SPECIAL STORY 58 FEED & ADDITIVE MAGAZINE August 2023 “Profitability is key to commercial fish farms of all sizes. It’s directly related to feed efficiency, including digestibility and feed conversion rates. A precise, well-balanced formulation features raw materials and ingredients tailored to provide the exact nutrients required by tilapia – no more and no less. With an accurate feeding regime and high-quality nutrition, producers could see improved aquaculture earnings and less waste.” PRECISE NUTRITION BUOYS TILAPIA HEALTH & PERFORMANCE Eduardo Urbinati Aquaculture Product Manager ADM Animal Nutrition Latin America is currently the fastest-growing production region for tilapia, largely driven by Brazil with a CAGR of 8.3%. One strategy to support this persistent growth is a precise nutrition approach, in which the nutritional requirements of tilapia are met with feed formulations customized to specific aquaculture conditions. The nursery phase is a critical period to maintain health and welfare, as that will affect overall growth performance and lifelong development. Quality feed and precise formulations are an investment that can greatly contribute to a farm’s economic success, as well as its environmental impact. OPTIMIZE PERFORMANCE OUTCOMES Each life stage in aquaculture has different nutritional requirements. The earliest feed stages are fundamental, providing both an immediate impact and long-term effects as fish advance to maturity. Proper and precise nutrition during the nursery phase is essential for growth, organ development, resistance to pathogens, and ultimately, fillet yield at harvest. Young fish are exposed to a variety of stressors, including handling, vaccination, transferring between culture systems/farms, mixing of populations, density and water quality. Such stress can affect their physiological structures and growth at a time when both the immune and digestive systems are not fully developed. Nutrition plays an important role in supporting fish through these challenges of early life stages. Precise feed formulations are particularly effective, delivering the proteins, amino acids, lipids, vitamins, minerals, digestive enzymes and functional additives necessary for healthy development and growth. For example, ADM’s Aqua Immune One is a functional feed solution that helps minimize the effect of external stressors and potential pathogens while also promoting efficient tilapia growth without the need for antibiotics. Functional diets are a promising strategy to help reduce the risk of antimicrobial resistance, a growing threat worldwide. ENHANCE AQUACULTURE EARNINGS Profitability is key to commercial fish farms of all sizes. It’s directly related to feed efficiency, including digestibility and feed conversion rates. A precise, well-balanced formulation features raw materials and ingredients tailored to provide the exact nutrients required by tilapia – no more and no less.
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