Potential of palm oil utilisation in aquaculture feeds

One key ingredient used in the formulation of aquafeed is fish oil, which is produced from small marine pelagic fish and represents a finite fishery resource. At the present time, global fish oil production has reached a plateau and is not expected to increase beyond current levels. Recent estimates suggest that fish oils may be unable to meet demands from the rapidly growing aquaculture industry by as early as 2005. Therefore, there is currently great interest within the aquafeed industry in evaluating alternatives to fish oils. The ever-expanding oil palm cultivation in Malaysia and other tropical countries offers the possibility of an increased and constant availability of palm oil products for aquafeed formulation. Research into the use of palm oil in aquafeed begun around the mid-1990s and this review examines some of the findings from these studies. The use of palm oil in fish diets has generally shown encouraging results. Improved growth, feed efficiency, protein utilisation, reproductive performance and higher concentrations of alpha-tocopherol in fish fillets have been reported. Recent evidence for the ability of palm oil to substitute for fish oil in catfish diets is reviewed. The potential of palm oil use in aquafeed and future experimental directions are suggested. The aquaculture feed industry offers a great avenue to increase and diversify the use of palm oil-based products.