expert topic: krill

38 | INTERNATIONAL AQUAFEED | September-October 2015

EXPERT T●PIC

Welcome to Expert Topic. Each issue will take an in-depth look at a particular species and how its feed is managed.

KRILLEXPERT TOPIC

Less than you might think, and certain-ly less than we should, considering its vital importance to many marine ecosystems.

Euphausia superba (probably the most important species commercially) is to be found within a wide but asymmetric band of water completely encircling the continent of Antarctica, narrowest in the area south of the Pacific Ocean.

However, the actual distribution of indi-viduals within this area is often rather hard to determine. Although there is evidence to suggest they are relatively strong swimmers, it appears they are still very much at the mercy of ocean currents, which have been known to sweep them into superswarms as large as 450km2.

Estimates of global krill biomass have varied widely over the years, between about a hundred to around a billion metric tonnes. Hence, the great difficulty in assessing how far stocks have fallen in the past decades. Estimates vary from 38 to 75 percent per decade since 1976.

Even the lower of these two figures is worrying. Why? Because krill are pretty much

the foundation of the Antarctic Ocean's food web. They eat phytoplankton, and are in turn eaten by a vast number of marine mammals, fish, birds and cephalopods. If they go, as far as we can see, a great deal of the ecosystem goes with them.

Krill prefer to eat phytoplankton, but will accept a wide variety of foodstuffs, including their own shed skins and even their own faeces. Cannibalism is also not unheard of: eggs, larvae and adults alike, should the neces-sity arise.

Captured krill should be processed within three hours, otherwise the meat becomes tainted by their own internal organs. The protein content is high - 40 to 80 percent dry weight - yet some studies have shown a lower growth-rate in fish fed protein sourced only from krill, compared to those obtaining it from fishmeal.

Source: FAO

1 What do we know about krill?

by Malachi Stone, International Aquafeed Magazine

September-October 2015 | INTERNATIONAL AQUAFEED | 39

EXPERT T●PIC

Antarctic KrillKrill, Euphausia superba, are shrimp-like crustaceans. Antarctic krill live in the coldest and most pristine waters on Earth, free of contaminants and environmental pollution. Krill has documented properties, is continuously researched and is sustainably fished.

Proven propertiesFisheries harvest Antarctic Krill in the

Southern Ocean where the krill both breed and live. The krill can become six centimeters long and weigh up to two grams. They have large black eyes and translucent pink shells.

Krill are harvested to produce krill meal as an ingredient for aquaculture feeds and pet food. It also has great health benefits for human consumption.

Krill in fish feed has unique properties. Krill meal contains a range of essential nutrients for shrimp and fish, including essential amino acids, feed attractants, and cholesterol. The highly bioavailable phospholipid Omega-3 fatty acids, the powerful antioxidant astax-anthin and high quality proteins speed up growth, improve the fishes’ heart health and the filet yield and quality.

Scientific studies document that fishes with diets that contain krill had increased growth, feed uptake and higher yield. In a major com-mercial-scale project, salmon were fed BioMar feed with krill, called Quick. The fish were compared to those that had not received Quick. The fish that received feed containing Quick offered a higher slaughter yield and a higher fillet yield. The firmness of the fillet was greater and the gaping was lower in fish that was fed Quick. The improvements in the filet quality could be of major importance.

Many animal studies have been performed with krill meal. Krill has health benefits for dogs. Recently, Aker BioMarine launched Qrill Pet in Europe and it will soon also become available in the US and other markets. Just like krill has many health benefits for fish and shrimp, research indicates health benefits for pets.

Krill oil has been available as a dietary supplement for approximately ten years. The majority of the omega-3 fatty acids (EPA and DHA) in krill oil are bound to a particular type of fat called phospholipids. Krill oil significantly improves the omega-3 index (percentage of EPA and DHA in the red blood cell mem-brane). The functions of EPA and DHA in the human body are many. Among other functions, they promote a healthy heart, and help normalise triglyceride and blood pressure levels. DHA in particular also contributes to normal brain function and vision.

