Future of Fish Feed (F3) is a collaborative effort between NGOs, researchers, and private partnerships to accelerate the commercialization of innovative, substitute aquaculture feed ingredients to replace wild-caught marine ingredients since their populations are declining.
Impact
We have created a Forage Fish Savings Estimator to assist innovative ingredient companies, that can provide nutritionally equivalent replacements for fishmeal and fish oil, in calculating the number of forage fish saved. Based on our calculations, the first three F3 contests have saved over 2.5 BILLION forage fish.
Billion Forage Fish Saved
“Fishmeal alternatives continue to be developed, like algae, bacteria from methane production or microbial proteins from carbon dioxide sequestration. We are trying to turn plant-based ingredients into animal-based ingredients… The trick is to make plant meal behave like fishmeal, not to turn carnivores into herbivores.
Fish do not require fishmeal. They require the nutrients that fishmeal happens to contain. That is why fishmeal has been used so much in aquaculture. If you take the fishmeal out, you must supplement with other ingredients to get the necessary nutrients, hence the need to develop other protein sources. If diets are formulated correctly and contain all essential nutrients, growth rate and feed efficiency will be good.”
PAST F3 CHALLENGES
We have experience in running contests to encourage the “Impossible” through the F3 challenges.
F3 has a decade of experience running challenges that have moved the needle in proving fish can be grown without using marine animal ingredients in feeds. Prior challenges which were considered “impossible,” but were won, include:
We were told it was difficult to commercialize feed without using marine ingredients, so in 2015 we launched the first F3 Challenge—the F3 Fish-Free Feed Challenge—to create fish-free feeds for aquaculture, and a Chinese company, Guangdong Evergreen, ultimately won by selling the most feed without marine ingredients.
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The challenge was for an aquafeed company to produce and sell the most marine animal-free aquaculture feed using innovative formulations by the challenge end date. Companies from Australia, Austria, China, Indonesia, Myanmar, South Africa, Thailand, and the U.S. competed.
One of China’s largest aquaculture and feed producers, Guangdong Evergreen Feed Industry Company, was awarded the $200,100 prize for selling over 85,000 metric tons of fish-free feed for tilapia. Representatives from Evergreen accepted their prize in October 2017 at a ceremony held during the Global Aquaculture Alliance’s GOAL Conference in Dublin. Check out their acceptance speech here.
To facilitate networking between the contestants of the F3 Fish-Free Feed Challenge and large feed companies, we held the first F3 Meeting in the San Francisco Bay Area in January 2017. Discussions at this meeting prompted the development of our Feed Innovation Network, which encourages sustainable innovations in fish-free aquaculture feed ingredients by sharing experimental protocols, and directing ingredient companies to test facilities that can implement these protocols.
This contest was a game-changer in the fish feed industry by helping to promote the adoption of fish-free feed to improve the overall sustainability of the aquaculture industry. The challenge drew contestants from all over the world who collectively sold over 100,000 metric tons of fish-free feed.
TOTAL FORAGE FISH SAVINGS FROM THE F3 FISH-FREE FEEDS CHALLENGE: 350 MILLION.
Our assumptions for this calculation are here, with a breakdown of the calculations here.
We were told that fish oil could not be substituted, so we launched the second F3 Challenge—the F3 Fish Oil Challenge—to encourage the development and commercialization of fish oil replacements with essential fatty acid ratios similar to those in forage fish, and a Dutch company, Veramaris, won by selling the most fish oil substitutes.
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The prize was to be awarded to the company or team who sold the greatest amount of DHA + EPA + ARA fish oil substitute as calculated from sales of qualified F3 oil by the Challenge end date. Companies from China, the Netherlands, and a UK/U.S. team competed.
In October 2019, Netherlands-based joint venture Veramaris won the F3 Fish Oil Challenge and the $200,000 USD grand prize for selling the most “fish-free” oil for use in aquaculture feed. The winner was announced during a special award ceremony at the Global Aquaculture Alliance’s GOAL Conference in Chennai, India.
Contestants of the F3 Fish Oil Challenge sold a combined total of roughly 850,000 kilograms of “fish-free” oil during the contest period, equivalent to saving over 2 billion forage fish from use in aquaculture feed—the largest amount of fish ever conserved through a contest.
In February 2019, the second F3 Meeting brought together feed companies and contestants of the F3 Fish Oil Challenge. Check out highlights from the 2019 F3 Meeting here.
TOTAL FORAGE FISH SAVINGS FROM THE F3 FISH OIL CHALLENGE: 2 BILLION.
Our assumptions for this estimate are here, with a breakdown of the calculations here.
We were told that carnivorous fish could not be grown without marine ingredients such as fishmeal and fish oil, so we launched the third F3 Challenge—the F3 Challenge – Carnivore Edition—focused on advancing substitute feeds for the largest consumers of these ingredients. Winners included Star Milling (US) for salmonids, Empagran (Ecuador) for shrimp, and Jiangsu Fuhai Biotech (China) for other carnivorous species.
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This contest awarded $100,000 USD prizes awarded in each of three categories—salmonid, shrimp, and other carnivorous species—to the contestants that produced and sold the most feed made without using wild-caught fish or any marine-animal ingredient. In total, six global competitors entered the race.
