Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to all our partners and readership!

2019 has been a challenging year in which we have grown our readership of our magazines and blogs with your support.

Our blogging news service will end today, the 24^th December and resume Monday 6^th January, 2020.

We wish you all prosperous 2020 and a very Happy New Year.

All the very best from your friends at Perendale Publishers!

The Aquaculturists

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PTN company profile

PTN’s (Pellet Technology Netherlands) mission is to produce and develop high-quality, reliable machines.

PTN strives to provide its customers with the following benefits through its products: higher yields lower energy consumption low maintenance requirements access to state-of-the-art technology.

As a globally operating, specialist manufacturer of pelletisers and related machinery it is their ambition to expand to become the most respected professional OEM (Original Equipment Manufacturer).

According to the PTN website, “Our strategy for achieving this ambition is to: expand and consolidate the global network of professional sales and service points create a virtual and real image of professionalism, quality and innovation as well as a high level of standardisation and digital accessibility for strategic partners transform technology, know-how and competences into technical and commercial added value generate stable growth in sales and profit.”

PTN develops and manufactures all its products under its own management at two production sites in Schijndel. This means that PTN is able to build both standard products and products to meet customer specifications.

After the machines have been manufactured and installed at the customer’s site, their service department commissions the machines. In addition, the service department is also available should there be any problems or if the customer’s own technical department needs support.

Visit the PTN website, HERE.

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Leiber GmbH managing director Michael von Laer steps down as dual leadership instated

On the 31st December 2019, Michael von Laer will, at his own request will cease being the managing director of Leiber GmbH in order to take up a new professional challenge. During the 19 years in which Mr von Laer has been responsible for Leiber GmbH as its director, he has contributed to the successful development of the company, nationally and internationally, and with a great deal of commitment advanced this specialist for brewers' yeast products and yeast extracts.

Leiber's strong growth over the last few years, the development of business segments, the global representation and investment in its, by now, 250 committed employees were the reason why Leiber GmbH decided to distribute the associated workload and responsibilities across more than one person.
 

Gilbert Klausmeyer and Bernd Schmidt-Ankum, the pair set to
 take over leadership of Leiber GmbH in 2020
Image credit: Leiber GmbH

The partner managing director, Bernd Schmidt-Ankum, and the managing director Gilbert Klausmeyer will immediately take over the leadership of this brewers' yeast specialist. This new dual leadership will ensure a smooth transition and the continuity of the Leiber management. Being a partner and having been on the Board of Directors for 16 years, Mr Schmidt-Ankum is very familiar with Leiber and has always aimed to significantly shape the technological progress within the industry.

During the last 11 years, Mr Klausmeyer was the business administration manager and authorised officer of the company Schne-frost. Before that, he had been working in a variety of similar positions within the food industry, where, in a number of diverse companies, he was able to collect comprehensive experience in commercial management and controlling. Mr Klausmeyer regards the active shaping of this brewers' yeast specialist's strategic development as his particular challenge as a new managing director of Leiber GmbH.

Leiber GmbH has specialised in the refinement of brewers' yeast products. The product portfolio offers a number of different product solutions: pure brewers' yeast, brewers' yeast bound to carriers with additional effects, specialist products with specific effects and even yeast extracts and autolysates.

Visit the Leiber GmbH website, HERE.

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Extru-Tech Inc company profile

Founded in 1985, Extru-Tech® has installed numerous extrusion systems worldwide designed for the production of human food, pet food, aquatic feed and animal feed products.

Extru-Tech® also maintains the reputation of supplying the extrusion industry with superior quality replacement parts.

Extru-Tech® currently produces and markets one of the industry's most complete lines of extrusion processing systems. 

In addition, they offer a full line of ancillary equipment and customised equipment solutions for specialised processes.

Visit the website HERE

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AFIA applaud breakthrough in USMCA negotiations

The American Feed Industry Association (AFIA) has released a statement congratulating the bi-partisan passage of the US-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) today by the US House of Representatives.

The long-awaited passage by the House of Representatives is a momentous step forward in finalising a process that has taken over two years of renegotiating their most critical trade agreement. Trade with Canada and Mexico is tremendously important to the US animal feed, ingredient and pet food industries with exports more than quadrupling since the inception of the North American Free Trade Agreement 25 years ago.
 

'Today is a big step forward for American agriculture and the animal food industry,' said Constance Cullman, AFIA's president and CEO. 'The USMCA builds upon an already great agreement with our neighbours to preserve and expand market access for the animal food and livestock industries while providing much needed stability across the agriculture sector.'

AFIA appreciates the hard work of President Trump, Ambassador Lighthizer, House leadership, and members of the Ways and Means Committee who worked so hard to secure an updated agreement. AFIA now urges the Senate to quickly take up and pass this landmark agreement.

Visit the AFIA website, HERE.

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Evonik company profile

Evonik is one of the world's leading specialty chemicals companies. Profitable growth and a sustained increase in the value of the company form the heart of their strategy, which is supported by their owners, RAG-Stiftung (74.99 percent) and funds managed by CVC Capital Partners (25.01 percent).

