In aquaculture, feed is the engine that drives the entire system. Feed costs can account for up to 70% of total production expenses, making feed efficiency one of the most critical — and often underestimated — drivers of profitability. That’s why the Feed Conversion Ratio (FCR) has become one of the industry's most watched numbers.
Feed Conversion Ratio measures how efficiently a fish converts feed into body mass. It’s calculated by dividing the weight of the feed given by the weight of the animal gained.
For example, if a farmer uses 1.2 kg of feed to produce 1 kg of fish, the FCR is 1.2. The lower the FCR, the better the feed efficiency.
A lower FCR doesn’t just mean a few dollars saved here and there, it ripples across the entire operation. Feed efficiency impacts economics, environmental outcomes, and animal performance. Improving FCR, even by small margins, can result in significant gains across all these areas:
- Lower Production Costs: Even minor improvements in FCR can yield major savings, especially when scaled across large operations.
- Environmental Benefits: Lower FCR means less uneaten feed and less excretion of nitrogen and phosphorus, helping reduce eutrophication and preserve water quality.
- Improved Growth Performance: Feeds that support efficient nutrient absorption help animals reach market size faster and more uniformly.
- Sustainability and Resource Use: Efficient feeds reduce the demand for raw materials and improve the overall sustainability profile of the farming system.
In the early days, aquaculture feed formulation was more art than science. Nutritionists and feed mills worked with scattered data, homegrown spreadsheets, and gut instinct.
“There was no publicly available, commercial-standard aquaculture feed formulation database in existence,” says Lukas Manomaitis, aquaculture expert and the driving force behind the International Aquaculture Feed Formulation Database (IAFFD). “Formulators were often locked into rigid recipes without using the full power of formulation software.”
The IAFFD — a free, comprehensive, aquaculture-specific database — changed everything. Built from scratch with contributions from global experts, it provides digestibility values, nutrient breakdowns, anti-nutritional factors, and even carbon footprint data for over 40 species groups.
With better data, feed mills can now fine-tune diets, optimizing not just for cost, but also for growth performance, sustainability, and health outcomes.
“Feeds are no longer just about delivering nutrients,” Manomaitis emphasizes. “They’re strategic tools for managing profitability and environmental impact.”
One of the biggest leaps forward in feed formulation has been the move toward plant-based proteins — especially premium soy ingredients.
“Soy protein concentrate, for example, can approach the protein density of fishmeal while avoiding many of the anti-nutritional issues,” explains Manomaitis. “And when you use U.S. Soy verified under the SSAP (Sustainable U.S. Soy Assurance Protocol), you also slash the environmental footprint of your feeds.”
High-digestibility soy products offer a winning trifecta:
- Better growth through improved digestibility
- Consistent, reliable nutrient profiles
- Reduced pressure on wild fish stocks
It’s a major sustainability win — and one that’s already being adopted by progressive aquafeed companies worldwide.
As aquaculture continues its rapid expansion — already producing more seafood than wild capture fisheries — the role of high-performance, sustainable feeds will only grow more critical.
“With tools like the IAFFD, formulators can create species-specific, life-stage-specific diets that optimize both profits and environmental outcomes,” says Manomaitis. “And as carbon footprint metrics become more important to consumers and regulators, precision feed formulation will be key to staying competitive.”
But innovation can’t stop here.
“Aquaculture is not a sunset industry,” Manomaitis reminds us. “It’s a growing industry. We’re going to need more and better feeds for a long time to come.”
The bottom line? In the race to build a more sustainable seafood future, better feed isn't just part of the solution. It's the engine driving it.
This article is funded in part by the soy checkoff.
