Antibiotics are commonly used as additives in salmon farming to maintain a healthy fish-stock.

Soy proteins, wheat gluten, and corn gluten meal are commonly used in aquaculture feeds with fishmeal and fish oil.

Mealworms are being used as a sustainable alternative to traditional fishmeal in salmon feed.

Mealworms are 55% protein and contain all essential amino and fatty acids, making them a nutritious additive in salmon feed.

Farmed salmon are typically fed a mixture of fish and vegetable oils, lacking the EPA and DHA found in seafood.

Farmed salmon can contain more Omega 3 than wild salmon due to their diet and living conditions.

Farmed salmon consumption may increase the risk of prostate cancer due to higher levels of diphenyls.

Diphenyls, banned for decades, still persist in the environment and may harm human health.

Salmon farming additives are governed by varying country-specific standards and regulations.

Some countries, like Norway, have strict regulations on salmon farming additives to reduce environmental impact.

The EFSA has deemed mealworms safe for human consumption and they are being used as a sustainable feed source in salmon farming.

Insect-based ingredients can reduce the carbon footprint of salmon farming.

In Canada, Fisheries and Oceans Canada regulates additives in salmon farming and requires sea lice management plans for all fish farms.

China only approves food additives that are necessary and proven safe, and the use of food additives in China is strictly regulated.

Additives in salmon farming pose health concerns, which regulatory agencies assess and mitigate through risk assessments.

Salmon farming additives can include stillwater green and crystal violet, which are prohibited in some countries due to health risks.

The use of certain antibiotics, like tetracycline, in salmon farming is regulated due to potential health risks.

The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) assesses the safety of novel foods, including cell culture-derived food, by evaluating hazards

Antibiotics are commonly used as additives in salmon farming to maintain a healthy fish-stock.

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Anticipating obsolescence: The next step to enhancing the sustainability of aquaculture

With growing concerns about the environmental toll of single species fish farms, a research project has been looking at the feasibility of introducing a more sustainable and potentially more profitable method of fish farming, using three complementary species.

Much as native American people planted squash, maize and climbing beans together to benefit each other, (often called the "three sisters"), farming finned-fish, shellfish and seaweeds together could benefit each other and reduce any environmental effects of fish farming. Small scale integrated multi-trophic aquaculture (IMTA), as the system is called, has traditionally been used at a small domestic scale in Asia, providing the farmer with more than one product to sell or use.

The feasibility study conducted by Bangor University and published in Ecological Modelling has identified the locations around the Atlantic coast which would be most suitable for IMTA, based on farming salmon, and Oarweed, a type of kelp seaweed commonly found in temperate Atlantic coasts. The research considered the natural distribution of the three species, whether suitable locations clashed with busy shipping lanes or marine protected areas and whether there was close access to sizeable ports in order to reach markets.

The western coast of Lewis in the Outer Hebrides, Scotland; Lough Swilly in County Donegal, Ireland, and the western coast of Brittany, northwest France were found to be the best locations to further develop IMTA based aquaculture.

As Conchúr Hughes of Bangor University's School of Ocean Sciences explained, "One of the problems with the type of single species aquaculture practiced in Europe is that excess food and feces can lead to deterioration of local ecology, while density can mean that aquaculture companies need to use antibiotics and other additives to maintain a healthy fish-stock.

"Mussels are filter feeders, they can be responsible for removing up to 54% of salmon waste materials from the , using it as energy to grow, while the oarweed removes soluble nutrients from the water column. Oarweed can then be farmed to use in a variety of products, from food supplements for human consumption or for fish farms, as a fertilizer or as an ingredient in pharmaceuticals.

"Each of these species complements the other and mitigates against problems."

IMTA-based aquaculture

Both salmon and mussels are important food sources in Europe, and while oarweed is not as yet, this is a sector that is expected to experience a rapid increase in demand in the coming years- and can provide an alternative sustainable source of fertilizer and other products.

Seaweed cultivation can also provide environmental benefits. The seaweed in the water acts as a buffer against as it approaches the shore, reducing the energy as it passes through the seaweed, much as trees act as a buffer against strong winds, which can help reduce erosion. It also elevates the pH and oxygenates the water.

More information: Conchúr Hughes et al, Habitat suitability modelling for an integrated multi-trophic aquaculture (IMTA) system along Europe's Atlantic coast, Ecological Modelling (2023). DOI: 10.1016/j.ecolmodel.2023.110459

Provided by Bangor University

Citation: Anticipating obsolescence: The next step to enhancing the sustainability of aquaculture (2023, September 27) retrieved 27 September 2023 from https://phys.org/news/2023-09-obsolescence-sustainability-aquaculture.html
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Soy proteins, wheat gluten, and corn gluten meal are commonly used in aquaculture feeds with fishmeal and fish oil.

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China Works to Get Wild-Caught Fish Out of its Aquaculture Feed

[By Zhang Chun]

A 2021 Chinese government initiative to stop aquaculture feed being made from only young or low-value fish and to instead start producing “compound feed” – mixed with ingredients harvested from the land – is opening up a greener future for the sector.

According to the Ministry of Agriculture, in a series of trials last year, the sole use of low-value “feed-grade” fish as aquaculture feed was reduced by 77 percent, and by as much as 94 percent in farming of largemouth bass. Experts say the switch to compound feed could see overall use of feed-grade fish slashed by half for farming of certain species.

What is compound feed?

Compound feed normally contains a mixture of animal- and plant-based ingredients, and added nutrients such as vitamins. For aquaculture feeds containing fishmeal and fish oil, common additives include soy proteins, wheat gluten and corn gluten meal.

Feed-grade fish are those in a catch that are small, low in commercial value, or unsuitable for human consumption. They are sent to be processed into fishmeal and fish oil, or fed directly to farmed fish. But a significant proportion of feed-grade fish consists of juveniles of commercially important species. Once caught they can no longer grow into adult fish and breed, or be caught and sold on the market. Their removal damages ocean food chains and ecosystem stability.

The last decade and more has seen increased calls for China to tackle the use of feed-grade fish in aquaculture, but the current round of trials is the first organised by the Ministry of Agriculture. It focuses on species such as the yellow croaker, Japanese sea bass and largemouth bass, which tend to be fed more feed-grade fish. While those species don’t account for much of China’s fed aquaculture output, they do require much more protein than others to put on the same amount of weight. Compound feed cuts down on the use of fish by substituting vegetable alternatives, and is cheaper.

In the long term, sustained reductions in the use of fishmeal and fish oil in feed will be necessary to protect wild fisheries.

Aquaculture driving feed-grade fish catch

Fishers never used to set out to catch feed-grade fish; it was bycatch, with no economic value. Then in the 1980s, global aquaculture took off. “There was a lot of need for fishmeal and oil,” Rashid Sumalia, a fisheries researcher at the University of British Columbia, told China Dialogue. People started going out “purposely to catch them at distance, because there was a market”, he added.

According to the Food and Agriculture Organization’s (FAO’s) 2020 global fisheries and aquaculture report, the use of fish for reduction to fishmeal and fish oil peaked in 1994 at 30 million tonnes, and stood at 18 million tonnes by 2018. Another 4 million tonnes were used elsewhere, including directly in feed for aquaculture, livestock and fur animals.

It wasn’t until the mid and late 1990s that aquaculture took off in China. The FAO’s 1998 fisheries and aquaculture report describes how rare it was for fish catches in Asia to go unused or be used as aquaculture feed. But in Asia, particularly in China and Vietnam, aquaculture has expanded rapidly and the region now accounts for almost 90 percent of global output. In China, output tripled between 1998 and 2020, to represent 60 percent of the global total.