Their specialty chemicals activities focus on high-growth megatrends—especially health, nutrition, resource efficiency, and globalisation—and their goal is to enter attractive future-oriented markets.

In 2011 Evonik’s roughly 33,000 employees generated sales of €14.5 billion and an operating result (EBITDA) of €2.8 billion. More than 70 percent of sales are generated outside Germany, providing convincing evidence that our business is global.

Visit the website HERE.

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FAMSUN company profile

Muyang Co, Ltd recently announced changing its brand name from Muyang to FAMSUN starting May 2014. This move is prompted by the idea of better illustrating the company’s business and the farm-to-table industry chain it serves. It is consistent with Muyang’s global strategy and its aim of becoming an integrated solution provider in the agro-industry.

FAMSUN originates from “famous, farm, family, sun and union”; it implies Muyang Co, Ltd’s development concept and vision, which is to build a green and healthy supply chain from farm to table together with its customers and to convert traditional agriculture into a modern, profitable and sustainable business with its integrated solutions in feed manufacturing, grain milling, grain handling and storage, food processing, as well as industrial automation.

The creative design of the FAMSUN logo features a beveled letter “F”, a curvy letter “A”, a stretching letter “S” and a friendly letter “U”. It will be the only signage representing Muyang’s business, products, service and solutions. Meanwhile, the company will continue to operate in its current structure, provide follow-up service based on relevant agreement, and its business contacts will remain unchanged. 

Visit the website HERE.

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VIV Qingdao 2019, a successful show, China

VIV Qingdao 2019, held on 19–21st September, has come to an end and proved itself as a high-level international husbandry exhibition with an upgraded and renewed concept.

VIV Qingdao 2019 featured 451 companies from over 30 countries and regions in what was over 50,000 square meters of exhibit space. Altogether there were 20,257 visitors throughout the three-day show which was a 25 percent increase on VIV China 2018. Among them, there were 2315 international visits which increased by 13 percent compared to that of the previous edition.
 

Over 20 professional conferences and events were held onsite which attracted around 4439 visits. These activities not only enriched the content of the exhibition, but also provided more opportunities of interaction and sharing in the industry. VIV Qingdao 2019 invited more than 300 industry leaders together with over 200 hosted buyers to the show and cooperated with 150 global media partners.

26 awarded innovative products were displayed in the InnovAction area in Hall S1 with speeches by the representatives of the awarded companies.

VIV Qingdao 2019 cooperated with Cargill to hold the conference theming at ASF prevention and control onsite the show. Tiger Quan, Commercial Director of Cargill Premix &Nutrition China gave a welcome speech. Richard Faris, Principal Scientist of Performance Innovation Team of Cargill Premix & Nutrition USA shared how Cargill prevents ASF, and also shared his advice on recuperation. The Grand Launch of Cargill’s product “Reprofish/IPP/IGG” was also held onsite the event.

There were several delegations, both local and from abroad, visiting the show on the second day. VIV Qingdao 2019 arranged the guided tour and matchmaking for them. The delegations from large-scale enterprises, animal health industry, feed industry, etc. visited related exhibitor, and had business meetings.

The Animal Health Industry Analysis Forum, organised by ECHEMI and VNU Exhibitions Asia, focused on the industry trend in China, Europe, Southeast Asia and Middle East market. Around 30 international buyers participated in the forum. Guided tour around the show and matchmakings were arranged as well.

As the first edition of VIV 2.0 in China, VIV Qingdao 2019 has made a great success which set up a new mode of exhibition as well. With its pragmatic attitude and practical contents, the future of VIV in China is bright and promising.

VIV Qingdao 2020 will meet you from 17th to 19th in September, 2020. Gross exhibition area is 60,000m, there will be more than 700 exhibitors and 40,000 visitors. The booth fee would be a 10 percent off, when booking before December 31st, 2019.

Read more, HERE.

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Biomin company profile

BIOMIN are dedicated to finding innovative, trend-setting solutions that empower their customers to master existing and future challenges in animal nutrition– the natural way. The application of their scientific know-how and expertise, based on an in-depth understanding of their customer’s needs and concerns, enables them to deliver solutions that support animal health, optimise performance and production efficiency.

Research and development is one of the cornerstones of BIOMIN. Their strong in-house research and development, and global cooperation with leading institutions and organisations form the basis by which innovative solutions are developed for their customers.

Through joint projects with renowned universities and research institutes, BIOMIN is constantly in touch with the latest scientific know-how, from which novel feed additives are developed and produced. Their global network of collaborating institutions has grown to over 100.

One of the cornerstones of BIOMIN’s success is the ongoing improvement of their inhouse quality standards. In 1997, BIOMIN introduced the international ISO 9001 standard. The HACCP system, introduced subsequently at BIOMIN’s production sites, provides the quality assurance our customers seek from them. In addition, the feed quality standards QS and GMP+ guarantee the utmost degree of control and quality for their products – from raw material inputs right through to the final product.

