Aquafeed and animal health provider Skretting is preparing to introduce Xpand, its next-generation, high-performance grower diet for shrimp, in Latin America.
The product is the result of five years of R&D at the Skretting Aquaculture Research Centre (ARC) and is based on the digestive physiology of shrimp with a focus on pond support, as well as improving growth and nutrition, the company announced in a release. Xpand was initially launched in 2019 in Vietnam.
According to the company, providing the right nutrition and the right conditions enables improved performance and better control of shrimp production. Using Xpand, shrimp producers can shorten the grow-out phase and harvest earlier, or harvest more at the same time, the company said.
“Whether it’s bigger, more-valuable products, or it’s reducing the grow-out stage to get shrimp to market faster, Xpand is a game-changing solution for many of our customers in Vietnam. Now, farmers in Latin America are in a position to make the decisions that are best suited to their own unique operations,” Skretting Shrimp Marketing Manager Lenaïg Richard Breivik said in a press release.
Skretting’s research found that feeding shrimp with Xpand leads to a shorter feed consumption time, that shrimp achieved faster gut transit and efficient nutrient absorption, and that feed intake is increased while maintaining the feed conversion ratio, resulting in improved shrimp growth. Also, feed loss in the water is reduced, which supports water quality in the pond during the production cycle.
Skretting announced in March that it is building a new, USD 6.1 million (EUR 5.1 million) research and development facility in Ecuador that will be the latest addition to the ARC network.
The facility, dubbed Skretting ARC Guayas Research Station, will complement existing Skretting ARC R&D facilities in Norway, Italy, Japan, Chile, and China, with additional validation facilities throughout the world. The center – to be located next to Skretting Ecuador’s recently-completed feed-manufacturing plant – will have fully equipped laboratories and state-of-the art experimental units and green-water tanks to perform trials under controlled conditions.
The move aims to support the shrimp sector – the fastest-growing aquaculture protein, with world growth expected at 4-5 percent a year over the next few years – with the latest R&D, Skretting said previously.
Stavanger, Norway-based Skretting boasts production facilities in 19 countries on five continents, manufacturing and delivering more than two million metric tons a year of feed from hatching to harvest for more than 60 species. It is the aquaculture division of leading animal nutrition firm Nutreco NV.
It announced on 23 May the purchase of an extrusion facility in Westbury, Tasmania, Australia, owned by Ridley. The Melbourne, Victoria, Australia-based company, which manufactures aquaculture feeds, previously announced a restructuring plan that included job cuts and the closure of several of its feed mills.
The move is a “continuation of Skretting’s long-term commitment to the Australian and New Zealand aquaculture industries,” according to Skretting Australia General Manager Melissa Abbott.
“We have been producing aquafeed from our Cambridge facility in Tasmania since the 1990s, and today proudly employ over 90 staff,” Abbott said. “I am pleased that we are expanding our manufacturing capacity to enable us to continue our long-term commitment to clients and partners across the broader Australian and New Zealand aquaculture industries. I am very proud of what our team has, and continues to achieve, and the role that we play in supporting local communities. It’s an exciting day for the Skretting team.”
Photo courtesy of Skretting