Although many of the species farmed in China need little or no feed, fed fish and crustacean aquaculture accounts for half of output and requires millions of tonnes of feed-grade fish from Chinese waters alone. China does not currently have statistics on its feed-grade fish catch or use in fed aquaculture. One study calculated that in 2016 4.6 million tonnes of feed-grade fish were caught, 35 percent of the total recorded catch in China’s waters, and most was used directly as feed.

“The state is certainly aware of the problem,” said Fang Qing, China general manager for the Aquaculture Stewardship Council, adding that the difficulty in banning some harmful types of fishing gear in China is due to the ongoing market for the feed-grade fish it brings in. Since 2018, China has put minimum size limits in place for 15 commercial fish species, and ruled that feed-grade fish catch would drop to below 20% by 2020. There is no data available indicating whether this target was met.

This it isn’t just a Chinese problem. According to a 2017 study by the University of British Columbia, many countries, including the US and Norway, use feed-grade fish directly as feed. But the practice increased significantly in Asia between the 1990s and 2010, with feed-grade fish coming to account for a high percentage of landed catches.

Replacing feed-grade fish

In early 2019, the Ministry of Agriculture announced it would work to make Chinese aquaculture more environmentally friendly, and proposed the use of compound feed instead of purely fish-based feed. In April 2021, several provinces started trials of compound feed as part of more concrete action plans.

Compound feed for aquaculture is usually a mix of fishmeal, fish oil, wheat flour, soybean meal, vegetable oil and other land-grown ingredients. The amount of fishmeal and fish oil needed depends on the type of fish to be fed, and its stage of growth. According to Fang Qing, carnivorous fish such as the yellow croaker need huge quantities of meat protein at certain stages in their growth, and the relationship between particular nutrients and the growth and physiology of the fish can be complex. Hence, producing appropriate compound feed involves a lot of research and development.

To quantify how efficiently a species is farmed, the aquaculture industry uses a ratio called Fish in:Fish out (FIFO). The closer the FIFO is to 1, the more fish meat is produced per unit of input; a score of 1 means an extra kilogram of fish used as feed results in an extra kilogram of fish to harvest.

A study published in 2020 shows a FIFO of almost 1 for salmon and trout, thanks to the use of compound feeds which require less fishmeal and fish oil. If only fish were used to feed those species, the FIFO figure would be similar to that of the yellow croaker – over 6, according to an upcoming paper co-authored by Zhang Wenbo, an assistant professor in the College of Fisheries and Life Science at Shanghai Ocean University. His research into conventional yellow croaker aquaculture in China found that the direct use of feed-grade fish is still the best option for the yellow croaker farmers. But Fang Qing told China Dialogue that a lot of feed-grade fish fed to yellow croaker goes uneaten, and ends up sinking to the seabed or rotting, causing pollution and increasing the risk of disease.

More compound feed use would help reduce FIFO numbers in two ways: by cutting use of feed-grade fish, and by increasing conversion ratios – that is, generating more fish growth per unit of feed.

Zhejiang is taking the lead in both those areas. Since 2016, the province has been shutting fishmeal factories during the closed season and restricting the percentage of feed-grade fish in the overall catch. This, combined with the use of compound feed, saw Zhejiang cut the use of feed-grade fish by 835,000 tonnes across 710,000 mu (474 square kilometres) of aquaculture farms during the 13th FYP period (2016-2020). “Previously, feed-grade fish were the primary feed for largemouth bass in Zhejiang. These last two years that’s almost all been replaced with compound feed.” The FIFO ratio for farmed largemouth bass in Zhejiang could come down to 1.5, half the national average for this species, according to 2016 calculations Zhang Wenbo contributed to.

But cutting back on feed-grade fish use in China won’t be easy. Fishers catch a wide range of fish with a wide range of gear. At the local level there is a lack of fisher associations that can impose rules on the sector, making management tricky. Zhejiang’s success can be ascribed to strong local regulations. “There are no successful [international] examples that China can apply,” said Fang Qing. Alongside legislation to bolster oversight of the feed-grade fish catch, he also suggests developing feeds which will be more palatable to fish, and labelling products according to their use of feed-grade fish or compound feed, so consumers can make an informed choice.

Increasing the efficiency of fish inputs

The use of compound feed isn’t the end of the story. At least for now, fishmeal and fish oil are essential ingredients in those feeds. And while the global supply of fishmeal and fish oil has fallen from its peak in 2000 to a fairly stable level, the demand for aquaculture feeds has been increasing. That requires the development of feeds containing less meal and oil.

Plans announced by Norway to boost salmon farming have led to concerns about the supply of fishmeal and fish oil as well as vegetable ingredients. The country has started researching the use of mesopelagic fish (which inhabit the middle depths of the ocean), algae and farmed insects to meet that need and make feed more efficient. A more complete solution would be to develop entirely vegetarian feeds, with no fishmeal at all. However, as things stand that would only be suitable for a few species.

“Fishmeal is the most expensive of the ingredients found in bulk feeds. Reducing the amount in those feeds is the best way to make them cheaper,” Zhang Wenbo points out. A tonne of fishmeal costs around 10,000 yuan (US$1,500), compared to 1,000–4,000 yuan for bran or soybean meal, he added. “Feed conversion ratios are also affected by the type of aquaculture, the make-up of the feed, and genetic selection – the breeding of strains more suited to compound feeds,” he said. This is more difficult in China, with its wide range of farmed species, than in Norway, where salmon dominates. But progress is still being made, and associated targets have been set in the 14th Five Year Plan (2021–25).

Increasing the efficiency of fishmeal and fish oil use in China will also ease global pressures on the supply and help protect juvenile fish. China is the world’s biggest consumer of fishmeal, with the largest part being used in aquaculture, and the second largest being fed to pigs. But the country only produces 400,000–700,000 tonnes of fishmeal a year – not even close to meeting domestic demand. Fishmeal imports have held steady since 2017, at about 1.4 million tonnes, but jumped to 1.82 million tonnes in 2021, with experts ascribing the change to the recovery in pig farming. The extra fishmeal came from the Americas and elsewhere in Asia.

Zhang Wenbo explains that China’s fishmeal and fish oil imports come from forage fish, caught specifically to be turned into fishmeal, and Peru is the main supplier. Relatively little of China’s fishmeal is made from feed-grade fish. “Imports of by-product processed fishmeal from Vietnam and Thailand have been increasing in recent years,” he said.

Minimizing the feed-grade fish catch

Cutting back on the use of feed-grade fish is good for the sustainable development of both wild fishing and aquaculture. It will also help protect already vulnerable ocean ecosystems. In 1959, fishing vessels in China’s Bohai Sea caught 420 kg of fish per net for every hour they worked. By 1993, that had fallen to 30 kg, and only 8 kg between 1998 and 2011. The above-mentioned research into China’s feed-grade fish catch found that a long-term stable total catch has masked trends including falling biomass and changes in end use.

The losses to biodiversity and ecological services cannot be measured in financial terms, and the fishing industry needs more than simply output. Wang Songlin, president and founder of the Qingdao Marine Conservation Society, believes the industry needs to work towards a balance of ecological, economic and social benefits. He told China Dialogue that even if total catch may still be the same by volume, the underlying destruction to the integrity of ecosystems and the environment should not be ignored.

Management of the sector in China has acquired a new ecological focus. Alongside the use of compound feeds, some provinces are providing fishery stewardship subsidies for the protection of rare and endangered species and for keeping down feed-grade fish catch volumes.

Protecting juvenile fish isn’t just a matter for China – it’s crucial for ocean ecosystems around the world. Rashid Sumalia said: “If you look at the economies and the ecology at the higher level, you don’t want to [catch feed-grade fish] because the losses are too high” to be sustainable. Sumalia acknowledges that many people rely on that fishing for their livelihoods but says: “We need to take it down as far as we can.”

Zhang Chun is a senior researcher at China Dialogue. This article appears courtesy of China Dialogue Ocean and may be found in its original form here

The opinions expressed herein are the author's and not necessarily those of The Maritime Executive.