Concerns over climate change and the role of greenhouse gases continue to rise. In September 2011, BIOMIN was internationally recognised through the award of ISO 14040 ‘Life Cycle Assessment’ certification. By optimising feed use and improving animal performance, it is possible to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from livestock operations.Through innovative production technologies and advanced, scientific know-how, BIOMIN has pioneered several trend-setting solutions for a range of animal nutrition products, all of which utilise fully natural processes and ingredients.

An in-depth understanding of what the customer’s needs and concerns are has enabled BIOMIN to create and deliver solutions in-line with performance and efficiency goals.

Visit the BIOMIN website, HERE.

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AFIA’s schedule of 2020 conferences and courses

The American Feed Industry Association has released its 2020 schedule of conferences and online courses.

"All of AFIA's meetings and events truly offer value to anyone in the animal food industry," said Veronica Rovelli, AFIA's senior director of meetings and events. "The opportunities to network with industry peers and stay current in the issues affecting us all are hard to find anywhere else."
 

The AFIA 2020 meeting schedule is as follows:
• Jan. 28-30: International Feed Expo at IPPE - Atlanta, Ga.
• Jan. 28: Pet Food Conference at IPPE - Atlanta, Ga.
• Jan. 29: Biosecurity in the Face of Foreign Animal Disease – What the Feed Industry Needs to Know at IPPE - Atlanta, Ga.
• Jan. 29: Feed Education Program at IPPE - Atlanta, Ga.
• March 17-19: Purchasing and Ingredient Suppliers Conference - Seattle, Wash.
• June 8-11: Feed Industry Institute - Milwaukee, Wisc.
• Sept. 15-17: Liquid Feed Symposium - Chicago, Ill.
• Oct. 21-23: Executive Leadership Summit - Lake Tahoe, Nev.
• Nov. 4-6: Equipment Manufacturers Conference - New Orleans, La.

AFIA will also continue its tenth year of partnering with Kansas State University to offer a five-week online course, "AFIA-KSU 500: Fundamentals of Feed Manufacturing."

The course will be offered between:
• Feb. 11 - March 17;
• April 7 - May 12;
• Aug. 4 - Sept. 8; and
• Oct. 6 - Nov. 10.

For more information or to register visit the AFIA website, HERE. 

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ScaleAQ company profile

Scale AQ is a result of 40 years of experience and consists of Steinsvik, Aqualine, and AquaOptima.

With their experience and a unique portfolio of products and servies, they aim to be the world’s leading provider of technology and infrastructure for land and sea-based aquaculture.

Scale AQ proudly employs 900 of the most competent, solid, and innovative brains within aquaculture. Solid people make for sustainable business for ScaleAQ’s customers. Their wide-reaching local presence means strong relations, being there, rubbing shoulders, and solving challenges hands on.

AquaAQ’s services are divided into four divisions that integrate in co-creation and customer focus:

Service
ScaleAQ has the expertise, products and people to help you ensure continuity and cost-effective production.

Seabased
ScaleAQ has developed and delivered numerous solutions and products within cage-based aquaculture, which today are industry standards.

Landbased
ScaleAQ builds and delivers turnkey recirculating aquaculture systems (RAS) for production of healthy and thriving fish. Through their strong technology and industry-leading expertise they have found a way to optimise water quality.

Digital
ScaleAQ has a wide range of digital products that ensure that the biological production is in line with industry requirements.

Visit the ScaleAQ website, HERE.


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Taiwan International Fisheries & Seafood Show

Taiwan's largest fishery trade event connecting industry professionals took place on September 26-28th,2019 at the Kaohsiung Exhibition Centre in Kaohsiung, Taiwan, an event which International Aquafeed magazine were very happy to attend.

This year's exposition is the fifth rendition of the popular Taiwan International Fisheries and Seafood show (TIFSS). As one of Taiwan's most important fishery and seafood trade events, the show was a huge success and attracted over 170 exhibitors and 340 booths. Over 10,000 foreign and domestic professional buyers also attended the event, a record-breaking number which demonstrates how much the event is continuing to grow.
 

It is very clear that the event is continuing to expand, as the variety of topics concerning marine life that were covered at the event have expanded significantly, compared to previous renditions of the event. Aquaculture, marine biotechnology, fishing tackles, seafood, seafood processing and fishing equipment were all key sectors that the event catered to, giving attendees a much wider scope of topics to explore as they browsed the stands.

The event was opened up by Dirctor Donald Lu from the Taiwan External Development Council, who gave welcome remarks, followed by Peter D M Chiang, Founder of Hanaqua Tech Inc, who discussed the aquaculture industry on a global scale, as well as international certification. Other expert speakers included Chao-nan Chen, Director of the Kaohsiung Industry Development Association and professor Masuma of Kindai University.

Improving year on year
There were several areas of the exhibition which also reflected the large area of growth within the aquaculture sector in Taiwan. One new feature was the ‘Fishing Tackle Exhibition Area’, with brought 16 exhibitors from all over the world to attend, including Abu Garcia from the US, Daiwa from Japan, Okuma, Etuoh, Anten and more from Taiwan. As a result of this new update, any fishermen also attended the event and brought new experience and interests to the aquaculture event.

