I recently joined Aquaculture North America's Salmon Farming In and Out podcast as a guest speaker* to discuss the evolving applications of marine ingredients—particularly fishmeal and fish oil.

Aquaculture now uses around 65–70% of the world’s fish oil production, and within that, salmon farming alone accounts for roughly 55%. These oils provide crucial long-chain omega-3 fatty acids—EPA and DHA—as well as a wide range of nutrients, the best-known being minerals and vitamins, the least well known being marine osmolytes, cetoleic acid and phospholipids. They support not only fish health and welfare but also deliver the nutritional benefits consumers expect from eating salmon.

The raw materials for fishmeal and fish oil primarily come from small pelagic species such as Peruvian anchovy, U.S. menhaden and in Northern Europe, by-products from herring, mackerel, and blue whiting—often already processed for human consumption. Many of these fisheries are highly seasonal and high-yielding. Without being processed into shelf-stable meal and oil, much of the catch would spoil. Turning this catch into fishmeal and fish oil preserves vital nutrients and keeps them within the food chain.

For salmon farming, fishmeal and fish oil play a key role in feed formulations. These ingredients, highly palatable, improve growth rates and disease resistance, helping farmers produce more fish with fewer resources. The share of aquatic animals used for direct human consumption has grown from 67% in the 1960s to 89% by 2020 (FAO, 2022), and the industry continues to increase its use of by-products and certified fisheries. As a point of comparison, 41% of global grain production in 2022 was used as animal feed, with only 39% consumed directly as food (OECD). This underscores the importance of using marine resources efficiently and responsibly—especially where they contribute essential nutrients that are otherwise hard to obtain.

* this podcast will be available as of mid-May 2025

Petter M Johannessen