Project Description

Alternatives to traditional fish feed ingredients such as fishmeal, corn and soy are urgently needed to improve the sustainability of aquaculture production to ensure that it can continue to provide high quality seafood as an integral part of human diets. At the same time, many nutrients are currently lost from feeds in aquaculture production which could be captured and revalorized. This position is part of an EU-funded project to improve productivity of controlled-environment agriculture (CEA) systems through improved valorization of waste streams. As such, the post-doc will explore economically viable revalorization solutions centred around how waste nutrients or energy from other industries can be incorporated back into feed production, or how wastes from fish farms can repurposed into systems such as aquaponics. For instance, we will look at how to develop aquafeeds and feed supplements using primary producers such as microalgae, bacteria, archaea, yeasts and other single-celled organisms, as well as incorporating other innovative feed sources such as polycheates, mealworms or black soldier fly larvae into fish diets. We will draw heavily on knowledge and technology from other fields such as biofuel production and wastewater management to address challenges of producing better feeds and feed enhancers, as well as reducing waste nutrient and energy outputs for aquaculture within the context of a circular bioeconomy.