Mealworms are being used as a sustainable alternative to traditional fishmeal in salmon feed.

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Content: World’s Largest Insect Farm to Open in France

Once fully operational, the massive vertical farm will produce 200,000 tonnes of insect-based ingredients a year.

Ÿnsect, one of the world’s largest insect rangers, is betting big on bugs to help push the world in a more sustainable direction.

Founded in 2011, the company is fast approaching its goal of opening the world’s largest insect farm and dramatically scaling up its operations. Located about an hour north of Paris, the state-of-the-art facility will leverage automated systems and vertical farming techniques to raise mealworms (Tenebrio molitor) and enable the production of over 200,000 tonnes of insect-based ingredients per year. The site, estimated to be completed by the end of 2022, will join two other Ÿnsect facilities already operational in France and the Netherlands.

"It’s an automated warehouse, very similar to an Amazon warehouse, where instead of storing stuff, we are storing live insects," Ÿnsect CEO and co-founder Antoine Hubert told Time last year. "There is a climate-control system which is highly complex to maintain temperature and moisture from zero to 30 meters high. All operations are automated. Anything that you do on [an insect] farm is done with robots."

Feed for Fish, Fertilizer for Plants, Burgers for Humans

For the past decade, mealworms cultivated at Ÿnsect’s farms have been turned into powders and oils that have become nutritional additives to pet and farm feeds. Thanks to a ruling last year by the European Food Safety Agency (EFSA) that deemed mealworms safe for human consumption, the company has also begun selling its powders for shakes, cereal bars, pasta, and even alt-meat burgers. In addition, the shed shells of the rapidly growing mealworms are collected and sold as beneficial organic fertilizers to farmers.

According to MealFlour, a project that promotes mealworm farming as a way to battle malnutrition in Guatemala, a serving of mealworm powder is 55% protein, contains all essential amino and fatty acids, and has more iron than sirloin beef. Compared to the production of milk, pork, chicken, and beef, mealworms are also more sustainable and require fewer resources and energy.

While its recent forays into human foodstuffs have garnered attention, Ÿnsect's focus presently remains on helping to feed sustainably the animals that feed the world. For instance, aquaculture, like salmon farming, is a resource-intensive operation that uses both land-based crops (soy) and massive amounts of wild-caught fish to create what's known as fishmeal. With food production projected to have to grow by more than 70% by 2050 to meet demand, the overfishing of oceans to feed aquaculture operations is not a feasible option. Studies, such as a recent trial by NOAA, have shown that supplementing or even replacing fishmeal with insect- and plant-based foods holds promise for eliminating the need for wild-caught sources. According to Hubert, there are other positives as well.

"They [salmon] were reaching the maturity stage faster and eating less so they were avoiding a large quantity of feed," he told Fast Company in 2020. "There was less mortality so the farmers get more fish eventually than before... This also explains why we have a carbon-negative balance, because we are avoiding so many quantities of inputs to feed fish to have the same quantities of fish."

Hubert added to Fast Company that Ÿnsect has contracts worth more than $100 million with fish feed producers. This past year, with the acquisition of U.S.-based mealworm producer Jord, it also began entering new markets, such as the rapidly growing U.S. backyard chicken feed market.

A Record-Breaking Vertical Farm

One look at the animated video of Ÿnsect’s new facility up above and you can see why it’s been touted as an automated marvel. Mealworms will be reared by robots in stacked tubs stretching several stories tall. Unlike other insect food alternatives such as flies or crickets, mealworms do not hop or fly, allowing the company to maximize the space available.

In an effort to make sure the creatures are ethically farmed, Hubert reached out to philosophers from the Sorbonne University to judge their welfare. As he told The Guardian, the students determined that the mealworms had "more in common with mushroom-growing and hothousing vegetables" than with livestock.

"They have no brain in the strict sense of the word," he said. "We know they have a reflex reaction and they communicate and build intelligent structures, but nobody has shown they feel anything. However, what is important is to respect them as living organisms, which we do."

In addition to the new farm in France, Ÿnsect plans to continue to scale its operations with additional facilities, including a major site in the U.S. The biggest hurdle ahead, however, says Hubert, is making insects a normal part of everyday diets.

"I believe that the big challenge is accepting insects as part of the human diet," he told Authority Magazine. "A large part of the world's population eats insects, but we must be able to prove its properties and its benefits for the environment in order to reach more and have more impact!"

View Article Sources
  1. "Ÿnsect Welcomes European Interministerial Delegation to Amiens." Ynsect.

  2. "Why Eat Mealworms?" MealFlour.

  3. "Edible Insects." Food and Agriculture Organization.

  4. van Dijk, Michiel, et al. "A Meta-Analysis of Projected Global Food Demand and Population At Risk of Hunger for the Period 2010–2050." Nature Food, vol. 2, no. 7, 2021, pp. 494-501., doi:10.1038/s43016-021-00322-9

  5. "The Future of Fish Feed May Lie in Insects, Mold, and Algae." National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

Mealworms are 55% protein and contain all essential amino and fatty acids, making them a nutritious additive in salmon feed.

Farmed salmon are typically fed a mixture of fish and vegetable oils, lacking the EPA and DHA found in seafood.

Title:

Content: Cheaper salmon is 'as good as premium farmed products when it comes to Omega 3', study shows

  • Fish-eaters benefit from two Omega 3 fatty acids – EPA and DHA – which can boost heart health and thinking skills
  • Researchers analysed packs of farmed Scottish and Norwegian salmon from 10 UK supermarkets
  • The best provided 67% of the recommended weekly Omega 3 but the worst only offered 26%
  • Fillets from two stores did not contain significantly more Omega 3 than non-premium products

Premium farmed salmon may be no healthier than value brands when it comes to Omega 3, a study has shown.

Fish-eaters benefit from two Omega 3 fatty acids – EPA and DHA – which can boost heart health and thinking skills.

Researchers analysed packs of farmed Scottish and Norwegian salmon from 10 UK supermarkets.

The best provided 67 per cent of the recommended weekly Omega 3 but the worst only offered 26 per cent.

Fillets from two stores did not contain significantly more Omega 3 than non-premium products.

Premium farmed salmon may be no healthier than value brands when it comes to Omega 3, a study has shown. Fish-eaters benefit from two Omega 3 fatty acids – EPA and DHA – which can boost heart health and thinking skills. (File image)

Farmed salmon tend to be fed a mixture of fish and vegetable oils but the latter lack the fatty acids found in seafood.

Study leader Dr Matthew Sprague, from Stirling University, said: 'The amount of EPA and DHA can vary based on the cut of salmon, as well as what it was fed, but farmed salmon is still high in nutrients.'

Salmon not only contains Omega 3 but selenium and phosphorus, which are also important for health.

Andrew Opie, director of food and sustainability at the British Retail Consortium, said: 'Consumers take various factors into consideration when buying salmon, including its health benefits and the way it is produced, and they will weigh these up when choosing what to purchase in a supermarket.'

Salmon not only contains Omega 3 but selenium and phosphorus, which are also important for health

Phil Brooke, from Compassion in World Farming, said: 'Intensive fish farming is bad for fish welfare and the product only contains Omega 3 due to the wasteful consumption of feed containing fish oil.'

Wild salmon consume only fish oil, which they get from algae and smaller fish, but lose fatty acids from that fish oil, as they become leaner during the migration back from the sea to the river to spawn.

This means farmed fish, which are kept confined in cages within the sea, can contain more Omega 3 than the wild variety.

But vegetable oil is more accessible, sustainable, and also cheaper than fish oil for the expanding fish farming industry.

So more of this can be used, which substantially reduces the amount of Omega 3 in farmed salmon.

