Loos-en-Gohelle, France-based Truite Service has begun selling its farm-raised trout raised on algal oil that imbues the fish with omega-3 fatty acids.
The trout arrived at retail counters in France this week, according to a press release from Skrettging, which created the custom feed used by Truite Service. The feed incorporates an algal oil developed by Veramaris, a company based in Delft, The Netherlands, that has pioneered the development of a unique strain of marine algae containing both EPA and DHA omega-3 fatty acids. The company is now producing commercial amounts of the oil at its new USD 200 million (EUR 177.6 million) production facility in Blair, Nebraska, U.S.A.
“We are very happy to see Truite Service seizing on the opportunity to introduce our first-to-market diet. It’s also extremely pleasing that retailers are on board in this supply chain,” Skretting France Marketing Manager Elodie Petit said. “These new feeds are the result of decades of R&D by Skretting, and to secure such strong market support is a further demonstration that our long-term commitment to innovation is paying dividends for our value chain partners.”
Truite Service “has not only shown a strong dedication to the development of sustainable French aquaculture, but is also benefitting from increased sales,” Petit added.
Evidence of that can be seen by a 12 percent growth in salmon sales at Supermarché Match since the June 2019 introduction of Lingalaks salmon fed with marine algal oil produced by Veramaris, Petit said.
“It can take some time to bring the products to market, but the outcomes are clear for all to see – consumers are willing to pay for seafood that includes those novel alternatives that we are working hard to implement,” Petit said. “Equally, it responds to the crucial requirement from fish farmers to have access to new solutions that are financially feasible and offer true value to their operations.”
Using algae oil is helping to decrease the demand on wild-caught fisheries to supply fishmeal rich in omega-3 fatty acids EPA and DHA, Veramaris Global Business Development Director Gaëlle Husser said.
“With the well-known benefits of eating a diet rich in omega-3s, the alternative source that we provide complements the finite supply of fish oil from wild-caught fish, and trout and salmon consumers have access to sustainable and healthy fish,” Husser said.
The new diet, developed by Skretting with input from Vermaris, is helping fish farmers such as Truite Service and Linglaks to achieve high levels of fish growth and performance, Husser said.
“Aquaculture is ideally placed to provide consumers everywhere with highly nutritious, healthy protein,” Husser said. “This latest initiative also recognizes how important it is that people have access to fish produced with minimal environmental or social impacts.”
Photo courtesy of Skretting
