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We asked our operations about the most common questions they get from salmon farmers and feed manufacturers in Norway. Keep reading to find out how Aker BioMarine answers its most common inquiries.During which life stages should QRILL Aqua be used, and what are the main benefits?
1. During which life stages should QRILL Aqua be used, and what are the main benefits?
Aker BioMarine: QRILL Aqua is a complete ingredient that fits the nutritional needs of the fish. Due to its unique composition with high omega-3 levels in phospholipid form, as well as its suitable amino acid profile and plentiful supply of vitamins and minerals, QRILL Aqua may act as both a part of everyday feed and as a functional feed when used in higher volumes, depending on the specific needs of the farm.
- Larval feed: The high-quality proteins and amino acids in krill are important building blocks for growing larvae. The need for phospholipids is also high during these stages.
- Transfer feeds: When salmon are transferred to the sea, their appetite may be reduced due to stress. The taste of krill stimulates the fish to eat and grow, which is important to build resilience in a vulnerable life stage.
- Grower feeds: The lipid and protein profile of QRILL Aqua is highly suitable in a high-performance diet, both improving taste and nutritional profile. It is also in these stages that fish may benefit the most from the sustainability and purity when adding krill to the feed.
- Health feeds: In situations where stress and diseases challenge the fish health, adding high amounts of krill in the feed has shown to improve the fish’s ability to cope and restitute.
Contact us or ask you feed supplier for how you and your fish can benefit from QRILL Aqua in your feeds.
2. How will the use of krill affect the price of our feed?
Aker BioMarine: Realistically, the feed price per kilogram will increase slightly, however the feed cost per kilogram of fish produced will decline. QRILL Aqua is higher in cost than soy products and fish meal products. However, some components in QRILL Aqua have a lower price than chemical or concentrated sources. By including some amount of QRILL Aqua in your feed, production will improve.
3. Why choose krill over other alternative ingredients?
Aker BioMarine: QRILL Aqua has biological benefits and improves your production. It can compensate for weaknesses in other feed ingredients by adding taste and essential nutritional components. QRILL Aqua is well documented and widly used by leading farmers around the world. Krill meal is commonly used and scientifically proven to be beneficial for the fish and the environment. Aker BioMarine has during its 15 years as ingredient supplier overcome many of the challenges new raw material suppliers face today, including traceability, scalability, and setting up a strong supply chain. Krill is known today as a well-documented, natural, highly sustainable and a superior alternative ingredient to the traditional marine ingredients.
4. Is krill available and sustainably harvested? And does the krill fishery take food from the whales, penguins, and other Antarctic animals?
Aker BioMarine: The krill fishery is rated the most sustainable fishery in the world by independent organizations. The krill biomass was 60.3 million tons in 2000, and it was measured at 62.6 million tons in 2019. This is a strong indicator of the health and stability of krill. Aker BioMarine catches under the krill industry’s 1% limit each year, while ensuring healthy volumes of QRILL Aqua for years to come. Since the krill biomass is heavily surveilled and has grown over the last two decades, there is more than enough for both whales and farmed fish. In addition, our fishing boats have a patented technology that eliminates bycatch, so no animals are caught in the trawls.
5. Can QRILL Aqua contribute to a reduced CO2 footprint in feed formulation for salmon?
Aker BioMarine: Yes, it can, though it depends on which ingredient it is replacing in the feed. Krill has a lower CO2 footprint than many of the most common raw materials in traditional fish feed, and it has less than half of the carbon footprint of Brazilian soy. Recently a new report, titled , Shades of green stated: The company’s products sold to the aquaculture sector have climate-mitigating and environmental benefits because they can replace fish meal and soy associated with deforestation.
- In the last ten years, Aker BioMarine has halved its CO2 emissions per ton of krill produced.
- The company aims to cut this in half again within the next 10 years.
- Through the smart use of data to drive innovation Aker BioMarine targets emission reductions on board vessels, in processing plants, and within the logistics operations.
- Harvesting from low trophic levels in the oceans also helps reduce the pressure on the wild fish stocks while still providing high quality marine ingredients for the aquaculture industry.
