing also tends to use aquatic food industry
waste products. However, the quantities utilized are difficult to obtain, and estimates
are restricted to countries that have a major aquatic food industry sector, such as
the tuna canning sector in Thailand. In Thailand, the total tonnage used for fishmeal
production ranged from 388 987 to 769 361 tonnes from 1997 to 2004, and in 2004
it was 671 641 tonnes (DOF, 2006). The latter amounted to 43.2 percent of the raw
material used in the production of 423 866 tonnes of fishmeal in Thailand in 2004.
In India, the coastal state of Karnataka is a major center for fishmeal production
(IMM Ltd., 2003), the number of fishmeal plants having increased from two in 1975
to 18 in 1998. However, operations are very seasonal, depending on the availability of
the main raw material (oil sardines, Amblygaster spp.), both locally and from other
states such as Gujarat and Mahashatra. The fishmeal produced is very variable in
quality (IMM Ltd., 2003), the average protein content being only about 40 percent. The
current market price of the fishmeal produced ranges from Indian rupee (INR)5 000 toTABLE 3
Fishmeal production in the Asia-Pacific region
Country Year Production (tonnes) No. of plants Imports (tonnes)
Chinaa 2005 300 000 na* 1 580 000
Taiwan Province of Chinab 2005 16 100J na 220 976
India (Karnataka)c 1990 to 2003 8 000–10 000^18 34 000d
Myanmare 2005 12 610 14 na
Japanf 2004 195 000 na 402 000
Republic of Koreag^2005 45 000 na na
Thailandh 2004 403 000 95 4 800
Viet Nami 2004 80 000 15–20 82 000
Total 1 061 710 2 323 776
*na: not available
Source: aTang (2006); bS-Y. Shiau (National Taiwan Ocean University, personal communication, 2007); cIMM Ltd.
(2003); dChandrapal (2005); eLay (2006); fIFFO (2005); gUS Department of Agriculture (http://www.indexmundi.
com/en/commodities/agricultural/meal-fish/2005.html); hIFFO (2005); DOF (2006); H. Kongkeo (NACA, personal
communication, 2007); iEdwards, Le and Allan (2004); Dao, Dang and Nguyen (2005); JFAO (2007)