The event was also broadcast online live by several prominent members of the fishing industry. An exclusive indoor ‘Shrimp Fishing Experience’ was also held, which allowed fishermen to experience indoor fish shrimping and the queues to join this fun event proved its popularity.

Along with this update, a variety of other specialised sections in the event included the Fishing Equipment and Technology Area, Seafood Process Area, Marine Biotechnology Area and Aquaculture Area. The International Aquafeed team were indeed very impressed to see a renewed focus on fish farming and aquatic technologies at the fifth rendition of the Taiwan International Fisheries and Seafood Show, which really reflects that the event is keeping updated on all the latest innovations in the sector.

The event also boastsed a great scope of international companies, speakers and attendees. In particular, Taiwan’s top product importers for fishery products are China, Norway, japan, Vietnam and Indonesia, and companies form these countries flocked en masse to attend the event, as well as members from countries all over the globe.

Read more, HERE.

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Aquafarm 2020: a search engine of aquaculture

In just three years AquaFarm has become a key event of reference for Italian, European and Mediterranean basin aquaculture. In the 2020 edition is set to take place 19-20th February at Pordenone Fiere, Italy. During which the results of research projects funded by Horizon 2020, Erasmus +, InterReg and FEAMP will be highlighted.

Technological innovation inspired by applied sectoral research must and will have to lead more and more towards environmental, economic and social sustainability of aquaculture.
 

AquaFarm has always devoted considerable space for research activities: this year a whole session will be focused on it. Coordinators and partners of different projects will present the results directly applicable in farming or aimed at optimising the supply chain processes. Many of the Italian universities, research institutes, associations and companies -- also present as exhibitors at the event -- are active partners of research consortia funded under the Horizon 2020, Erasmus +, InterReg or national programmes.

More information on AquaFarm and NovelFarm, on how to participate as an exhibitor and on the evolution of the agenda and thematic events programmed at the Fair, is available on the event websites: www.aquafarmexpo.it and www.novelfarmexpo.it.

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Expert topic: Wreckfish

by Álvarez-Blázquez1, B., Rodríguez Villanueva2, J.L., Pérez Rial1, E., Peleteiro1, J.B., Mylonas3, C.C., Papadaki3, M., Papadakis3 I., Fakriadis3, I., Robles4, R., Linares5, F.

Following the series of articles published on the fish species included in the EU-funded DIVERSIFY project (see April, May, June, July and October issues of International Aquafeed), which ran between 2013 and 2018, we present here the wreckfish (Polyprion americanus), which was the most challenging species in the project.
 

The wreckfish is one of the largest Polyprionidae species, reaching a size of 100kg.  It is a deep-water fish (100-to-1000m) found almost throughout the world and is characterised by an extended pelagic juvenile phase (Ball et al., 2000; Sedberry et al., 1999). It is one of the most interesting new species for aquaculture, due to its fast growth (Suquet & La Pomélie, 2002; Rodriguez-Villanueva et al., 2011), late reproductive maturation, high market price and limited fisheries landings (See Figure 1) and easy handling in captivity with no mortality recorded during the DIVERSIFY trials (Papandroulakis et al., 2008). Its large size makes it appropriate for processing and development of value-added products, which could be of interest for the EU market.

Wreckfish accepts inert food easily, being a very voracious carnivore.  Wild-caught individuals kept in captivity grew from one-to-five kilogrammes in a period of 10 months (Rodriguez-Villanueva et al., 2011).  The slow reproductive maturation of wreckfish, which occurs at an age of 5-10 years in captivity, may be a problem for broodstock development and management.  On the other hand, its long juvenile stage is a great advantage from the aquaculture viewpoint, allowing for commercialisation before sexual maturity, and thus avoiding problems linked to maturation, such as reduction in growth. It has been demonstrated that growth is strongly influenced by sex and that female wreckfish are significantly heavier than males, as observed in many other marine fish species (Rodríguez, 2017).

Read more, HERE.

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Phileo - Lesaffre company profile

Nothing is more precious than life, and that’s the philosophy that drives Phileo.

As global population continues to increase, the world faces a growing demand for food and greater sustainability challenges.

According to the team at Phileo Lesaffre "Working at the crossroads of nutrition and health, we are committed to delivering future evidence-based solutions that enhance animal health and performance. In each and every country, our team’s progress is led by the most advanced scientific outcomes as well as the field input of experienced farmers".

Visit the website HERE.

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The Smart Aquaculture Photovoltaic Greenhouse (SAPG) project

by Dr Lu Jenn-Kan, National Taiwan Ocean University, Taiwan

The world-wide development of aquaculture
In 2014, the world fish supply reached 16.2 million tonnes, which represent 20kg of fish per person. It reached a new record, mostly due to the tremendous growth of aquaculture, which provides now almost half of the fish stock (73.8 million tonnes in 2014), while capture production is saturating since 1990.

Experts all agree that aquaculture will contribute significantly in the future to food security and adequate nutrition for a global population expected to reach 9.7 billion by 2050.
 

