Vegetable-Fed Salmon Still Rich in Fatty Acids

New research from the Research Council of Norway found 70 percent of fish oil and 80 percent of marine proteins in conventional feed can be replaced with vegetable ingredients without any adverse effect on farmed salmon and salmon trout health.

The AquaMax project, a collaboration between 33 partners from 14 countries, examined whether production salmon can still be considered healthful food when raised on roughly 50 percent vegetable feed. The findings suggest even with such a radically altered diet, salmon appear to retain their value as a good source of fatty acids that are healthy for humans.

“The risk of ingesting contaminants must be weighed against the health benefits of eating seafood rich in the marine omega-3 fatty acids EPA and DHA," the researchers said. “This is a dilemma for pregnant women in particular. Pregnant women and the children they are carrying are most vulnerable to pollutants such as dioxins, yet they also have the greatest requirement for the nutrients in fish. Marine omega-3 fatty acids are especially important for both mother and baby."

The researchers raised salmon on a customized feed in which large proportions of marine ingredients were replaced with vegetable meal. The salmon feed still contained some marine ingredients. The fish fillets were consumed by 62 pregnant women twice a week, from week 21 of their pregnancy until giving birth. The babies were also followed up for their first six months. The control group of 62 pregnant women ate the same amount of fish as they normally would have.

“The results were very encouraging. In the group that ate the test salmon fillets, omega-3 levels were elevated in both the mothers and their babies. Even though these test salmon had received less omega-3 through a feed based mainly on vegetable ingredients, the salmon meat still provided an excellent source of the healthful fatty acids," the said.

Sources:

* The Research Council of Norway: Vegetable-fed salmon still yield healthful fat