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Cheaper salmon is 'as good as premium farmed products when it comes to Omega 3', study shows

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Farmed salmon can contain more Omega 3 than wild salmon due to their diet and living conditions.

Farmed salmon consumption may increase the risk of prostate cancer due to higher levels of diphenyls.

Diphenyls, banned for decades, still persist in the environment and may harm human health.

Title:

Content: Miscellaneous
Publish Date: December 13, 2021 8: 47 GMT
Updated on: December 13, 2021 9: 40 GMT
Study: Eating Too Much ‘ Farm Salmon ’ May Cause Cancer
A medical study published on Monday warned that overeating salmon raised in farm ponds could lead to cancer.
The Daily Newspaper noted.
+ A -A
Source: Erm News
A medical study published on Monday warned that overeating salmon raised in farm ponds could lead to cancer.
The Daily Express newspaper pointed out that "some previous studies found that salmon, jam in ponds, which is widely consumed around the world, doubles the risk of prostate cancer," pointing out that "salmon is a useful food source for health because it contains omega-3 fatty acids."
"While one salmon is caught in open water, like the seas, the other is bred in tight spaces (farms and ponds), which could have implications for human health," the paper said.
Studies have found that PCBs in farm-raised salmon were about 8 times higher than concentrations in wild salmon, adding that PCBs have been banned for commercial use for decades, but their effects can still be found in the environment, which may adversely affect human diet and therefore health.
According to a study by the Environmental Defense Fund, eating salmon raised in farm ponds on a regular basis may increase the risk of cancer after multiple cases of contamination have been detected in the United States and other countries.
"Medical scientific findings, published in the Journal of Medical Sciences, suggest that cheap farmed salmon sold in stores may do more harm than good."
“Risk analysis suggests that consumption of farmed Atlantic salmon may pose health risks that detract from the beneficial effects of fish consumption, ” the study said.
Eating farmed salmon more than once a month may be enough to increase the risk of cancer.
"In multivariate analyses, men with the highest concentrations of PCBs were twice as likely to develop prostate cancer than men with the lowest concentrations."
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Salmon farming additives are governed by varying country-specific standards and regulations.

Title:

Content: DUBLIN, March 9, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- The "Global Salmon Market, By Species, By Fish Type, By Distribution Channel, By Product Type, Estimation & Forecast, 2017 - 2027" report has been added to ResearchAndMarkets.com's offering.

The global salmon market held a market value of USD 20,880.5 Million in 2021 and is projected to reach USD 27,344.0 Million by the year 2027. The market is anticipated to grow at a CAGR of 4.6% from 2022 to 2027. Approximately, 3,282.72 kilo tons of salmon was estimated to be sold in 2021.

Salmon is a common name for a Salmonidae family's species of the ray-finned fish. The market is expected to be driven by the rising prevalence of chronic conditions and global rise in penetration of e-commerce sector. Furthermore, rise in consumer awareness towards the health benefits of salmon are also expected to contribute to the market growth.

Despite the driving factors, depletion of sea species are anticipated to hinder the market growth. During the COVID-19 pandemic, the market was negatively impacted due to closure of fishing activities and hence, decrease in the supply of salmon in global markets.

Growth Influencers:

Rise in consumer awareness towards the health benefits of salmon

Salmon provides various health benefits. It is rich in Omega-3 fatty acids, is a great source of protein, high in Vitamin B, good source of potassium, loaded with selenium, contains astaxanthin, reduced the risk of heart diseases, helps in weight management, helps to fight inflammation, and protects brain health. Consumers are getting aware regarding all these benefits, which is increasing its adoption, hence boosting the market growth.

Competitive Landscape

Major players in the global salmon market include Cermaq Group ASA, Leroy Seafood Group ASA, Mowi ASA, SalMar ASA, AquaChile, Cooke Aquaculture, Bakkafrost, Grieg Seafood, Multiexport, Blumar, Salmones Camanchaca, Australis Seafoods, Nova Sea, Tassal Group, Sinkaberg-Hansen, Nordlaks, Bremnes Seashore, Norway Royal Salmon, Alsaker Fjordbruk, and Other Prominent Players.

These market players are involved in collaborations, mergers & acquisitions, and new product launches, among other initiatives, to strengthen their market presence. For instance, in January 2022, Benchmark Animal Health and Cermaq received funding from the Research Council of Norway for research and development of Tenacibaculum vaccines for Salmon. Furthermore, Bekkafrost collaborated with the salmon industry through the Faroe Fish Farmer's Association And Global Salmon Initiative (GSI).

The global Salmon market report provides insights on the below pointers:

  • Market Penetration: Provides comprehensive information on the market offered by the prominent players
  • Market Development: The report offers detailed information about lucrative emerging markets and analyzes penetration across mature segments of the markets
  • Market Diversification: Provides in-depth information about untapped geographies, recent developments, and investments
  • Competitive Landscape Assessment: Mergers & acquisitions, certifications, product launches in the global Salmon market have been provided in this research report. In addition, the report also emphasizes the SWOT analysis of the leading players.
  • Product Development & Innovation: The report provides intelligent insights on future technologies, R&D activities, and breakthrough product developments
  • Global Salmon Production: Total Harvest of Atlantic Salmon, 2016-2020
  • Salmon Production Cost Breakdown
  • Consumer Behavior Analysis: By Region, By Age, By Gender, By Annual Household Income, Seasonal of Fish
  • Fresh Salmon Export: Trends & Predictions for the Supply of Salmon Consumed (USD Million) in the United States; Largest Fishing Companies
  • Regulatory Landscape: Section 6 of Norwegian Aquaculture Act , Aquaculture Stewardship Council Salmon standard, RSPCA welfare standards for Farmed Atlantic salmon, A Greener World (AGW), Marine Stewardship Council (MSC)

The global Salmon market report answers questions such as:

  • What is the market size and forecast of the Global Salmon Market?
  • What are the inhibiting factors and impact of COVID-19 on the Global Salmon Market during the assessment period?
  • Which are the products/segments/applications/areas to invest in over the assessment period in the Global Salmon Market?
  • What is the competitive strategic window for opportunities in the Global Salmon Market?
  • What are the technology trends and regulatory frameworks in the Global Salmon Market?
  • What is the market share of the leading players in the Global Salmon Market?
  • What modes and strategic moves are considered favorable for entering the Global Salmon Market?

Key Topics Covered:

