May | June 2010

Feature title: Alternative Lipid Sources in Aquafeeds

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The International magazine for the aquaculture feed industry


in Aquafeeds
Alternative Lipid Sources
by Dr Wing–Keong Ng, Fish Nutrition Laboratory, School of Biological Sciences, Universiti Sains Malaysia, Dr
Giovanni Turchini, School of Life and Environmental Sciences, Deakin University, Australia, Dr Douglas Tocher,
Institute of Aquaculture, University of Stirling, Scotland
T
he global aquaculture
industry is one of the
fastest growing food
p ro d u c t i o n
with farmed seafood currently
sectors
accounting for about 50 percent
of all fish consumed in the world.
Aquafeeds and fish oils
It is estimated that aquaculture
produces about 65 million tonnes
of seafood valued at more than
US$78 billion annually.
Aquaculture is anticipated to
play an increasingly important
role in meeting the seafood
demand of a growing human
population. The rapid increase in
aquaculture production world-
wide has been fueled by the
use of industrially manufactured
aquafeeds.
Conventionally, marine fishmeal
and fish oil are used as the major
feed ingredients in the formulation
of commercial aquafeeds to supply
dietary protein and lipid, respectively. It is
estimated that aquafeeds currently con-
sume about 90 percent of the global supply
of fish oil and many have predicted that the
demand for fish oil from the aquaculture
industry will imminently out strip supply.
Marine fish oil production has not
increased beyond 1.5 million tonnes for
the past quarter of a century and in order
to further expand, the global aquaculture
industry cannot continue to rely solely on
this source of lipid.
The high demand, impending short sup-
ply and often times high prices makes
Figure 2: The annual world production (1995-
2008) of the three major vegetables oils as
compared to fish oil
dietary fish oil a bottle-neck in the farming
of aquatic animals, and there is currently
great urgency within the global aquafeed
industry in finding suitable alternatives to
replace marine fish oils.
This article will give an overview of the
10 | InternatIonal AquAFeed | May-June 2010
F: Lipid
Global production of crude palm oil
(CPO) exceeded 43 million tonnes and
together with about nine million tonnes of
coconut and palm kernel oils, constitutes
a highly available and sustainable source of
lipids for the aquafeed industry.
When freshly extracted, CPO is the
Figure 1: Stacks of imported fish oil in drums are a
richest known natural source of β-carotene
and is also a rich source of vitamin E,
consisting of tocopherols and tocotrienols.
Several studies have shown that various
common sight at aquafeed mills in Asia
palm oil fractions can be successfully used
either singly or in combination with other
plant oils in the aquafeeds of commercially
farmed species. The limited PUFA content,
combined with the presence of natural Figure 3: Palm oil is the most produced and fractionated oil in the world
and many fractions have been successfully evaluated in aquafeeds
antioxidants (in the case of CPO), has been
reported to impart enhanced pellet and
fillet oxidative stability.
Furthermore, the overall fatty acid modi- (MUFA)-rich oil produced is rapeseed physiologically important n-3 LC-PUFA by
fication of the fish fillet is less detrimentally (canola) oil with olive, peanut and rice many farmed species, albeit mostly at lim-
affected by SFA-rich oils, when compared to bran oils making up the rest of this class ited capabilities.
