Skretting's $2m to scale up alternative feed ingredients

It aims to create “clear pathways” for alternative ingredients to reach the scale where they can deliver long-term value to aquaculture supply chains and end-consumers, it said in a press release.

Skretting is to make its commitment at the sixth Our Ocean Conference (OCC), being held in the Norwegian capital Oslo on Wednesday and Thursday of this week.

Flexibility of ingredients

The company is focused on increasing the flexibility of the macro- and micro-ingredient inclusion in its aquaculture feeds, including the utilisation of proteins generated from the use of waste streams, and by- and co-products. This progress has already seen the group establish working relationships with and provide support to a number of start-up innovators.

The company is focused on increasing the flexibility of the macro- and micro-ingredient inclusion in its aquaculture feeds, including the utilisation of proteins generated from the use of waste streams, and by- and co-products. This progress has already seen the group establish working relationships with and provide support to a number of start-up innovators.

Sufficient volumes

“For aquaculture to meet its full potential, the sector will need access to sufficient volumes of these novel ingredients. At the same time, Skretting recognises that these technologies are only able to reach scale through collaborative efforts,” said Trygve Berg Lea, sustainability manager at Skretting.

“This Our Ocean commitment is focused on overcoming this significant barrier and providing a fast-track to market for these innovations. The hope is for the first few novel raw material sources to achieve scale-up in 2020.”

Our Ocean 2019 has been organised by the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and will be hosted by Foreign Minister Ine Eriksen Søreide. The conference will be attended by approximately 500 invited delegates from around the world.

Expert panel

Skretting’s global operations director, Erlend Sødal, will join a panel of experts to focus on the topic of foods and livelihoods from the ocean.

The group will look at how to ensure access to sufficient, safe and nutritious foods from the ocean that meet dietary needs and food preferences for a growing population, as well as how to build food value chains that can deliver from healthy oceans to healthy people.

“It is clear that the farming of protein-rich, healthy aquatic foods such as fish and shrimp has a crucial role to play in meeting the nutritional needs of the planet, but alongside capitalising on aquaculture’s incredible potential, there’s also a fundamental obligation for all stakeholders to engage and make meaningful contributions to marine health,” said Sødal.