Intensive and closed aquaculture systems
Recirculation aquaculture systems (RAS) represent a new and unique way to farm fish. Instead of the traditional method of growing fish outdoors in open ponds, this system rears fish at high densities, in indoor tanks with a "controlled" environment. Recirculating systems filter and clean the water for recycling back through fish culture tanks.

RAS offer fish producers a variety of important advantages over open pond culture. These include a method to maximise production on a limited supply of water and land, nearly complete environmental control to maximise fish growth year-round, the flexibility to locate production facilities near large markets, complete and convenient harvesting, and quick and effective disease control.

Alternative renewable energy for aquaculture
One of the fundamental issues facing all of us today is proper management of our energy resources. The current generation has a responsibility to ensure that energy is used efficiently and with minimum impact on the environment.

As considerations of fuel diversity, market uncertainties and environmental concerns are increasingly factored into electric utility resource planning, renewable energy technologies are beginning to find their place in the utility resource portfolio.

Most countries in Southeast Asia, they are experiencing strong economic and population growth. Its energy demand is currently increasing by ten percent each year and the competition for land use is growing as a result.

Some scholars have proposed to reduce fuel energy by apply renewable green energy sources such as solar and wind power. Fossil-based fuels are less cost-effective than renewable energies; energy is of little concern for the majority of the industry, and renewable energies are of potential use in recirculating aquaculture systems (RAS). In this project, we also want to demonstrate that dual land use for aquaculture and photovoltaics can solve these systemic problems.

The electricity charge accounts for about 20-40 percent of the total production cost of aquaculture, and the average monthly electricity consumption is more than 2,000 kilowatt hours.

In view of this, as well as the advent of the era of high energy prices and the trend of energy saving and carbon reduction, it is necessary to encourage farmers to use highly efficient electrical appliances, and encourage farmers, fish and livestock to make good use of solar energy, wind power and other self-generating ways to reduce CO2 emissions.

The Aqua-PV greenhouse is 80L X 20W X 4.5H and the rooftop can install up to an incredible 720 solar panels; the generating power is about 407,808 kilowatts/year.

Read more, HERE.

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Phibro Aqua company profile

Phibro Aqua is a division of Phibro Animal Health Corporation, a diversified global developer and manufacturer of a broad range of animal health and nutrition products for the poultry, swine, cattle, dairy and aquaculture markets.

Growing worldwide demand for high quality protein, combined with expanding human populations and decreasing wild stocks of fish, assures an increased future dependence on aquaculture products and technologies.

The challenge is to develop profitable and sustainable aquaculture practices which will implement advanced technologies. These technologies will allow aquaculture to make a significant contribution to future supplies of aquatic products.

Phibro Aqua has developed a strong team of fish health specialists and scientists with a focus on providing the global aquaculture industry with cost effective health management solutions in order to maximize the productivity of their customer’s farms. This Phibro Aqua team brings customers a full range of expertise in production and operation, fish health management, disease diagnosis and vaccination.

Phibro Aqua operates comprehensive Research and Development facilities. These facilities include a large scale wet lab for clinical evaluation of fish vaccines, medication and feed additives. Phibro Aqua's lab includes a full diagnostic service addressing parasitology, bacteriology, histopathology and molecular-biology.

Visit the Phibro Aqua website, HERE.

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Sponsorship packages are limited for the Aquatic Asia Conference- confirm yours now!

The latest rendition of the Aquatic Asia Conference will be organised by International Aquafeed, VIV and Progressus. Taking place on March 23rd one day prior to VICTAM Asia and Animal Health and Nutrition Asia, the conference will discuss shrimp and fish nutrition and welfare.
The previous Aquatic Asia Conference, which took place at VIV Asia in March 2019 proved especially popular, drawing in a record-breaking audience of over 260+ attendees, with a brilliant line up of presentations from companies such as Aker BioMarine, Singao, Lallemand, Phileo Lesaffre, Bühler, Tanin Sevnica, Olmix and may more.
This new rendition will discuss a variety of topics, and we are now searching for sponsors!


We already have confirmed four great speakers for the conference:

• Professor Simon Davies of Harper Adams University, Shropshire, UK
• Pathway Intermediates
• Nutriera
• Yiannis Christodoulou, Director of Progressus

Keep updated with all the latest news on our official events page.

Read more HERE

The European Green Deal: FEFAC committed to development of sustainable livestock and aquaculture

FEFAC, representing the EU compound feed and premix industry, is offering its full cooperation to help achieve the new EU Commission's objectives laid down in the 'Green Deal, for the journey towards carbon-neutral livestock and aquaculture production in Europe.

Image credit: Anders Sangberg on Flickr
(CC BY 2.0)

 The European feed industry has been a long-time investor in research and development to provide innovative animal nutrition solutions to farmers, helping them to address the challenge of climate change. FEFAC's members are recognised world leaders in resource efficiency & applied animal nutrition science, upgrading and converting low value co-products of the food and biofuel industry into high-value foodstuffs of animal origin (e.g. meat, dairy, eggs and fish).