Clean product based on ongoing scientific research

Krill is one of the largest biomasses in the world. There are hundreds of million tons of Antarctic krill around Antarctica in the Southern Ocean. The majority of the krill industry operates in Area 48 where krill lives in large schools. This makes them easy to fish and a particularly appealing food source.

Antarctic krill depend on sea ice for their habitat. They start life as microscopic eggs spawned at the ocean surface. They sink to grow, hatch and then swim to the surface where they feed.

A female krill can lay up to 10 000 eggs, several times during the short Antarctic sum-mer. When the newly hatched larvae arrive at the ocean surface in the autumn they must eat fast, so they can survive the long ice-covered winter. Krill larvae eat ice-trapped algae. In spring, the ice melts and the larvae

are released into the open ocean where they begin to form schools like the adults.

Krill mature at two years old and can live up to 11 years. Adult krill can live anywhere between the surface layer and the seafloor, from shallow areas to deep ocean sea. They migrate between the surface at night and the deep waters during the day, remaining in the dark. The currents, tides and storms affect the schools of krill.

The Southern Ocean is home to thou-sands of different marine life species, all dependent on each other in a vulnerable eco-system. Antarctic krill is in the middle of the food chain between the microscopic plants and animals, and the larger animals. Krill are food for humpback whales, fish and penguins.

Despite all of this, there is still a lot that is unknown about krill. The fisheries active in the Antarctic focus their research on gathering scientific data. However, with harsh condi-tions, the scientific vessels are only present in Antarctic for a short period of time every year. The Association of Responsible Krill Fishing Companies (ARK), an organisation developed to promote research for the sus-tainable harvest of Antarctic krill, encourages krill fishing vessels to host scientists and collect scientific data. Aker BioMarine gets monthly and haul-by-haul data from the fishery, and carries scientific international observers. This provides information on krill stocks, and expands the knowledge of stock dynamics. With this knowledge, all parties will have a better understanding of the Antarctic’s ecosystem.

Krill populations vary in size from year to year. And in extreme circumstances, krill shortages have affected the breeding of seals and penguins. In other areas of the Antarctic, it has been difficult to link the krill population fluctuation with the health of the seal and penguin population.

The current assessment process of the krill


EXPERT T●PIC

population does not include seasonal changes in stock size, natural fluctuations in krill abun-dance and the effect of climate change (for example, warmer and more acidic oceans) on krill. The main challenge is to get a synoptic survey of the Antarctic krill. These data points need to be collected to better understand the ecosystem and protect it.

In 2015, scientists, businesses and environ-mental organisations decided to address the lack of information about the Antarctic and its ecosystems, and established the Antarctic Wildlife Research Fund (AWR). AWR is an opportunity to monitor the impacts of krill fishing and conduct further ecological research on krill. The independent scientific experts and their data will fill the critical gap in research and monitoring.

A sustainable industry is a serious industry

Companies that harvest krill are entrusted to care for and handle the krill they fish in a responsible manner. Aker BioMarine’s vessels, Antarctic Sea and Saga Sea, use Pelagic trawls with its proprietary eco-friendly harvesting technology. This is paramount to its activity. The Eco-Harvesting system harvests live krill on demand. The system’s hose, between the trawl and the vessel, allows the fishing net to stay underwater during the entire operation. As the net is not hauled and shot, this mini-

mises interactions between the net and krill surface predators, especially seals and birds.

At the opening of the net, a fine-mesh screen excludes unwanted by-catch (non-krill). The vessel also moves very slowly in the water to allow fish and other species caught in the net to easily swim out. This novel harvesting method, combined with independ-ent observers, catch reports and underwater cameras, and assure that only 0.2 percent of the catch composition are species other than krill. This method, and the fact that the products are swiftly produced, ensure that the products are of the highest quality. Although Aker BioMarine’s technology is recognised as the industry-leading standard, Aker BioMarine is always looking to see how they can improve to work as a sustainably and ecofriendly as possible.

