Vegetarian Carnivores?
The fish farming industry is increasingly looking for meat substitutes for the diets of farmed carnivorous fish. Recently, the University of New Hampshire’s Open Aquaculture Program hosted representatives of the Illinois Soybean Association and other soybean industry leaders to discuss mutually beneficial arrangements. The soybean industry, as a whole, views the fish farming industry as a promising source for future sales growth. Fish specialists are developing species-specific soy diets and hope to develop soy protein concentrate. Soy happens to be one of the most commonly genetically modified food commodities.
One of the underlying problems with farming carnivorous fish is that, well, they eat other fish. And offshore aquaculture – the form of aquaculture currently promoted by members of Congress and sectors of the federal government – involves predominantly carnivorous fish. On average, producing a pound of farmed carnivorous fish requires over 5 pounds of wild fish, while some species such as tuna can require up to 20 pounds.
Although the fish farming industry has somewhat reduced meat to non-meat consumption ratios by tampering with fish diets, carnivores are still carnivores. Vegetable proteins have an inappropriate amino acid balance and are not as digestible for fish.
Although fish high on the food chain have a high commercial value, their production on an industrial scale is inefficient and bad for wild fish populations.
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