FEFAC President Nick Major highlights that the EU livestock and aquaculture sector only represents 10 percent of all GHG emissions in the EU. He recalls that feed production and products of animal origin are an essential component of sustainable food systems, 'Farm animals including fish consume 86 percent 'non-human edible' feedingstuffs, according to FAO, meaning the feed sector plays a key part in a truly circular economy, by keeping and upgrading nutrients present in a vast range of co-products, like sunflower & rapemeal, sugarbeet pulp & molasses, brewers grains and wheat bran'.

Read more HERE.

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Solving the newest old problems in RAS technology

by LandIng Aquaculture BV, The Netherlands

The RAS sector is currently experiencing an unprecedented boom. We are observing the numbers of large RAS installations growing each year, some at scales thought not possible a decade ago. With increased scale, the size of the risks and technical challenges has also grown.

The Jevon’s paradox can be applied to RAS. The paradox postulates that increasing the efficiency of using a resource leads to an increase in the demand for such resource. In the end, the net use of the resource grows. With RAS, significant savings in water use have opened the map for suitable places for fish farming.
 

Peri-urban areas, rough coastlines and regions with limited water sources are increasingly attractive to build fish farms. Other areas with plenty of water available? Those are good for building even larger fish farms! In other words, being able to reuse more water is allowing us to build even larger farms that, due to their sheer size, will still use vast amounts of water.

Having a good source of water with excellent quality is as important as ever. In the past, water availability used to constrain our capacity to supply farmed fish with enough oxygen and to keep them safe from accumulation of wastes. Rob van de Ven explains, “Nowadays, with RAS, water availability hinders our capacity to keep the water free from less dangerous, but still aggravating agents. Nitrate, fine solids (which are mostly bacterial flocs) and sludge (which can lead to H2S formation) are next on our laundry list of RAS problems to solve.”

“The cost, complexity and novelty of technologies to control nitrate, fine solids and microbes are often barriers to their commercial adoption”, Carlos Espinal adds. For instance, the use of ozonation is almost non-existent in Norway, but more prevalent in North America and Germany, where ozonation research has been historically undertaken.

The use of denitrification reactors is also rare in Norway as, historically, enough water has been available to control nitrate by dilution and water temperature control was not a requirement. However, denitrification technology is more prevalent in countries with water scarcity, stringent water discharge regulations or system heating needs. Israel, Germany, Denmark and the Netherlands are good examples.

To push Jevon’s paradox away, at least for a while, Landing Aquaculture is developing some products which, hopefully, will increase the adoption fine solids filtration and denitrification technologies of in RAS.

Read more, HERE.

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Wenger company profile

From small-town entrepreneur to worldwide leader. With a little ingenuity and a lot of hard work, brothers Joe and Louis Wenger founded Wenger Mixing Company in a small Kansas (USA) town in 1935. They went on to design a machine that blended molasses with dry feedstuffs and produced pellets in 1948.

Theirs was the first extrusion cooking system and the basic technology for all commercial extruders used today.  The Wenger brothers' novel idea created a worldwide industry. And, seventy-five years later, Wenger Manufacturing, Inc. is still a family-owned business committed to groundbreaking innovation in the extrusion market.

Visit the website HERE.

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Sponsorships opportunities available for the Aqua Feed Extrusion Conference at VIV MEA!

The Aqua Feed Extrusion Conference, co-organised by International Aquafeed, Dr Mian Riaz of Texas A&M University and VIV is once again taking place during VIV MEA in Abu Dhabi!

The conference will be held in Capital Suite 15, ADNEC, 09:00-16:00.
This rendition of the conference will specialise in extrusion for aquatic feeds, feed nutrition and processing. The full-day conference will feature a variety of industry expert speakers delivering innovative presentations on how users can make the best use of their extrusion machinery and aqua feed systems.

A variety of sponsorship opportunities for the conference are available now- get in touch for more information!

Read more HERE

























Last year's Aqua Feed Extrusion Conference was a resounding success, featuring talks from a variety of companies such as DSM, Andritz, CPS, Wenger and many more. You can read the full report on the conference HERE.


For further information please contact:
Dr Mian Riaz (mnriaz@tamu.edu)
or
Rebecca Sherratt (rebeccas@perendale.co.uk)

Alltech InDepth: The future of healthy and profitable aquaculture

by Vaughn Entwistle, Managing Editor, International Aquafeed

Whenever feed giant Alltech schedules an event, it is invariably a major production with very high levels of technical content, often at the very cutting edge, and the event at Eindhoven was no exception.

The plenary speakers: Aqua InDepth featured five illustrious speakers.
 

Doctor Mark Lyons PhD
AllTech President and CEO set the conference tone with a message of positivity and hope. His opening slide simply stated, “We are not doomed,” echoing the same theme that was iterated at the Alltech Ideas 2019 Planet of Plenty conference back in May 2019.

Dr Lyon’s take home message was the same as in that earlier conference: Human beings are immensely resourceful. Despite the challenges of population growth and climate crisis, we are not doomed if we focus on sustainability and collaboration.

The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) estimates that we will need to increase food production by 25-to-70 percent to feed a projected population possibly exceeding eight to nine billion by 2050. Given these numbers with the additional complication of Global Heating, the challenges look daunting.