In October 2022, the category winners and one honorable mention were acknowledged during a special award ceremony at the Global Seafood Alliance’s GOAL Conference in Seattle, Washington.
- U.S.-based Star Milling Co. won for its non-GMO plant-based feed that contains omega-3 DHA-rich algae and heart-healthy flax oil for rainbow trout.
- The Ecuadorian company Empagran won for its vegetarian recipe using Veramaris’ algal oil rich in EPA & DHA omegas for Pacific white shrimp.
- China-based Jiangsu Fuhai Biotech uses its unique Fatide® product with dehulled full fat soybean fermented by microbes and enzymes for its largemouth bass feed.
- Japan-based Dainichi Corporation received an Honorable Mention Award, a US$25,000 prize for their breakthrough feed for red sea bream.
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, we hosted online webinars in lieu of the in-person F3 Meeting. Our Challenge participants had the opportunity to showcase their companies and products to an audience of over 11,000 people.
TOTAL FORAGE FISH SAVINGS FROM THE F3 CHALLENGE – CARNIVORE EDITION: 95 MILLION.
Our calculations with assumptions are here.
F3 Krill Replacement Challenge
We were told that feeds with alternative proteins and oils could not succeed without krill as a palatant or attractant, so we launched—the F3 Krill Replacement Challenge—for ingredient companies to develop krill substitutes. Initial testing showed these alternatives had the potential to outperform krill, and the winners were BRF (Brazil) and Symrise (Germany).
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Two companies shared the $100,000 USD prize for winning the F3 Krill Replacement Challenge: Brazil-based BRF Ingredients and Germany-based Symrise. Their products performed best in a 12-week Atlantic salmon feeding trial, showing strong results in fish growth, feed consumption, and survival.
The two winners were selected from 10 finalists, which were narrowed down from a pool of 40 global entrants. Honorable mentions were awarded to three other strong performers in the F3 Krill Replacement Challenge: Calysseo, Orffa Additives, and Phileo by Lesaffre.
Learn more about the F3 Krill Replacement Challenge winners and honorable mentions here.
Over time, as the contestants have addressed various technical challenges, the goal of feeds without the use of marine animal ingredients has become technically attainable.
Our belief is that human ingenuity can meet and overcome sustainability challenges. Our problems are global. Correspondingly, the challenges need to be presented world-wide, for solutions to come from around the world – and they have, from Brazil, China, Ecuador, Germany, Japan, Netherlands, and the US.
Because the technical issues related to substitute ingredients have been largely resolved, it is time for farms to take advantage of these solutions: we need farmers to demand and use more responsibly-sourced feeds. It is time for the F3 Fish Farm Challenge!
F3 FEED INNOVATION NETWORK
The Feed Innovation Network, supports the innovation and widespread adoption of substitute fish-free feed ingredients by providing information on experimental protocols, testing facilities, and promising new ingredients.
F3FIN.org hosts resources for ingredient suppliers, aquafeed companies, fish farmers, researchers, investors, and policymakers:
• F3 Suppliers – F3 ingredient and feed company profiles
• Open formulas for F3 feeds
• Evaluation protocols and testing facilities
• Forage Fish Savings Estimator
Supporting Organizations
Thanks to Anonymous Donors as well!
Past Sponsors
F3 Team
Leadership and Judges
| Dr. Kevin Fitzsimmons | University of Arizona | Former President World Aquaculture Society, Aquaculture and Integrated Farming Systems, Aquaculture Extension Specialist, Tilapia Expert, Fullbright Fellow |
| Dr. Ling Cao | College of Ocean and Earth Sciences, Xiamen University | Professor and Deputy Director of the State Key Laboratory of Marine Environmental Science |
| Dr. Michael Tlusty | University of Massachusetts Boston | Seafood Sustainability, Research Faculty in Aquaculture, Sustainable Seafood Policy and Management |
Scientific Advisory Committee
| Dr. Rick Barrows | Aquatic Feed Technologies, USDA/ARS ret. | Nutritionist, Feed and Fish physiology, F3 Chief Scientific Adviser Background, Publications |
| Dr. Delbert M. Gatlin III | Texas A&M University | Regents Professor, Texas A&M AgriLife Research Senior Faculty Fellow |
| Dr. T. Gibson Gaylord | US Fish and Wildlife Service, Bozeman Fish Technology Center | Nutritionist |
| Dr. Ewen McLean | Aqua Cognoscenti | Consultant |
Industry and Technical Advisory Panel
| Dan Chen | Guangdong Evergreen Feed Industry Co., Ltd. | President |
| Yuchi Chen | Guangdong Evergreen Feed Industry Co., Ltd. | Vice President |
| Dr. Hillary Egna | Oregon State University | Aquaculture and International Development |
| Dr. Roz Naylor | Stanford University | Food Security and the Environment, Economist |
| Chris Oakes | Reefgen | CEO |
| Dr. Wendy Sealey | U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service | Research Physiologist |
| Dr. Loc Tran | Nong Lam University, Shrimp Vet Laboratory | Disease Expert, Vietnam |
Coordination & Administration
| Dr. Barbara Page | Anthropocene Institute | |
| Ford Brodeur | Anthropocene Institute | |
| Alex Driedger | Anthropocene Institute | |
| Annie Reisewitz | Mar Communications | F3 Media Liaison |