Chapter 1. Research Framework

Chapter 2. Executive Summary: Global Salmon Market

Chapter 3. Global Salmon Market Overview

3.1. Industry Value Chain Analysis

3.1.1. Raw Material

3.1.2. Processing and Packaging

3.1.3. Distributor

3.1.4. End User

3.2. Industry Outlook

3.2.1. Global Salmon Production

3.2.2. Salmon Production Cost Breakdown

3.2.3. Fresh Salmon Export

3.2.4. Consumer Behavior Analysis

3.2.4.1. Income

3.2.4.2. Occupation

3.2.4.3. Seasonal of Fish

3.2.5. Trends and Predictions for the Supply of Salmon Consumed in the United States

3.2.6. Largest Fishing Companies

3.3. PESTLE Analysis

3.4. Porter's Five Forces Analysis

3.4.1. Bargaining Power of Suppliers

3.4.2. Bargaining Power of Buyers

3.4.3. Threat of Substitutes

3.4.4. Threat of New Entrants

3.4.5. Degree of Competition

3.5. Market Dynamics and Trends

3.5.1. Key Trends

3.5.2. Growth Drivers

3.5.3. Restraints/ Challenges

3.6. Market Growth and Outlook

3.6.1. Market Revenue Estimates and Forecast (US$ Mn), 2017-2027

3.6.2. Market Volume Estimates and Forecast (MMT), 2017-2027

3.6.3. Pricing Analysis

3.7. Covid-19 Impact Assessment on Market Growth Trend

3.7.1. Growth Trend Shift Analysis

3.7.2. Industry Best Practices

3.8. Regulatory Landscape

Chapter 4. Competition Dashboard

4.1. Market Concentration Rate

4.2. Company Market Share Analysis (Value %), 2020

4.3. Competitor Mapping

Chapter 5. Salmon Market Analysis, By Species

5.1. Key Insights

5.2. Market Size and Forecast, 2017 - 2027 (US$ Mn & MMT)

5.2.1. Atlantic

5.2.2. Pink

5.2.3. Chum/Dog

5.2.4. Coho

5.2.5. Sockeye

5.2.6. Others

Chapter 6. Salmon Market Analysis, By Fish Type

6.1. Key Insights

6.2. Market Size and Forecast, 2017 - 2027 (US$ Mn & MMT)

6.2.1. Farmed

6.2.2. Wild

Chapter 7. Salmon Market Analysis, By Product Type

7.1. Key Insights

7.2. Market Size and Forecast, 2017 - 2027 (US$ Mn & MMT)

7.2.1. Canned

7.2.2. Fresh

7.2.3. Frozen

7.2.4. Others

Chapter 8. Salmon Market Analysis, By Retail

8.1. Key Insights

8.2. Market Size and Forecast, 2017 - 2027 (US$ Mn & MMT)

8.2.1. Retail

8.2.1.1. E-commerce (online)

8.2.1.2. Brick & Mortar Stores (offline)

8.2.2. HoReCa & Wholesale

8.2.3. Processed Food Industry

8.2.4. Other Institutional Customers

Chapter 9. Salmon Market Analysis, By Region

9.1. Key Insights

9.2. Market Size and Forecast, 2017 - 2027 (US$ Mn & MMT)

9.2.1. North America

9.2.1.1. The U.S.

9.2.1.2. Canada

9.2.1.3. Mexico

9.2.2. Europe

9.2.2.1. Western Europe

9.2.2.1.1. The UK

9.2.2.1.2. Germany

9.2.2.1.3. France

9.2.2.1.4. Italy

9.2.2.1.5. Spain

9.2.2.1.6. Rest of Western Europe

9.2.2.2. Eastern Europe

9.2.2.2.1. Poland

9.2.2.2.2. Russia

9.2.2.2.3. Rest of Eastern Europe

9.2.3. Asia Pacific

9.2.3.1. China

9.2.3.2. India

9.2.3.3. Japan

9.2.3.4. Australia & New Zealand

9.2.3.5. ASEAN

9.2.3.6. Rest of Asia Pacific

9.2.4. Middle East & Africa

9.2.4.1. UAE

9.2.4.2. Saudi Arabia

9.2.4.3. South Africa

9.2.4.4. Rest of MEA

9.2.5. South America

9.2.5.1. Argentina

9.2.5.2. Brazil

9.2.5.3. Rest of South America

Chapter 10. North America Salmon Market Analysis

10.1. Key Insights

10.2. Market Size and Forecast, 2017 - 2027 (US$ Mn & MMT)

10.2.1. By Species

10.2.2. By Type

10.2.3. By Product

10.2.4. By Distribution Channel

10.2.5. By Country

Chapter 11. Europe Salmon Market Analysis

11.1. Key Insights

11.2. Market Size and Forecast, 2017 - 2027 (US$ Mn & MMT)

11.2.1. By Species

11.2.2. By Type

11.2.3. By Product

11.2.4. By Distribution Channel

11.2.5. By Country

Chapter 12. Asia Pacific Salmon Market Analysis

12.1. Key Insights

12.2. Market Size and Forecast, 2017 - 2027 (US$ Mn & MMT)

12.2.1. By Species

12.2.2. By Type

12.2.3. By Product

12.2.4. By Distribution Channel

12.2.5. By Country

Chapter 13. Middle East and Africa Salmon Market Analysis

13.1. Key Insights

13.2. Market Size and Forecast, 2017 - 2027 (US$ Mn & MMT)

13.2.1. By Species

13.2.2. By Type

13.2.3. By Product

13.2.4. By Distribution Channel

13.2.5. By Country

Chapter 14. South America Salmon Market Analysis

14.1. Key Insights

14.2. Market Size and Forecast, 2017 - 2027 (US$ Mn & MMT)

14.2.1. By Species

14.2.2. By Type

14.2.3. By Product

14.2.4. By Distribution Channel

14.2.5. By Country

Chapter 15. Company Profile (Company Overview, Financial Matrix, Key Product landscape, Key Personnel, Key Competitors, Contact Address, and Business Strategy Outlook) *

15.1. Cremaq Group ASA

15.2. Leroy Seafood Group ASA

15.3. Mowi ASA

15.4. SalMar ASA

15.5. AquaChile

15.6. Cooke Aquaculture

15.7. Bakkafrost

15.8. Grieg Seafood

15.9. Multiexport

15.10. Blumar

15.11. Salmones Camanchaca

15.12. Australis Seafoods

15.13. Nova Sea

15.14. Tassal Group

15.15. Sinkaberg-Hansen

15.16. Nordlaks

15.17. Bremnes Seashore

15.18. Norway Royal Salmon

15.19. Alsaker Fjordbruk

15.20. Other Prominent players

For more information about this report visit https://www.researchandmarkets.com/r/di479t

Media Contact:

Research and Markets

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Some countries, like Norway, have strict regulations on salmon farming additives to reduce environmental impact.

The EFSA has deemed mealworms safe for human consumption and they are being used as a sustainable feed source in salmon farming.

Insect-based ingredients can reduce the carbon footprint of salmon farming.

In Canada, Fisheries and Oceans Canada regulates additives in salmon farming and requires sea lice management plans for all fish farms.

Title:

Content: Skip to Content

Drug-resistant sea lice an increasing problem for B.C. fish farms, new study finds

