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Acquaculture, Live Stock, World

China’s slow economic recovery impacting fishmeal and fish oil consumption

Cumulative total fishmeal production during the first ten months of 2023 was down by approximately 22 per cent compared to the cumulative production reported through October 2022, according to the IFFO reports. The predominant factor contributing to this decline must be attributed to the 60 per cent year-on-year decrease in Peru, whose activities were heavily affected by the El Niño phenomenon and the subsequent cancellation of the April-June first fishing season of the year.

As for fish oil, the total cumulative output in the first 10 months of 2023 was 20 per cent down year on year. The supply shortage in Peru (due to both fewer landings and lower oil yields) was here again the main cause for such negative performance. Chile remained the only country that registered a positive change year on year thanks to improved catches and higher-than-average oil yields in the South of the country.

The above figures are based on a list of countries considered in the IFFO reports – Peru, Chile, Denmark, Norway, Iceland, UK, Ireland, Faroe Islands, USA, South Africa, Ivory Coast, Mauritius and Spain

In Peru, around 66 per cent of the second fishing season’s quota had been landed in the north centre of the country. The early start of the second fishing season in the North-Centre of Peru, which took place in October and is usually scheduled in November, explains larger catches of small pelagics than usual when we compare October 2023 with October 2022.

In the USA, the menhaden fishing season officially ended in November. The new fishing season will resume in May 2024.

China’s slow economic recovery impacting fishmeal and fish oil consumption.

China’s domestic production of fishmeal and fish oil in quarter IV 2023 might exceed that reported in quarter IV 2022. Despite this, local fishmeal producers are encountering difficulties in selling their products due to a poorer demand and the abundance of standard quality fishmeal. As a result, the inventory of domestic fishmeal appears higher than it was a year ago. Cumulative imports of fishmeal from January to November have declined by 9.4 per cent year on year, in line with the weaker domestic demand from both aqua- and piglet feed producers and the reduced Peruvian supply.

China’s 2023 fishmeal consumption in aquaculture is not expected to surpass that of 2022, although a rebound in the global supply of marine ingredients might open new scenarios. Similarly, the pig sector is grappling with subdued prices, hovering around a low point. The anticipated higher seasonal demand for the period November-February has yet to materialise. At this point, farmers are banking on improvements in the second half of 2024.

China’s slow economic recovery impacting fishmeal and

Agro Universities, R&D, World

The UK insect farming industry is currently constrained by strict legislation on the use of insect protein in animal feed and a lack of protocols and standards for insect-rearing facilities

University of Leeds and Entocycle unveiled a program dedicated to developing the protocols and codes of practice to unlock the growth of the UK insect farming industry.

The project, named InSAFE, is funded by Innovate UK and BBSRC as part of the Novel Low Emission Food Production Systems competition and will evaluate the use of nonpermissive feedstocks, including pig slurry, chicken manure and sewage sludge, to raise black soldier fly (BSF).

The UK insect farming industry is currently constrained by strict legislation on the use of insect protein in animal feed and a lack of protocols and standards for insect-rearing facilities.

Insects are still an emerging opportunity for farmers, and developing codes of practice and industry standards, in particular those on Food Safety, will help to align insect farming with other farming systems in the UK. The InSAFE project will help us accelerate our efforts to address some of the barriers facing the industry, in particular those related to food safety.

Current UK and EU legislation prohibits the use of livestock manure and slurry as a feedstock for insects, restricting its potential to reduce the growing problem of agricultural waste and the associated environmental pollution.

Currently, feedstocks allowed to breed and feed insects are primarily of vegetal origin. Examples include vegetables not meeting specific supermarket standards, byproducts from vegetable processing such as potato or carrot peelings, or spent grains from beer or spirits production. Animal products are not permitted, except dairy products and eggs.

Protocols, codes of practice and Food Safety and Quality standards will also be developed for a range of production scales, from small lab-scale units to commercial farms.