However, Dr Lyons’ belief is that the technologies that will create the future are already in our hands, and by bringing together highly skilled individuals, we can leverage the collective genius of the group and accomplish amazing things.

Alltech has backed up this philosophy with actions, as it has invested massively in research while also establishing research alliances with companies all over the world. Alltech has also been able to leap-frog its technology by acquiring eighteen businesses within six years.

In 2016, Alltech acquired Coppens International, a leading international aquatic feed solutions company in the Netherlands. At the time, Coppens International’s specialties included temperate and tropical marine and freshwater diets for a variety of juvenile and adult species.

Dr Albert Tacon
Next up was aquaculture nutritionist Dr Albert Tacon, who echoed Mark Lyon’s message of positivity by introducing the Hawaiian phrase “A ‘ohe hana nui ke alu’ ia” which translates into English as “No task is too big when done together.”

Dr Tacon (who is based in Hawaii) began with his observation that global aquaculture has already exceeded the output of capture fisheries. He predicted that, because most coastal waters are publicly owned, the future of aquaculture will involve a move to the deep oceans and onto the land in the form of RAS farming.

He followed with a breakdown of the major species being farmed around the world and noted that the majority of fish currently produced globally are freshwater species. He predicts that shrimp will be produced in large tank systems covered by plastic for biosecurity. He also noted that, despite the rise of aquaculture in the West in recent times, Asia still produces 91 percent of farmed fish/seafood.

Dr Tacon sees the rise of aquaculture as a solution to two of the most pressing needs the planet currently faces: the famine crisis and the obesity crisis. He pointed out that consumers in Asian countries such as Japan, consume a great deal of fish and seafood in their diet and consequently have high longevity rates.

By contrast, consumers in western countries, such as Europe (apart from Norway and Spain), South America and North America, have low fish consumption rates and much higher incidence of obesity with correspondingly shorter life spans.

Read more, HERE.

The Aquaculturists

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IDAH company profile

IDAH’s ultimate goal is to be world’s number one with customer satisfaction.

IDAH’s vision is to build on our solid traditional manufacturing roots and expand out to be a full-service solutions provider: offering value-added system designs and turnkey project consultation services.

Through this expansion, we hope to create an international platform where technology could be shared and integrated for the benefit of our customers.

By upholding the IDAH Spirit, the passionate team members of IDAH are committed to achieve this vision.

The IDAH Spirit

"Creativity, Honesty & Quality "

Creativity is what gave birth to IDAH in 1974 and consequently the birth of the feeds manufacturing industry in Asia.

Innovation through creativity is what has enabled us to be the industry driver from our inception until now. IDAH is committed and well positioned to lead the industry of tomorrow.

If creativity is the engine that has rapidly pushed IDAH forward; Honesty is what keeps us moving in the right direction.

IDAH has been firmly grounded on the virtues of quality, honour, and accountability. Our main business is to safeguard the trust that customers have given us and be a dedicated upholder of the highest quality standard.

Visit the website HERE.

The Aquaculturists

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Scottish Sea Farms’ new hatchery delivers first smolts safely to sea pens

Scottish Sea Farms' new £55m Barcaldine Hatchery has achieved a critical milestone with the first smolts having gone safely out to sea pens.

The smolts, which arrived at Barcaldine as eggs back in January of this year and were hatched and reared using a recirculating aquaculture system (RAS), had an average weight of 160 grams – more than double that of smolts grown by the company when using traditional hatchery methods.
 

The first Barcaldine smolts out to sea
Image credit: Scottish Sea Farms

Scottish Sea Farms' Freshwater Manager Pål Tangvik said, 'This is a major milestone for all of the team, not just at Barcaldine but across the company. The new hatchery has given us greater control over key factors including water quality, oxygen levels, temperature, light and speed of flow, meaning we have been able to ensure the best growing environment for the salmon. The result is bigger, more robust smolts that will be better able to withstand the natural challenges of the marine environment.'

Mr Tangvik continued, 'We will also be able to shorten the time these salmon will spend at sea by up to two months which will reduce their exposure to these challenges and increase survival rates, and have longer fallow periods between crops which will contribute towards a safer environment for subsequent generations of fish.'

Owing to the facility's ideal location on the shores of Loch Creran, the young salmon were transferred directly from the hatchery environment to well-boat ahead of their onward journey to one of Scottish Sea Farms' Shetland farms, removing the need for transportation by road or air, another huge step forward in terms of fish welfare.

Read the full article, HERE.

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Phytogenics in aqua: Looking for the ‘big fish’?

by Dr Alex Makol, Dr Anja Keiner and Dr Andreas Mueller, Delacon, Austria

As a direct consequence of the stagnation of capture fisheries and globally increasing fish consumption, aquaculture represents one of the fastest-growing sectors in food production.

However, the limitation of marine raw materials in aquaculture diets and their replacement by more sustainable protein and lipid sources of terrestrial origin, in some cases, is associated with negative consequences on the metabolism and immune system of aquaculture species and may slow down the development of the sector.
 

The global trend to ban antibiotic growth promoters, for fear of the development of resistant bacterial strains, and to protect consumers' health, has driven the sector to invest into research in natural alternatives instead.

