USSEC recently communicated with target flounder growers, staffs in charge of field extension of local fishery cooperatives and provincial officials responsible for aquaculture in Jeju Island, Korea.  The objective was to follow up on USSEC’s aquaculture programs targeting flounder growers in Jeju who switched their feed to protein meal-based extruded feed from fish-based moist pellet feed.  Through on-site consultations and a roundtable during FY13, USSEC addressed over-feeding as a key factor causing a high fish mortality rate for the target growers and suggested a guideline providing daily feeding rates by fish size to correct improper feeding practices.  The expansion of the Korean government’s program to provide support to flounder growers who switch their feed to extruded feed in the coming year is expected to stimulate more flounder growers to select extruded feed.

The protein meal-based aqua feed market is a sector that USSEC is targeting to promote soybean meal and soy protein concentrate as a protein source to replace fish meal and create / increase opportunities of U.S. soy soybean meal and soy protein concentrate in Korea.