A new, state-of-the-art insect-rearing demonstrator facility, developed and installed by the UK’s leading insect technology company Entocycle, will house the research and is situated at The National Pig Centre on the University of Leeds’ research farm in Yorkshire.

The 40ft walk-in unit – named ‘Entoexplore’, is the only commercial demonstrator to utilise non-permissive feedstocks in the UK, and it has been specifically designed and built to withstand the industrial requirements of handling these inputs. The unit mirrors commercial rearing environments with an environmental control system and Wi-Fi data monitoring.

Samples will be collected from the unit, in addition to Entocycle’s R&D facility in London for permissive feedstocks, including segregated food waste. The research will analyse the bacterial microbiome, pathogen loads, presence of AMR genes, and heavy metal content of permissive and non-permissive feedstocks before and after insect bioconversion (the natural process of insects eating and upcycling waste matter into higher-value products such as protein and fertiliser), alongside analysis of the BSF larvae and by-products such as frass.

The UK insect farming industry is currently

Agro chems – Fertilizers, Company News, Sustainability, World

The two-year trial is designed to evaluate the fertiliser’s performance on crop production, soil health and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions

As part of Nestlé’s 2050 net zero roadmap and its work to spark regenerative agriculture, the company tests many new, innovative ideas. Those that prove effective and scalable are rolled out more broadly. In the UK, Nestlé is launching a pilot to assess whether cocoa shells from a confectionery site in York can be used to create a low-carbon fertiliser. 

The two-year trial is designed to evaluate the fertiliser’s performance on crop production, soil health and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. If successful, up to 7,000 tonnes of low-carbon fertiliser could be produced and offered to farmers in Nestlé’s UK wheat supply chain. This amount of fertiliser equates to around 25 per cent of Nestlé UK’s total fertiliser use for wheat. 

The production and use of conventional fertiliser accounts for approximately 5 per cent of global GHG emissions,1 and more than half of the carbon footprint of wheat grown in the UK is related to fertiliser use. 

Recycling valuable nutrients from waste streams within the food system provides a promising opportunity to create a lower-emissions supply chain. Scaling up low-carbon fertiliser production can provide farmers with a more sustainable product at a reliable price.

The cocoa shells are supplied by Cargill, which processes the cocoa at the York facility to become key ingredients in iconic products like KitKat and Aero. A trial volume of cocoa shell has been processed and pelletized by Swindon-based CCm Technologies.  

“Farmers often find themselves to be among the first groups exposed to global issues, and these risks are then borne by the food system we all depend upon,” said Matt Ryan, Regeneration Lead at Nestle UK & Ireland. “We have to find ways to build more resilience into the system and optimizing our use of natural resources is a critical part of this.”

“This project is a small, but very meaningful step towards a net zero future, where farmers, local enterprises, and nature all stand to benefit,” added Ryan.

The trials, which were designed and are being overseen by York-based Fera Science Ltd, are currently taking place on arable farms in Suffolk and Northamptonshire.

This project is an example of the innovative solutions that Nestlé is investigating to help achieve net zero emissions by 2050. Nestlé has also committed to sourcing 50 per cent of its key ingredients from regenerative agricultural methods by 2030.

The two-year trial is designed to evaluate

Company News, Europe, Finance, Live Stock, Poultry

The move comes as the industry sees signs of recovery for the first time since the start of the cost-of-living crisis

Tesco has announced it is providing a further £10 million of additional support for the UK egg sector as it continues its commitment to sourcing all of its shell eggs from the UK. £6 million of the support will be provided from August this year until March 2024. The move comes after Tesco’s investment of £27.5m in the sector across 2022/23.

In a further boost to producers and customers, Tesco is lifting its buying restrictions on shell eggs. The restrictions, which mean customers can only buy three packs of eggs at a time, were introduced in November 2022 to ease pressure on a supply chain that was adversely affected by price increases in key inputs such as feed and energy, as well as the avian flu outbreak. 

The support package will be paid to suppliers to cover the cost of handling, processing and egg production, including any increases in feed for farmers. Tesco will continue to work with its suppliers to ensure the additional investment gets passed to farmers as quickly as possible.

