China research on show at US forum
SCIENTISTS gathered in Idaho in the US in June for the International Symposium on Fish Nutrition and Feeding (ISFNF), the biannual forum for researchers, academics and industry concerned with the nutrition and feeding of aquatic animals
The conference, the 17th of its kind, was sponsored by Nutriad and attracted around 400 fish nutritionists from around the globe.
Key sessions addressed the major bottle necks in the aquaculture industry such as the replacement of fish meal and fish oil by alternative feed resources - including plant and terrestrial animal meals, insect meal, camelin oil, cottonseed meal, and DHA-rich micro-algae.
Dr Peter Coutteau, business director of aquaculture at Nutriad, talked about the use of purified bile salts to replace fish oil, lecithin and cholesterol in diets for whiteleg shrimp (Penaeus Vannamei).
An extensive session on nutrition and health (18 oral papers) focused on the importance of gut health in aquaculture organisms.
The nutrigenomics session illustrated the recent advances in the understanding of nutritional metabolism, a promising area to support innovative studies in aquaculture nutrition.
The scientific contributions from Chinese participants at the conference clearly showed that China is increasing its research capacities and focus on aquaculture nutrition.