Development of a product "algae paste" (Nannochloropsis oculata) for feeding and enrichment in larval fish rearing

• Grant number: 15/22618-1
• Support Opportunities: Research Grants - Innovative Research in Small Business - PIPE
• Start date: February 01, 2017
• End date: November 30, 2018
• Field of knowledge: Agronomical Sciences - Fishery Resources and Fishery Engineering - Aquaculture
• Principal Investigator: Jansen de Araujo
• Grantee: Jansen de Araujo
• Company: Cassio Ramos Aquicultura e Comércio - ME
• City: São Paulo
• Associated researchers: Edison Luiz Durigon
• Associated research grant(s): 18/23106-2 - High performance of the microalgae grown Nannochloropsis oculata and bioenergetic research of algae in paste, AP.PIPE
• Associated scholarship(s): 17/04194-5 - Development of a product algae paste (Nannochloropsis oculata) for feeding and enrichment in larval fish rearing, BP.PIPE

Abstract

The development of the Brazilian aquaculture activity is constantly growing. Current data shows that Brazil produces about 2 million tons of fish per year, and only 40% is cultivated (Ministry of Fisheries and Aquaculture, 2014). Brazil major potential, mainly due to its dimensions, that favors the growing of this market and can become one of the world's leading seafood producers. The GNP in fisheries observed in 2013 reached $5 billion a year. However, some details still need adjustments, and research on the feeding optimization are key in fish production systems. Even today, the feed on aquaculture systems is mainly based on manual feeding, and the microalgae (Nannochloropsis oculata) are an important point, because it is the base on feeding of many fish and shellfish. The quality of the offered food is fundamental for the success of the production. The large-scale cultivation of microalgae is already being used in some countries, but not in Brazil. In some aspects, the difficulty is in the cultivation system, combined with the presence of microorganisms, often causing loss of production. Thus, the main objective of this work is enable the development of microalgae production system (Nannochloropsis oculata) on a large scale in a controlled environment without the presence of pathogens, with evaluation by microbiological tests to evaluate the quality will be applied. The second step is to provide the final product to standard fish in different production to assess the quality and the development after the offered feed. Data from the first phase of the research will be used to analyze the feasibility, adjust the quantity and ideal storage for finalizing of the product. Due to this information, development of standards systems to improve the microalgae storage condition will be set in order to provide a final high quality product of easy acquisition, which can serve as a food base for the major kind of fish and other seafood in Brazil. (AU)