other alternative lipid sources. of lipids. Oleic acid (18:1n-9) and other Despite encouraging evidence of poten-
Nevertheless, concerns have been MUFA are readily digested and β-oxidized tial bio-conversion of ALA and SDA into
expressed on its potential negative effect by fish to produce energy and have been n-3 LC-PUFA, the inclusion of these oils
on nutrient digestibility, particularly when reported to have no known adverse effect (i.e. linseed/flaxseed, camelina, perilla and
fed to cold water fish species during the on fish growth performance. echium) in aquafeeds is limited, as they are
winter season. Depending
various alternative lipid sources, grouped on market
according to their main chemical charac- High quality sources prices, rape-
teristics. Their unique potential advantages of dietary energy seed oil is cur-
and challenges for use in aquafeeds will
be highlighted. The physiological effects of
Soybean, corn, safflower, cottonseed and
sunflower oils are the main n-6 PUFA-rich
rently one of
the commonly
Marine phospholipids
various lipid sources and their components (namely linoleic acid, 18:2n-6) oils produced. utilized lipid
on growth, lipid metabolism, health and When incorporated into aquafeeds, alternatives in A new generation of omega-3 lipids
post-harvest qualities of the farmed fish are these n-6 PUFA-rich plant oils have been commercial
with a broader spectrum of health
briefly discussed. reported to be high quality sources of aquafeeds,
dietary energy and fatty acids during the especially those
benefits.
Alternative lipid grow-out cycle in most fish tested to date. formulated for
sources However, a major concern of using these cold water
- High DHA contents, preferably in
Oils and fats are characterised by oils is that linoleic acid is abundantly and and temperate easily digestible and highly bio
their unique fatty acid composition. preferentially deposited in the fish fillet. species. available form for aquaculture use.
The major vegetable oils have Since our human diets already contain too Plant oils
one common characteristic; none much n-6 PUFA, some scientists believe rich in n-3 - Numerous benefits on improving
contain n-3 long chain-polyunsatu- that a good fish oil substitute should limit PUFA [namely the immune response, better
rated fatty acids (LC-PUFA). the deposition of these less desirable fatty α-linolenic acid, weight gain and physical
In contrast, marine fish oils have acids in fish fillets. ALA (18:3n-3), conditions of land animals.
a high content of n-3 LC-PUFA. Once deposited, linoleic acid is also and steari-
In consideration of the fact that known to be selectively retained in fish donic acid,
the dietary fatty acid composition fillets and resistant to ‘dilution’ even after SDA (18:4n-3)]
is mirrored in farmed fish fillet, switching to a fish oil finishing diet. This has generated
the inclusion of alternative lipid may be problematic in the context of using much research
sources in aquafeed can have sig- fish oil finishing diet strategies to restore interest due
nificant impacts on the nutritional beneficial n-3 to n-6 PUFA ratios in farmed to the ability
qualities of farmed seafood products. The fish fillets. of these fatty
n-3 LC-PUFA are known to impart health- Several selected cultivars of these acids to be Fiskerihavnsgade 35 Phone +45 79120999
promoting benefits to human consumers. oilseeds have been recently developed to bio-converted P.O. Box 359 Fax +45 79120888
Saturated fatty acid (SFA)-rich plant contain significantly lower concentrations into the longer 6701 Esbjerg E-mail 999@999.dk
oils include palm oil, palm kernel oil and of linoleic acid. chain, more Denmark Web www.999.dk
coconut oil. The major monounsaturated fatty acid unsaturated,
May-June 2010 | InternatIonal AquAFeed | 11
999_AD_IAF0904V3.indd 1 22/06/2009 14:01
 F: Lipid
Figure 4: Farmed seafood fed alternative lipid sources remains a good dietary source of
health-promoting omega-3 fatty acids for the human consumer
currently relatively expensive and limited
in supply.
However, they can be useful in oil blend taining n-3 LC-PUFA are the subject of
formulations to adjust dietary n-3 PUFA
levels.
Animal fats
Terrestrial animal fats include tallow,
poultry by-product fat and lard. About
12 million tonnes of rendered animal
fats are manufactured every year around
the world and are generally more eco-
nomical than fish and plant oils. Animal
fats represent a very diverse group of
products but are generally rich in SFA
although some can be rich in MUFA and
contain PUFA.
Their fatty acid composition is largely
influenced by the diet of the livestock.
For example, poultry by-product fat in
Australia is enriched with MUFA as chick-
ens are commonly fed a rapeseed-based
diet, while in the USA, it has relatively
higher n-6 PUFA as birds are commonly fed
a soybean-based diet.