Plant substances on the rise
Phytogenic feed additives (PFAs), commonly defined as plant-based feed additives or botanicals, represent a group of natural substances used in animal nutrition. These substances are derived from herbs, spices, other plants and their extracts consisting of highly active plant substances and encompass much more than essential oils: they include spicy or bitter substances, saponins, flavonoids, mucilages or tannins.

During the last two decades, research on phytogenics as potential functional ingredients has increased, and with it, their commercial use in the animal production sector. However, a deeper understanding of the mode of action of the bioactive compounds of phytogenics in fish and shellfish is key to improve their use in aquaculture.

Some of the bioactive phytogenic compounds have been proven to stimulate digestive enzymes production, support liver function, modulate gut microbiota imbalances, and have potent antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties.

Fortunately, during the last years, scientists and companies have done a lot of research to elucidate, how specific phytogenics may improve nutrient uptake and/or disease and stress resistance in fish and shellfish as an important basis for optimal sector expansion.

The understanding of the mode of action of newly formulated complex phytogenic mixtures (blends) will help the aquaculture sector to use available phytogenics properly, to explore synergies and antagonisms among bioactive compounds and to clarify interactions with other feed ingredients. These facts will additionally help the aquaculture sector to improve its production performance.

Read more, HERE.

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Andritz company profile

ANDRITZ is a globally leading supplier of plants, equipment, and services for hydropower stations, the pulp and paper industry, the metalworking and steel industries, and for solid/liquid separation in the municipal and industrial sectors.

The publicly listed technology Group is headquartered in Graz, Austria, and has a staff of almost 25,000 employees. ANDRITZ operates over 250 sites worldwide.

Visit the website HERE.

The Aquaculturists

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World Aquaculture Society’s African Chapter to host first International Conference and Exhibition

The African Chapter of World Aquaculture Society (WAS AC) will hold its first International Conference and Exhibition 'Aquaculture Africa 2020 or AFRAQ2020' in the beautiful City of Alexandria, Egypt, on 28th November to 1st December, 2020.
 

The conference will be hosted at the famous Bibliotheca Alexandrina, one of the most fascinating touristic and cultural attractions in the world. The conference offers a great opportunity for aquaculture researchers, practitioners, decision makers and other stakeholders to meet, network and discuss all aspects of aquaculture in Africa.

Exhibitors from all over the globe are expected to exhibit their products in the amazing exhibition Centre. Visits to the most famous touristic attractions in Egypt will be arranged. Special excursionary visits to nearby fish farms, research centres, feed mills etc will also be arranged.

The Conference will be hosted by the Ministry of Agriculture and Land Reclamation's General Authority for Fish Resources (GAFRD), Egypt and its partners: Central Laboratory for Aquaculture Research (CLAR) and WorldFish.

For more information and to register, visit the AFRAQ2020 webpage, HERE.

The Aquaculturists

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The BioFish solution by Biolan: Certified technological innovation to guarantee the quality and safety of seafood

by Biolan, Spain

The impact of technological innovation and modernisation in the productive and extractive sectors to achieve the levels of competitiveness and sustainability that the global market requires, is undeniable.

Nowadays, in order to be competitive, it is not enough to achieve maximum productivity, unthinkable cost savings, or efficiency levels never seen before. The key to competitiveness in the extractive fishing sector, aquaculture or seafood canning industry, as in any other field, lies fundamentally in the valorisation of the quality and guarantees of the product by the final customer, in order to prioritise it over the huge offers that arrive every day.
 

The challenge must be to achieve solid and long-term customer loyalty. And this, in a global market and focused to reach important shares in international markets, requires us to ensure that the product arrives in optimum conditions and complies with the legal requirements of each destination.

And it is in the seafood quality and safety sector where so many factors influence and condition a satisfactory final result, which forces the industry to implement procedures that facilitate optimal and efficient control of the resulting product. It is in this field that technological innovation must play a fundamental role, trying to respond to the needs in the productive or extractive fishing systems.

In this sense, the technology suppliers must guarantee that the innovative solutions comply with the reliability and precision required by the operational process.

Biolan
Biolan Microbiosensores, a Basque biotechnology company, as technological supplier to the food industry for more than ten years, from the beginning has been aware of the difficulty to provide technological products with an absolute guarantee.

As a world leader in the application of biosensor technology to the monitoring of food quality and safety, Biolan dedicates great efforts to accredit the precision, reliability and repeatability of its based-on biosensors for quantifying analyses in food.

A biosensor is based on a biological detection element coupled to a physical-chemical transducer that converts the biological signal, originated by the interaction between this detection element and the analyte, into a quantitative result. Biolan Biosensors combine the high specificity and selectivity of specific enzymes with an amperometric transduction of the signal, easily detectable and quantifiable.

Based on this biosensing technology, Biolan has progressively developed new applications for the food industry, such as the BioFish line that offers biosensors for the quantification of histamine in fish and sulphite in crustaceans, in a precise, fast and simple way, at any point in the production, processing or commercialisation chain.

Read more, HERE.

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