Tesco will also continue operating its industry-leading poultry feed model. Poultry feed represents up to 70 per cent of the cost of production on egg and poultry farms. The model adjusts to price changes in the market, providing producers with the cost protection and security they need when buying feed.

The move comes as the industry sees

Agrotech, Biostimulants, Company News, Europe, Inputs

Bionema’s expanded portfolio enhances the company’s offering to the BioAg sector, and complements its ongoing research, training and development of novel biological solutions.

Bionema Group Ltd, a leading biocontrol technology developer and manufacturer, has announced the launch of a new range of biostimulant products in the UK for use in agriculture, horticulture, forestry, and turf and amenities.

Having completed its ten years of R&D research on a range of biostimulants, Bionema Group Ltd is launching seven products, including seaweed extracts, humic and fulvic substances, and other natural nutrients that cover all stages of plant growth, with foliar and root applications in agriculture, horticulture, forestry, and turf and amenities. These products stimulate natural processes in plants and soil, increasing the uptake and assimilation of nutrients, increasing the surface area of roots and the quality of the soil.

Bionema’s expanded portfolio enhances the company’s offering to the BioAg sector, and complements its ongoing research, training and other services in the continuing development of novel biological solutions. It reflects Bionema’s evolution in focus and strategy, announced in 2022 following the company’s deal with Syngenta that secured Bionema’s position as a top 20 world-leading biocontrol company.

Field trials have shown that plants with biostimulants have better resistance against abiotic stress (e.g., heat, drought, salt), while the root reaches more nutrients and can collect more water. In fact, the Bionema team conducted a range of glasshouse and field trials in the UK, EU, India, Canada and LATAM countries, and the findings show that these products may allow farmers to cut their fertiliser use by 50 per cent, while keeping 93 per cent of the yields. In Bionema’s glasshouse trials, root growth was 35% better when using the suggested mix of 50 per cent fertilizer and Bionema’s biostimulants, compared to just using the normal 100 per cent fertilizer mix. The plant biomass (excluding roots) was 93% of that grown with just a common fertilizer mix.

Dr Minshad Ansari, Founder and CEO of Bionema Group Ltd said “There has been growing interest in biostimulants in recent years, as the benefits of these products have become more recognised. Now, as the overall BioAg market is forecast to increase at a CGAR of 13.7 per cent over the next 5 years, the biostimulant section of that market is projected to grow at a rate of 11.8 per cent, reaching $6.2 billion by 2027 (Markets and Markets, 2022). This rapid market growth reflects public concerns about the effects of chemical pesticides on human health, biodiversity and the environment, and associated demands for more natural solutions for enhancing crop yields and plant health”.

Bionema’s expanded portfolio enhances the company’s offering

Acquaculture, AgroPolicy, Europe, India, Sustainability

The agreement includes a study on using cutting-edge UK technology to spot diseases in shrimp aquaculture

The UK and India have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) agreement on science, research and innovation, which will help facilitate a raft of new joint research programs – some of which include aquaculture initiatives.

The collaborative activities carried out under the MoU will be supported by joint funding agreed by both sides, with finances for each program determined between the UK and India on a case-by-case basis.

“The agreement will remove red tape standing in the way of major collaborations while unleashing a raft of new joint research schemes aiming to deliver progress on some of the biggest issues facing the world: from climate change and pandemic preparedness through to AI and machine learning,” according to the UK government press release.

The agreement includes a study on using cutting-edge UK technology to spot diseases in shrimp aquaculture, as well as a partnership using data to detect harmful algal blooms (HABs) affecting the ocean. Moreover, there are plans to fund 10 UK-India fisheries research fellowships.

“The agreement is part of our program of deepening UK collaboration with other global science superpowers on ground-breaking innovation and research, to help tackle shared global challenges,” said George Freeman, Minister of State for the new Department for Science, Innovation and Technology. “This partnership will grow the sectors, companies and jobs of tomorrow for the benefit of both our countries and the globe.”

The agreement includes a study on using