Recent studies have reported that these
lipid sources are well digested and utilised genetically modified oilseeds represent
by most fish species. Growth performance
of aquaculture species are generally not
negatively impacted by dietary animal fats as be the best alternative to fish oil as they
long as the diets are formulated to contain
sufficient amount of MUFA and PUFA to
facilitate the digestion of SFA and meet
the essential fatty acid requirements of the use almost prohibitive. Oils from genetically
aquatic animal.
Terrestrial animal fats are increasingly commodity and legislative issues may need
recognized as safe and cost-effective lipid
sources when properly used in aquafeeds.
Impact of lipid
sources on
farmed fish
As mentioned above,
dietary fatty acid com-
position directly influ-
ences flesh fatty acid
composition, the extent
of which depends on
the level of substitution
of fish oil, the duration
of feeding and the pre-
cise fatty acid composi-
tion of the substituting
oils.
In general, substitution
with vegetable oils results
in increased proportions
of C18 fatty acids (18:1n-
9, 18:2n-6 and 18:3n-3),
and decreased propor-
tions of n-3 LC-PUFA
New lipid sources (EPA, 20:5n-3 and DHA, 22:6n-3).
In recent years, new lipid sources con- In choosing substituting oils, we should
aim to minimise these effects and so, ideally,
intense research interest. These include oils the replacing oil should satisfy some general
derived from marine invertebrates such as criteria. The oil should have a high MUFA
copepods, krill and amphipods. content, not only to provide a good energy
Given the significantly large biomass of source, but also to reduce the level of C18
marine invertebrates and projecting a ‘safe’ PUFA, which should be relatively low.
level of harvest, it has been estimated that For this reason, oils with high C18
these new sources have the potential to PUFA, particularly 18:2n-6, should be used
produce more marine oils than current sparingly.
global fish oil production. The replacement oil should contain
However, there are some technical con- 18:3n-3, not simply for potential conversion
cerns on the use of such oils, such as har- to EPA and DHA, but also because its
vesting technologies and the large content inclusion will help to balance the n-3/n-6
of waxes and phospholipids together with ratio and limit 18:2n-6 inclusion. Some
great variability in fatty acid composition. researchers suggest that oil blends consist-
One good n-3 LC-PUFA-rich source ing of several plant oils are better in terms
are oils derived from by-catch and fishery of health and welfare of the fish when used
or aquaculture by-products. With better in aquafeeds.
management and utilisation, it is estimated
that the total quantities of fish meal and Dietary fat influences
fish oil coming from aquaculture and fishery Dietary fatty acid composition also
derived waste and by-products are most influences various aspects of lipid and
likely in the range of several million tonnes. fatty acid metabolism. These include
Single cell oils (from microalgae) and digestibility, lipogenesis, lipid transport
and uptake, fatty acid catabolism and
novel n-3 LC-PUFA-rich oils. fatty acid desaturation and elongation
Nutritionally, single cell oils are likely to that can all influence tissue fatty acid
composition.
contain even higher amounts of beneficial For example, the amount of dietary
n-3 LC-PUFA, but their very high produc- SFA influences the digestibility of lipids
tion costs and limited availability make their especially at low water temperatures.