Marine Stewardship Council (MSC), an international non-profit organisation with an independent certifying body and a public assessment process, has developed sustain-able fishing and seafood traceability standards. To be certified, MSC assesses the fishery man-agement, its impact on the stock on species dependent on the krill, while monitoring the wider ecosystem. In 2015, MSC re-certified Aker BioMarine’s krill fishery as sustainable and 100 percent traceable, allowing the fish-ery to carry the distinct blue eco-label on its products.

When exploratory krill fishing began in the 1960s, catch levels were low compared with the 1980s when commercial fisheries caught more than half a million tons of krill. This raised concerns that fisheries would deplete local krill stocks.

To protect the ecosystem, the Convention of Antarctic Marine Living Resources (CCAMLR) was signed. This international

treaty continues to oversee krill fishing with 24 members, including six countries that fish for krill. In advance of each season, CCAMLR requires vessels to annually notify their fishing area and potential catches.

With a shared commitment to protect the Antarctic krill, support scientists in their endeavor to learn more about this bountiful, but not unlimited, resource, the proper-ties of krill meal and oil can continue to be researched and documented.

ALLER AQUA · T. +45 70 22 19 10 · [email protected] · WWW.ALLER-AQUA.COM

- Let’s grow together!

- it helps you achieve healthy fish

- it supports fast growth and low FCR

- Temperature Adapted Feeds are free of charge

- you get continously tested feeds made from raw

materials of the highest quality

ALLER AQUAWhy use fish feed from

"Krill is one of the largest

biomasses in the world.

There are hundreds of

million tons of Antarctic

krill around Antarctica in

the Southern Ocean"


EXPERT T●PIC

Aquaculture feeds frequently have several different ingredients with independent and combined benefits. “Feed for farmed shrimp, salmon and marine fish share one aim – to improve the feeding response,” says Nils Einar Aas, Sales Director, Aker BioMarine Antarctic. “Antarctic krill meal from (Euphausia superba) is a feed ingredient that does exactly this. It accelerates growth.” And accelerating growth at the right time promotes filet quality and in addition quantity in terms of fat content, pH, colour, firmness and gaping.

by Olivia Holden, International Aquafeed Magazine

What is good for the consumer can be good for the producer. Accelerated growth is profitable

because greater weight leads to higher value. Accelerated growth reduces production time, which reduces working capital in pro-duction and increases profitability.

Feeds are composed differently and each ingredient has attributes that are carefully considered in amounts and quality. Fish feed is often made from a mix of maize, soya and other commodities, various ingredients and micronutrients. Certain ingredients acceler-

ate growth and improve performance; still others replace more costly fishmeal, fish oil, soy lecithin and cholesterol. Many feeds try to speed up growth, increase yield and improve the quality.

Aquaculture feeds’ raw materials and ingredients’ prices vary widely. Prices usually reflect the value given to the feed and the actual supply and demand situation. Raw materials with higher value are often nutrient dense, contain high quality nutrients, have one or more essential nutrients and they can bring additional value to a product like taste or colour.

A powerful and pure ingredient from pristine waters

Generally speaking, krill is a minor per-centage of the feed but it demonstrates major effects: improved health and rapid growth. Harvested from the Antarctic’s pristine waters (around Area 48), krill provides essentials for health: highly bioavailable phospholipid Omega 3 fatty acids, the powerful antioxidant Astaxanthin, and high quality proteins. “Krill solves an important problem: how to accel-erate growth,” says Aas.

Studies document performanceStudies and controlled trials for a range of

species confirm that shrimp, salmonids and marine fish fed with krill grow faster than the control groups that are fed with feed exclud-ing krill.

Increased growth during the smolt phase has implications for entire growth until har-vest. From May to August 2007, a smolt experiment with QrillTM was conducted at Norway’s Averøy research station. Nofima Marine’s research centre conducted the study on juvenile salmon following their transfer out to sea pens. Salmon were fed feed containing 15 percent and seven percent QrillTM Aqua against a control group. Qrill contain a range of functional and essential marine nutrients for aquaculture species, including 40 percent of

Figure 2: Influence of Qrill as a finisher diet on salmon thermal growth

3Antarctic Krill

and accelerated growth rates


EXPERT T●PIC

the lipid content in the form of phospholipids. It contains a balance of essential amino acids, fatty acids, feed attractants, Astaxanthin and healthy cholesterol. And the effects upon growth are immediate.

