Fish as feed inputs for aquaculture: practices, sustainability and implications

Wild fish and other aquatic organisms as feed in aquaculture in the Americas 175

According to Aguila (2006),
the salmonid aquaculture sector
in Chile consumed 900 000 tonnes
of compound aquafeeds in 2005,
including 300 000 tonnes of
domestically produced fishmeal
and all of the nationally produced
fish oil (over 117 300 tonnes in
2005).
Limited supplies for fishmeal and
fish oil, together with continuing
strong demand from the larger and
fast-growing aquaculture sectors
in Asia and Europe, has resulted
in a strong rise in the price of
fishmeal over the past 12 months
(Figure 43).
Projections concerning the
future availability, price and use of
fishmeal and fish oil vary widely
depending upon viewpoint and
assumptions used (Shepherd, 2005;
Tacon, 2005; Jackson, 2006; Tacon,
Hasan and Subasinghe, 2006). For
example, according to Tacon, Hasan
and Subasinghe (2006), fishmeal
and fish oil use in aquaculture is
expected to decrease in the long
run (Table 5); assumptions were
rising prices due to limited supplies
and increasing demand (Figure 43),
increasing competition for pelagics
for direct human consumption and
the desire on the part of consumers
for sustainability and a concern for
the state of the oceans.
However, according to industry
estimates, and in particular that
of the International Fishmeal and
Fish Oil Organisation (IFFO),
fishmeal and fish oil use is expected
to steadily increase, such that by
2012 aquaculture would use
60 percent of the global supplies
of fishmeal and 88 percent of the
global supplies of fish oil (Figures
44 and 45) (Jackson, 2006).

3.3.4 Other uses
Apart from the use of fishmeal and fish oil within feeds for farmed aquatic and
terrestrial animals (Tacon, Hasan and Subasinghe, 2006), fish oils are also used for
human consumption, either in their refined natural state (in capsules and health
foods) or hardened in the form of margarine and shortenings. For example, according

FIGURE 28

United States of America: fishmeal balance sheet

Source: FAO (2006a), except 2005 data from NMFS (2007)

FIGURE 29

United States of America: fish oil balance sheet

Source: FAO (2006a), except 2005 data from NMFS (2007)

FIGURE 30

Brazil: fishmeal balance sheet

Source: FAO (2006a), except 2005 data from Mittaine (2006)