What feed is given to farmed salmon?
(Adapted from Cold-Water Aquaculture in Atlantic Canada 1995) Feeding rapidly growing salmonids in sea cages or other grow-out enclosures not only is a major production cost, but also accounts for much of the labour associated with growing salmonids to market size. Consequently, producing, storing and dispensing feed are major considerations when choosing moist or dry-pelleted feed. Moist feed is considered by some operators to be better because it is more palatable and promotes a higher growth rate in fish. On the negative side, moist feed is labour intensive to make and costly to store. Dry-pelleted feed, though sometimes les palatable and less effective in growth promotion is easier to store and handle. Dry feed, because it is likely to remain intact longer, may also be environmentally ‘cleaner.’ Nutritionally, moist and dry feed are potentially equivalent. The efficacy of dry feed can be considerably improved by increasing its energy content through incorporation of more high-energ
Strict raw material criteria are used to ensure a high quality feed. All of the ingredients used in both moist and dry aquaculture feed are approved for use by the Canadian Food Inspection Agency. Much of the protein used in fish feed comes from small, bony fish – such as anchovies and mackerel – which are unsuitable for human consumption. Other sources of protein include soybean meal, corn gluten meal, canola meal and wheat gluten and poultry by-products. Essential vitamins, minerals and carotenoids – which provide salmon with vitamin A and give salmon their pink colour – are added to the diet. All feed ingredients are of natural origin and of the highest quality.