By Melanie Nagy

Click here for updates on this story

    May 14, 2022 (CTV Network) — Every spring, endangered juvenile wild salmon migrate from B.C.’s rivers to the Pacific Ocean, but their numbers are dwindling and some fear sea lice parasites are increasingly to blame. Sea lice are tiny, oval shaped crustaceans that can cling to the backs of wild salmon, feeding on their skin, muscle tissue and blood. Adult fish are generally not harmed when a few lice attach themselves, but juveniles with underdeveloped scales can be harmed or killed when heavily infested. While the parasite occurs naturally in the waters off B.C.’s coast, there’s long been concern over outbreaks on aquaculture farms where open-net pens make it possible for lice to move from farmed fish to young migrating salmon. “Salmon farms act as this year-round reservoir for sea lice, potentially providing sea lice to wild juvenile salmon when they wouldn’t normally get them,” conservation biologist Sean Godwin said. Godwin is the lead author in a recent study that looked at the state of sea lice in the Pacific Ocean. Along with his fellow researchers, he found the parasite is increasingly becoming resistant to one of the main tools the industry relies on to combat the problem. “Our paper found that this tool, which is a pesticide known [as] SLICE, or emamectin benzoate, is becoming less effective and that sea lice are developing resistance to it on farms here,” Godwin said. To assess parasite resistance, “bioassay, treatment and salmon-louse count data from 2010 to 2021” were analyzed. During that time, the researchers found a notable decrease in the effectiveness of SLICE. “It is going to be more difficult for salmon farms to control sea lice outbreaks on their farms,” said Godwin. In the province’s stunning Clayoquot Sound, Bonny Glambeck routinely uses a fine-mesh net and a sample cup to test the waters near fish farms. Glambeck heads the Tofino-based conservation society known as Clayoquot Action and every year she monitors industry lice counts and tracks wild salmon infestations. “The control of sea lice on fish farms is something I do not believe the industry has ever been able to crack,” she said. “Parasites like these sea lice proliferate on these farms and then they can pass them on to wild salmon. With that, we feel that every year that goes by and these farms are allowed to pollute the waters with these infestations, they are just wiping out another generation of wild salmon.” Fisheries and Oceans Canada requires all fish farms in Canadian coastal waters to have a sea lice management plan. The federal department also places a limit of three lice per salmon during the spring when young salmon are out-migrating and are most vulnerable. In addition to that, the industry publicly reports lice counts on individual company websites every month. “The worry is that those lice levels might accumulate and then be released back to affect wild migratory salmon. The science doesn’t support that, but the concern exists so the industry responds to that,” said Brian Kingzett. Kingzett is the science and policy director with the BC Salmon Farmers Association. He says the industry has warned the federal government for years about the waning efficacy of SLICE, and has long called on Ottawa to approve new pesticide options. “There are other anti-parasite agents that have been approved in other areas of the world and we would certainly like to add that to our toolbox.” While SLICE is the only approved pesticide in Canada, it is not the only option for a fish farm struggling with a lice infestation. Kingzett says other environmentally friendly methods include the use of specialized delousing boats. One readily used vessel can suck fish from ocean-based pens into tanks where pressurized water is used to forcibly remove any attached lice. According to the industry, any dislodged bugs are collected by filters for disposal so they are not reintroduced to the marine environment. “During the last five years, the industry has spent about $100 million on importing new technologies,” Kingzett said. “Fish farming is an important industry in B.C. because we are facing a global seafood shortage and the farming sector is looking to provide sustainable, high-quality product.” The industry, however, is controversial and there’s been an ongoing battle to have all fish farms in the province removed. Earlier this month, there was a large protest in Tofino involving Indigenous leaders, conservationists and environmentalists. The group took to the waters near a local fish farm to voice their opposition to the industry and call on Ottawa to evict them. “It is a do-or-die moment for the salmon farming industry,” said Alexandra Morton, who is an independent biologist and longtime wild salmon activist. “We need to do whatever we can to save wild salmon populations because they are sadly on the verge of extinction.” In response, those in support of fish farms argue they are not a direct threat to wild salmon and are a vital industry. According to the BC Salmon Farmers Association, there are nearly 5,000 jobs linked to fish farms and at least $1 billion “in economic activity” is generated annually. Despite that, Ottawa has previously announced that it’s committed to phasing out open-net salmon farms in B.C. by 2025. In addition, it’s uncertain if 79 federal fish farm licenses expiring in June will be renewed.

Please note: This content carries a strict local market embargo. If you share the same market as the contributor of this article, you may not use it on any platform.

Matthew Talbot
matthew.talbot@bellmedia.ca

CNN Newsource

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What countries or jurisdictions have regulations concerning additives in salmon feed?

What countries or jurisdictions have regulations concerning antibiotics in farmes salmon?

China only approves food additives that are necessary and proven safe, and the use of food additives in China is strictly regulated.

Title:

Content: Health · Life
Do the "four strictest" to protect food safety (people's health in the ten years)
Our reporter Wang Meihua
July 19, 2022 05: 38 Source: People 's Daily Overseas Edition
On June 29, in Lianyungang, Jiangsu, inspectors were collecting vegetable samples to detect the presence of pesticide residues.
Photo by Zhu Huanan (People 's Vision)
The picture shows that on June 20, the staff of the market supervision and management department of Huaibei City, Anhui Province, inspected the implementation of basic information such as the identity and health status of the food delivery staff, registration, updating and filing at the rider management site of the takeaway enterprise.
Photo by Li Xin (People 's Vision)
People eat for the day, food for peace first.
Food safety is related to everyone's health and life safety, and it must be grasped and tightened.
Since the 18th Party Congress, China's food safety work has made positive progress, and truly achieved "the most rigorous standards, the most stringent supervision, the most severe punishment, the most serious accountability, to ensure the safety of the broad masses of the people" on the tip of the tongue ".
1419 national food safety standards have been issued
Food safety is no small matter, to create the most rigorous food safety standard system, "eat at ease" problem can have a chapter to follow.
Food safety standards are mandatory technical regulations, which are not only the basic compliance of producers and operators, but also an important basis for supervision and law enforcement.
In the past 10 years, the National Health and Health Commission has set up a national standard review committee with nearly 400 experts from 17 departments, adhering to the scientific basis of rigorous risk assessment, and establishing a standard development system with open and transparent procedures, extensive participation of experts in various fields, and evaluation of scientific authority.
Up to now, 1,419 national food safety standards have been issued, including more than 20,000 indicators, covering the main health hazards from farmland to table, from production and processing to the whole chain of products, and all links, to ensure the safety of the diet of the whole population.
The framework of the standard system is not only in line with the dietary structure of Chinese residents, but also in line with international practices.
"The food safety standards and monitoring and evaluation department of the State Health and Health Commission," Liu Jinfeng, director of the food safety standards and monitoring and evaluation department of the State Health and Health Commission, said that the State Health and Health Commission has integrated the enforcement content of food safety standards, food hygiene, specification quality and industry standards, focusing on solving the problem of "a large number of standards, not knowing which to use".
In recent years, in accordance with the requirements of the "most rigorous standards", the National Health Commission has improved the standard development system based on risk monitoring and evaluation.
At present, China's food safety standards system is divided into four categories: general standards, product standards, production and operation norms and inspection methods, covering the entire process from raw materials to the table.
The four categories of standards are linked to each other to control food safety risks from different angles.
Liu Jinfeng said that China has been the chair of the International Codex Committee on Food Additives and Pesticide Residues for 15 consecutive years, taking the lead in coordinating the food standards work of the Asian Codex Committee, and playing a positive role in the development and exchange of international and regional food safety standards.
Monitoring of food contamination and harmful factors in 99% of counties
Let the people eat at ease, food safety risk monitoring and evaluation is the "gatekeeper".
According to Li Ning, director of the National Food Safety Risk Assessment Center, after more than ten years of organizing and implementing the national food safety risk monitoring and evaluation, it has initially grasped the status and trend of major food contamination in China, and basically grasped the trend and pathogenesis of major foodborne diseases in different regions and seasons.
"For example, poisonous mushroom poisoning occurs mainly in some areas in the south.
In recent years, local governments have strengthened risk warnings in areas with high incidence of poisoning, and increased targeted popularizing propaganda such as consumers not taking or eating wild mushrooms, which has significantly reduced the number of cases and deaths of toxic mushroom poisoning.
At present, China has established two major monitoring networks at the national, provincial, municipal and county levels for monitoring food pollution and harmful factors, and for monitoring foodborne diseases, as well as a national food safety risk assessment system.
The monitoring of food pollution and harmful factors has covered 99% of counties and districts, and the monitoring of foodborne diseases has covered more than 70,000 medical institutions at all levels.
Food Contaminants and Harmful Factors Monitoring Food categories cover all 32 categories of food such as cereals and oils, fruits and vegetables, eggs and milk, meat and poultry, and aquatic products that are consumed daily by residents.
"These measures make important food safety hazards more sensitive to identification and early warning, not only for the development of standards to provide a scientific basis, but also for the orderly development of industry norms and protection of public health to provide strong support." Liu Jinfeng said.
In recent years, the take-away delivery business has developed rapidly, the network catering service has gradually increased, and its food safety problems have been widely concerned.
"From the point of view of food safety, whether it is takeout or food, online shopping or physical store purchase, the safety requirements for food are the same," Liu said.
Takeaway and online food manufacturers and operators should strictly abide by relevant laws and regulations and standards, strengthen the management of production, storage, transportation and distribution, and jointly maintain the "tongue safety" of consumers.
Strict Approval Management System for Food Additives
Food additives can improve the quality and color, smell and taste of food, and play an important role in preventing food spoilage.
But many people have doubts about food additives - can you eat them?
"The development of the food industry is inseparable from food additives, such as colorants used to improve food color, preservatives used to prevent food corruption, and coagulants used in brine point tofu, which are food additives."
It is the existence of food additives that makes the production, storage, transportation and circulation of food normal, and all kinds of food in supermarkets can be so colorful. Li Ning said that China has adopted a strict approval management system for the use of food additives, and only food additives that are technically necessary and safe and reliable will be approved for use.
Even if the safety is guaranteed, the process is not necessary and the use will not be approved.
China has strict regulations on what kinds of food additives can be used in and how much is used; there are also strict requirements for the management, labeling, and production licensing of food additives.
As long as the food additives that meet the requirements of the standard are used in accordance with the scope and amount of use of the standard, they are safe.
Some consumers are worried that the daily intake of multiple foods contains the same food additive, whether it will exceed the standard and bring extra burden to the body.
In this regard, Li Ning said that when the National Health and Health Commission formulated the scope of use and dosage of each food additive in food, it has fully considered the situation that consumers may consume a variety of foods containing the same additive in a day.
"As long as the production enterprises strictly follow the standards of food additives to use, food is qualified, consumers do not need to worry about additives on the health of additional burden." Li Ning said, suggesting that consumers in the dietary pattern of reasonable matching, balanced meals, in accordance with the Chinese dietary guidelines recommended dietary patterns, eat healthier and more nutritious.
(Editor: Yang Guangyu, Hu Yongqiu)
Related News

