A pond feeding trial was conducted by the American Soybean Association International Marketing (ASA-IM) program, in cooperation with the China National Fisheries Technology Extension Center (NEC) and the Beijing Municipal Fishery Technology Extension Center (BFTEC), to demonstrate the value of soy protein concentrate (SPC) as a substitute for fishmeal in the growout feed for black carp. Three previous ASA-IM feeding trials conducted in 2006 and 2007 had demonstrated the value of the ASA-IM 36/7 1 soy-based feed for culturing black carp. In two trials in 2006, black carp grew from 250 g to 855 g in 113 days with an FCR of 1.08:1, and from 51 g to 693 g in 131 days with an average FCR of 1.32:1 with the 36/7 feed. In a 2007 trial, black carp grew from 600 g to 2.24 kg in 113 days with an FCR of 1.39:1 with the 36/7 feed. The feed in both the 2006 and 2007 trials contained an average of 43% dehulled soybean meal and 13.25% fish meal.

The 2008 black carp feeding trial compared black carp performance with the standard 36/7 feed containing fishmeal that was used in the 2006 and 2007 black carp feeding trials, and a nutritionally equivalent 36/7 feed in which fishmeal was replaced by SPC. The objective was to demonstrate to fish farmers and feed millers that SPC could be used as a substitute for fishmeal to provide a renewable, all-plant protein feed that would allow for greater feed formulation flexibility and improved industry sustainability.