LC-PUFA synthesis from 18:3n-3 has been
modified oilseeds are not yet a commercial shown to be increased in fish fed diets
with fish oil substituted by vegetable oils
to be addressed before such oils can be through up-regulation of desaturase and
used in aquafeeds. elongase gene expression and consequently
12 | InternatIonal AquAFeed | May-June 2010
F: Lipid
increased activity of the desaturation/elon- Seafood from farmed animals fed diets
gation pathway. with high fish oil replacements remains a
Unfortunately this is restricted to cer- good source of n-3 LC-PUFA that, although About the Authors:
tain species and does not occur in marine reduced, are still higher than in any alterna- Wing–Keong Ng of the Fish
fish and crustaceans. Irrespective of species, tive meat or food item and so contribute Nutrition Laboratory, School of
increased synthesis of LC-PUFA is not able positive health benefits. Biological Sciences, at Universiti
to compensate for the lack of dietary n-3 Impacts of dietary lipid source on Sains Malaysia in Penang, Malaysia
LC-PUFA. physical quality aspects are few, but (Email: wkng@usm.my); Dr Giovanni
Lipids and fatty acids are now known to lower oxidation values in flesh during M. Turchini, is at the School of Life
be highly metabolically active, involved in shelf life in fish fed vegetable oils com- and Environmental Sciences, Deakin
controlling and regulating cell metabolism pared to fish oil is the most consistent. University, Warrnambool, VIC 3280 in
and animal physiology through mechanisms Other influences include some limited Australia and Douglas R. Tocher is at
involving gene expression and several lipid effects on flesh colour, texture and gap- the Institute of Aquaculture, University
signalling pathways. ing, and liquid holding, but not freshness, of Stirling in Stirling, Scotland.
Therefore, modification of tissue fatty during shelf life.
acid compositions can have wide ranging In most farmed species studied, taste
effects. panelists were able to discriminate amongst
Author’s note:
The subject matter of this article
Among the most studied are the eicosa- some specific attributes and quality param-
will be the topic of an upcoming
noids (for example, prostaglandins, leukot- eters of fillet of fish fed different lipid
book entitled ‘Fish Oil Replacement
rienes and resolvins) that are metabolically sources.
and Alternative Lipid Sources in
active derivatives of LC-PUFA with impor- However, these differences are relatively
Aquaculture Feeds’ edited by the
tant roles in mediating inflammatory and subtle and consumers have been reported
authors and published by CRC Press -
immune responses to a variety of stresses. not to show any specific preferences for
Taylor and Francis Group: http://www.
The n-6-derived eicosanoids are differently fed farmed fish. Effects on fil-
crcpress.com/
pro-inflammatory whereas n-3-derived let organoleptic properties are somewhat
eicosanoids are either less potent or subjective and variable, and are dependent
anti-inflammatory. on the dietary oil blends used. The product
Thus, substitution of n-3-rich fish oil quality fac-
by n-6-rich vegetable oils will alter the tors can, to a
eicosanoids produced resulting in effects on large extent,
inflammatory and immune responses, which be restored Are you sure
can be potentially detrimental or beneficial through the use I‘m not missing
depending upon the particular stress. of finishing diets a key essential
The above illustrates one mechanism rich in fish oil. nutrient?
whereby altered dietary fatty acids, espe- In conclu-
cially n-3/n-6 balance, can affect the health sion, in the
and welfare of fish. current era of
However, substitution of fish oil with increased con-
vegetable oils affects the immune system sumer demands
in several ways, including both cellular and for food safety,
humoral immunity, although these effects do traceability
not always alter resistance to disease. and quality, the
Other aspects of health status of fish challenge for
that may be affected by dietary fatty acids the aquaculture VANNAGEN ®
include welfare, through altering the cortisol industry is to
response to stress, tissue morphology (for maintain the
naturally supports…
example, liver and intestine) that may or recognised
… Per formance
may not affect organ functionality, skeletal benefits of
development, cataracts and development of seafood con-
… Health
atherosclerosis and cardiac lesions. sumption for … Stress management
However, many factors can affect stress, human health,
immunity and pathogen resistance in fish, especially when
www.chemoforma.com
including the type, level and duration of veg- alternative
etable oil feeding, other dietary nutrients, lipids are used
fish species and environmental conditions. in aquafeed for-
Product quality encompasses physical mulations, while
aspects such as freshness and appearance, maintaining We have your per for mance in mind
and organoleptic properties, as well as sustainability
nutritional quality, which is largely defined and profitability
Chemoforma Ltd. CH-4302 Augst Switzerland
by the n-3 LC-PUFA content. of the industry. Tel +41 61 811 33 55 Fax +41 61 811 28 03
May-June 2010 | InternatIonal AquAFeed | 13
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