What countries or jurisdictions have regulations concerning additives in salmon feed?

Additives in salmon farming pose health concerns, which regulatory agencies assess and mitigate through risk assessments.

Salmon farming additives can include stillwater green and crystal violet, which are prohibited in some countries due to health risks.

The use of certain antibiotics, like tetracycline, in salmon farming is regulated due to potential health risks.

The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) assesses the safety of novel foods, including cell culture-derived food, by evaluating hazards

Title:

Content: There were 1,677 press releases posted in the last 24 hours and 469,931 in the last 365 days.

Episode 10 – From lab to fork

Intro (00:09:22)

Science on the Menu, a podcast by the European Food Safety Authority.

Ed (00:19:24)

Hello and welcome to another episode of Science on the menu. My name is Ed Bray and I work in the Communications Team at EFSA. And today joining me is Wolfgang Gelbmann from the Novel Foods Team at EFSA. Hi, Wolfgang.

Wolfgang (00:34:09)

Hello. Thanks for inviting me.

Ed (00:35:22)

I'm really interested to talk about what we're going to discuss today. We're talking about food, but not food as we know it. We're talking about food that is produced in a novel way and that is from cell lines. So, cell-based food. Some call it lab-grown food. At EFSA, we prefer the term cell culture-derived food. When we hear about this, we often hear about it in terms of meat, a replacement for traditional meat. So, let's start off with the most basic question: What is cell-based food? How is it produced? And what's the process, actually, for that?

Wolfgang (01:18:00)

Yes, when we talk about cell culture-derived food, we understand these are foods based on cells that have an animal origin. So, somewhere they must be sourced from an animal. Usually, they are from farmed animals, or you can also source meat. Necessarily, you do not need to slaughter an animal for this. You can also go to the slaughterhouse and take some meat, some muscle meat there and collect cells which then can be propagated. And the very closed conditions, we call them cell culture conditions, in closed compartments where you need to add water, nutrients, including vitamins, minerals, amino acids, sugar, even fatty acids, and water, oxygen. You also need to control the temperature. These cells are growing then in a highly monitored and controlled environment to increase the scale, the number of cells, which then eventually will be harvested and subject to further down-processing to make foods out of the cell culture because we do not consume the cell culture as such, but we consume foods derived from the cell culture. And that's the reason why we call it cell culture-derived foods.

Ed (02:40:19)

Okay. And the down-processing is the part where it's turned into presumably a product that looks like traditional meat. Correct?

Wolfgang (02:49:23)

Exactly. Because the cells are such as they grow, they look very different from muscle cells in an organism. And the texture is probably different. The taste is probably different if you consumed the pure cells as such. And it's the task of food business operators who want to successfully market and sell these products to then make the product from these harvested cells that ideally look and taste like conventional meat.

Ed (03:21:10)

Okay. And we're talking about meat here, but presumably this could also be the case for fish and maybe even fruit and vegetables. Is that right?

Wolfgang (03:30:15)

Theoretically, yes. Typically, I'm saying because for plants, you can also grow plant cells. Cultures are from plants. But I think it's even more challenging for plants to resemble, to mimic a product that looks like an apple or a pear or vegetable.

Ed (03:53:20)

Okay. And then the real kind of reason behind doing this is, at least from the producer's point of view, is to avoid some of the issues that are related to large scale meat production, sustainability issues, animal welfare issues, possibly, for example. Is that right?

Wolfgang (04:16:00)

Exactly. These are the two main points and arguments for this new innovative sector: to reduce animal welfare and health issues. And the second one is sustainability. And when we talk about sustainability, we know that plant vegetable food production is much cheaper than animal food production. So, for the industry, it would be more challenging to compete with vegetables or plants because they are produced with much lower cost than meat is produced nowadays. So, I think the main interest will be indeed cell culture-derived food based on animal cells.

Ed (04:52:24)

Okay. We're talking about a product that does exist on the market, if I understand well, in some other parts of the world, but is not yet on the market in Europe, is that right?

Wolfgang (05:02:24)

That's correct. In Europe, we do not have such products yet on the market. The reason is because they are considered by regulators, by the European Commission and Member States, as a novel food. And that requires an assessment, a safety assessment by EFSA and the authorisation by Member States and the European Commission. But even before EFSA can assess a dossier, we need to receive one. And we have not yet received such a dossier.

Ed (05:29:01)

Okay. But in other parts of the world, it's gone through a process and is on the market. Where is it possible actually to buy this kind of thing?

Wolfgang (05:39:07)

Yes, there was an authorisation for chicken cell culture-based food in Singapore. I think it was last year. And this type of food is formulated like chicken nuggets. So, these products have the authorisation in Singapore, but as we have heard they are sold at very low amounts. We heard about two kilograms per month.

Ed (06:00:09)

You talked about how the cell lines are derived at the beginning. You talked about there needing to be an animal within the process, but could it be possible to remove the animal from the process and for this to be suitable for vegetarians and vegans if they're ethically, you know, okay with the approach?

Wolfgang (06:20:23)

That's a very personal decision. And I think it depends on how you define yourself, how strict the limits and borders you impose on yourself are to be vegetarian or vegan. Somewhere, these cells must be sourced from meat or from an animal, so they must have an animal origin. You do not necessarily need to slaughter an animal because you can also take it from meat from certain parts of muscle cells. And you can take it once and then you propagate a lot of these cells. You multiply them a lot. In cell cultures, you can even freeze them. And later, when you want to initiate a new batch of such cell culture-derived meat or food, you just thaw them, and then you start again propagating them, cultivating them, increasing the scale, and making again a new batch of this type of food. So, you do not necessarily need to slaughter animals regularly.

Ed (07:20:00)

Hmm. You talked about there being such a relatively small quantity in Singapore. What are some of the challenges for these producers to get a product to a market like that?

Wolfgang (07:32:05)

I think the biggest reason for the technological challenges is that these cells are taken out from the tissue from an organism. And in an organism, all the cells get nourished, get the nutrients from capillaries, to get the hormones from the blood. They have the interaction with all the other cells, and they are growing in the context of the neighbour cells, let’s say, where there's a lot of interaction between different types of cells. In cell culture-derived foods we talk about cell culture based on a single type of cells, usually it's muscle cells. So, we don't have capillaries, we don't have hormone glands, we don't have a liver, kidney, we don't have other types of cells there. So, all these must be replaced and mimicked. The conditions must be mimicked to come as close as possible to the environment cells have in the organism. But still, this environment is very different. And that's I think a big challenge when it comes to large-scale production. Because cells are easy to grow two dimensional on a monolayer. But if you want to have meat, you need a three-dimensional structure. So, you need to increase the number of cells that can grow over on the other. But you do not have vessels there. And one of the aims of the industry is to increase to let the cells grow in the more three-dimensional way, to mimic the structure of the meat. And that's quite challenging. It's challenging in terms of yields especially. I think that's one of the reasons why these types of products have not yet been that successful. But there's a lot of technology ongoing, and I think we should not underestimate innovation when there is also sufficient funding to support that.

