An enhanced soybean-based fish feed called EnzoMeal has improved the performance of rainbow trout compared to fish that consumed regular soybean meal (SBM), trials show.
“These findings suggest that EnzoMeal shows promise as an alternative to SBM in rainbow trout diets,” said study team leader Dr Vikas Kumar of the University of Idaho.
“At low fishmeal replacement, the EnzoMeal-fed group showed 51-percent higher growth than the soybean-meal-fed group. At high fishmeal replacement, the EnzoMeal-fed group had 166-percent higher growth than the soybean meal-fed group,” Kumar told Aquaculture North America (ANA).
The EnzoMeal-fed group also showed less inflammation of the intestines, or enteritis, a condition associated with SBM. “In terms of distal intestinal histology of fish, the soybean meal-fed group showed enteritis, whereas the EnzoMeal-fed group showed less enteritis.”
SBM is the most commonly used plant protein in aquafeeds due to its high protein content, availability, and competitive price. Its nutritional value, however, is limited by amino acid deficiencies and anti-nutritional factors.
EnzoMeal’s nutritional qualities were enhanced using a bioprocessing technology developed by the Ohio Soybean Council. The patented technology removes non-digestible carbohydrates and increases crude proteins in the soybean meal. This does not compromise the amino acid composition and makes the soybean meal easier for the fish to digest.
The council has licensed the technology to Matrix Sea Foods India Ltd. The company’s goal is to produce 50,000 tons of EnzoMeal annually by 2020.