During the smolt phase, feed intake, salmon weight and faecal samples (indicating digestibility) were monitored daily. The find-ings show significant increased feed intake in groups with Qrill diets. The control salmon grew 163g/fish, whereas salmon fed feed with 7.5 percent Qrill grew 211g/fish; and salmon fed 15 percent grew 226 g/fish. In relation to the control group, 7.5 percent Qrill increased growth 30 percent; 15 percent Qrill increased salmon growth 39 percent.

Three months after the study’s start-up, the average weight of the control salmon was 267 grams, but the average Qrill fed salmon was 326 grams. This translates to impressive accelerated growth: 18 percent for 7.5 per-cent Qrill feed and 23 percent for 15 percent Qrill feed.

Study results show significant increased feed intake in groups fed diets with Qrill.

The research reinforces documentation that Qrill enhances nutrition and growth. Larger and more robust fish in the critical phase where salmon are placed in the sea lowers mortality and morbidity.

Another commercial scale project took

place between May 2013 and January, 2014. Here 14 groups at five sites in Norway, totalling 260-farmed salmon, were tested. Some were fed BioMar QuickTM another feed with krill, and others not. Nofirma, one of Europe’s largest institutes for applied research within the field of fisheries, aquaculture and food, analysed the results. Salmon fed Quick weighed significantly more than the control group (4.6kg and 4.3 kg respectively). In addition to the weight, the feed with krill stimu-lated the development of more and firmer muscle. Independent studies at Norway’s Aquaculture Protein Centre showed that dietary krill meal stimulated feed intake and growth in salmon.

Krill as a finisher dietKrill has promising properties as a fin-

isher diet in medium size Atlantic salmon. It increases the filet quality and the slaughter weight, which increases the income. In short, it leads to a short turn around time from the investment to the return on investment. A study conducted by Aker BioMarine had two diets: one with 30 percent fishmeal and one where 10 per-cent Qrill replaced the fishmeal. After 40

days, the salmon fed with 10 percent Qrill had Thermal Growth rate of 4.41 and the controlled 3.95.

Krill’s unique attributesThere are several attributes that make

krill accelerate growth. Its biological features help accelerate the shrimp or fishes’ growth. The krill’s protein for example is known to boost growth. In addition, krill acts as a feed attractant and stimulant. It also increases feed uptake. This unique combination of attributes is what solves more than one problem - it accelerates healthy growth.

© 2015 REED MARICULTURE, INC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. INSTANT ALGAE, ENSURING HATCHERY SUCCESS AND SHELLFISH DIET ARE TRADEMARKS OR REGISTERED TRADEMARKS OF REED MARICULTURE INC.

“Shell�sh Diet has allowed us to remotely set our mussel larvae and feed them a healthy and consistent diet. With the hatchery space and diet in demand for oysters, we have been able to continue our mussel sets remotely by using the Shell�sh Diet.”

— Ian Jefferds, Owner & General Manager, Penn Cove Shell�sh, LLC, Puget Sound, Washington, USA

INSTANT ALGAE ® — ALGAE WHEN YOU NEED IT ™

TOLL- FREE: 1-877-732-3276VOICE: +1-408-377-1065FAX: +1-408-884-2322

Reed MaricultureE N S U R I N G H A T C H E R Y S U C C E S S™

C A L I F O R N I A , U S A

www.ReedMariculture.com

Reed Mariculture | 2015 Hatchery Ad Campaign | Theme: Ad-2 Ian Jefferds | Design: A | Version: 1 D A N I E L C O O K D E S I G N

Placement: International Aquafeed | Size: Half Page | Dimensions: 190mm X 132mm

Concentrated, liquid feed • Blend of 6 algae • Same nutritional value as live algae

www.ReedMariculture.comShellf ish Diet®

Order Shell�sh Diet to ensure repeatable production results.


EXPERT T●PIC

expert topic: krill

Documents