Ed (09:26:12)

So, we have talked a little bit about what it is, the process and some of the reasons behind it, some of the challenges. What about the safety of the product? You said we haven't received an application yet, but what are some of the things that we will look at in terms of the safety of an application for this?

Wolfgang (09:46:15)

Indeed, we have not yet received such an application, but we have started thinking, discussing, and we also have organised events such as this scientific colloquium in May in Brussels this year, and we are going to organise stakeholder meetings on the topic as well, also to exchange with stakeholders, with scientists from universities, but also with the industry part to get more knowledge about these types of products. We are quite confident that we are already prepared for that, and we expect that the hazards related to these types of foods are not dissimilar to what we are facing now with conventional food products. What are the hazards? The hazards are chemical and microbiological hazards. So basically, everything that you feed into your farmed animals, that includes also contamination from the feed, pesticides, food additives, sometimes antibiotics, contamination from the environment, industry, from emissions, everything that is fed to animals that they consume, that they are exposed to in the environment could end up on our plates. There are a lot of regulations to limit all of these contaminations and chemical hazards, and the same applies to microbiological hazards. We know all of these salmonella, campylobacter, other microbes that can affect meat and other foods and basically face the same challenges with regards to the cell culture-derived foods. So, everything you put into the medium where the cells grow and you need to put a lot of products in there, basically nutrients, vitamins, but also somewhere you need to make the cells grow. So, some growth factors are probably needed. Also, these ingredients you put in there are never 100% pure. We expect them to be pure enough to ensure safe food products. But these are the items we will look at when we are assessing such type of products. So, it's the chemical hazards we will look at, potential residuals in the final product, as well as microbiological contamination. And third is in our assessment, we look also to the nutritional composition of these types of foods. We are obliged to do so because the novel food regulation says that novel food should not be disadvantaged to the European consumer with regards to its nutrients. These products should not be worse let's say than what we are consuming already right now.

Ed (12:23:14)

And how do you think it would compare actually to a traditional meat product?

Wolfgang (12:28:02)

We expect that there will be some differences, but not necessarily that these differences are disadvantageous for the European consumers. So, I would expect that this hurdle will be passed by the industry, by these types of products. They will be somewhat similar in terms of composition because also the cells grow, and they need to see what the cells need in an organism. So, they need all the micronutrients, vitamins will be there, proteins will be there sufficiently - same quality with some differences, but not necessarily that the quality will be less than the protein. So, when you talk about conventional meat.

Ed (13:04:08)

The fact that it's a closed system, I guess is an advantage in one way because you can really control the environment to a very specific degree. But it could also be a disadvantage, a risk in that if anything does get into the system that perhaps shouldn't be there, a contaminant or whatever, it affects the entire system, is that right?

Wolfgang (13:22:06)

Absolutely correct. So I think when you have a contamination in the cell culture, you would very quickly realise it because the cells… there's no immune system. So there will be nothing in the cell culture that would fight against a microbial contamination. So this batch will be very quickly spoiled and you can discharge it. And it's a bit different to when you talk about farmed animals where you could have infections that are for a long time not observed. And once you spot them, it could have passed already. Quite the worst example you know is the BSE crisis, where it took years to even realise what's going on there. Yeah, and when people have already consumed these types of products. I think that will be different in terms of the cell culture where you quickly will see when there is microbiological contamination and basically, it's spoiled within one day. It would not reach consumers.

Ed (14:16:13)

Another question that springs to my mind is when we look at some of the critics who talk about these products, they use words such as… they call it artificial meat or synthetic meat. Do you think that's an accurate reflection actually of the process here?

Wolfgang (14:34:02)

I mean, these are not terms we are using in our scientific discussions. That's rather subject to people outside of EFSA. Personally, I think when we talk about synthesis, we rather think about chemical synthesis and these products are not chemically synthesised. So as a scientist, I would disagree with the term synthetic. When it comes to artificial versus natural meat, I also have a different view because what is natural food production? That would be for me as I would define it, I go to the forest and collect my mushrooms, my berries, and maybe I need even to get a fish from the sea or hunt my own animal. That would be the natural way of my food production. I wouldn't call the conventional industrial farming and agriculture as natural versus the artificial cell culture production. So, for me, it's both. Both are in a kind artificial because they are not any more collected and produced as we did maybe a thousand years ago.

Ed (15:33:24)

Mm hmm. Yeah. I guess in a way, a lot will depend on the choices of consumers when presumably these products do make it to market. What's going to be the cost, what's going to be the attitude of consumers, the taste, etc. All these factors come into play when consumers make their decisions. On that front, how do you see it for the industry in terms of the cost of production?

Wolfgang (15:56:13)

I have less insight on this aspect, so we are more in the science and to prepare for the safety assessment as such and less investigating and following the cost side. I think there's also a big challenge there for the industry to have large scale production that could compete with the price of meat, of conventional meat at this moment. There is a certain development ongoing - of course the more funding, the larger the scale of production could be and the cheaper the prices. But when and whether there could be real competition in terms of price with the conventional meat, I seriously don't know. It's difficult, I think.

Ed (16:38:04)

Yeah, as you said, it's out of our remit in any case. And another thing that we hear from applicants sometimes is they talk about the challenge of getting a product to market in terms of the EU system, the rules in place, etc. and they talk of a bureaucratic burden. What do you say to that?

Wolfgang (16:55:20)

Indeed, they need to make a submission and application, which then needs to be assessed by EFSA. And even after the EFSA assessment, there is a procedure of I think it's seven months for the European Commission and Member States to authorise this type of foods. So, it could take some time to get an authorisation. The reason is because European states have decided to ensure a high level of consumer safety. And that takes a process, that takes a while for the risk assessment. And even after the risk assessment, the Member States and European Commission could take other considerations into account as well. This process takes time. And the reason is, I think overall, because the EU has probably the highest standard in terms of food safety, probably on a global scale even.

Ed (17:45:00)

Okay. So could be a bit of time before I can go to a supermarket and choose some cell-derived meat if I wanted to.

Wolfgang (17:53:05)

Yes, certainly. The reason is not because we want to stop these types of foods, this innovation. EFSA is not in that position, and we would not have this intention at all. And I think also the European Commission does not have this intention. The reason is really consumer safety.

Ed (18:06:12)

Okay. Yeah. One final question to you on a personal level, Wolfgang. How did you end up here? What was your path towards becoming part of EFSA’s Novel Foods Team and assessing, you know, these kinds of novel products?

Wolfgang (18:20:13)

By studying, I'm a veterinarian, so I'm quite familiar with animal production, animal health, animal welfare issues. But then, I also have some years of experience in research, also using a lot of cells in biotechnology. I was working for a few years in assessing safety and efficacy of medicines, including biotechnology products and as such I also learned about certain guideline documents from the European Medicines Agency with regards to cell culture and biotechnology-derived products. And since 2003, I started at EFSA, in the beginning with BSE, with the BSE issue, and later on I moved to the Nutrition Unit and quickly I got the novel foods on my plate, which I have been doing now since 2006.

Ed (19:10:20)

Okay, well, thanks very much, Wolfgang, for giving us your insights and expertise.

Thanks for joining us on this episode of Science on the Menu. And we hope to see you again soon. Thank you very much.