Skretting inaugurates its first dedicated LifeStart facility in Asia

Skretting China held an inauguration ceremony for its new LifeStart production line, which also marks Skretting’s first facility in Asia dedicated to LifeStart. In addition, five new hatchery feed products for species including salmon, tilapia, and catfish were launched.

Skretting inaugurates its first dedicated LifeStart facility in AsiaSkretting China celebrated the grand opening of its new LifeStart production line in Zhuhai – Skretting’s first dedicated LifeStart facility in Asia, on April 17, 2025. At the same time, they launched five new innovative hatchery feed products, for diverse species including salmon, tilapia, golden pompano, snakehead and catfish.

According to the announcement, the double celebration is significant as it signals Skretting’s confidence in the future of China’s aquaculture industry, and its commitment to supporting its long-term growth. As China is the largest animal protein market in the world, where seafood is second only to pork, Skretting and its parent company Nutreco have chosen to boost production capabilities to serve the LifeStart segment, and become the most value-driven nutrition company in China.

“China is one of the most dynamic and competitive markets globally, not just in scale, but in speed of development, diversity of species, and evolving customer needs. Within the global Nutreco organisation, China plays an increasingly strategic role as a key market,” said Bastiaan van Tilburg, CEO of Skretting. “Our ambition in LifeStart in China is high. We aim to be the undisputed leader in this space by 2030, particularly for salmonids, shrimp and marine fish,” he adds.

Skretting points out LifeStart products as feed products fed to larvae and juveniles in the first few months of their life, in order to influence the quality and success rate of farming through the whole production cycle. The feeds can also be given to the parent animal used for reproduction, so as to influence the quality and yield of egg production. The new range of LifeStart products from Skretting China are aimed at addressing key challenges in China’s aquaculture industry, such as weak fry resilience, susceptibility to disease, and slow growth rates.

“We believe Skretting has strong opportunities in China and across greater Asia because the industry is shifting toward more advanced, sustainable and performance-oriented farming practices,” noted Jason Yang, General Manager of Nutreco China. “Customers are looking for more precise nutrition, better health support, and trusted brands. All of these align with Skretting’s global strengths.”