252 Fish as feed inputs for aquaculture – Practices, sustainability and implications
TABLE 22Principle European feedfish and their uses, 2004Species (2004 catch, thousand tonnes)Main useProportion usedfor fishmealUsesCommentCurrentPotentialBluewhiting(2 453)Fishmeal>95%Fresh and frozen whole fish for human consumptionFrozen blocks for “economy” meals, mince, surimiUnlikely to be accepted in chilled form due to their small size, bruising, autolysis and parasite load.Capelin (608)Fishmeal50–85%Human consumption (especially roe)Incorporating oil into food productsOf the 633 000 tonnes of Icelandic capelin landed during the 2004/2005 season, 100 000 tonnes were frozen for consumption in Japanese and East European markets.Sand eel (390)Fishmeal100% NoneNoneNorwegian pout (22)Fishmeal100% NoneNoneAntarctic krill (22)Fishmeal70%Boiled frozen krill or peeled krill tail and concentrate powdersAquafeeds, non-nutritional usesAttractive as an aquafeed due to high levels of astaxanthin for salmonid feeds.Atlantic herring (1 751)Human consumption<30%Fresh and frozen for human consumption, tuna farmingAdded-value for human consumptionStrengthening frozen herring prices have made this fish less attractive for fishmeal use. Atlanto-Scandinavian use for fishmeal has dropped from 68% to 25% since 2001.Sprat (684)Fishmeal and human consumption<50%Smoked for human consumption, mink foodAdded-value for human consumptionMainly used for fishmeal except in Latvia and Russian Federation. High dioxin levels may have implications for use in fishmeal/oil.European pilchard (297)Human consumptionc. 50% CannedAdded-value for human consumptionAtlantic horse mackerel (202)Human consumption<20%Block frozen for Russian Federation and AfricaAdded-value for human consumptionEuropean anchovy (159)Human consumption? CannedAdded-value for human consumptionSource:Compiled by the author