Do you know where your fish meal comes from?

[gwand]

Global map of fishmeal and fish oil factories exposes industry's footprint

Around the world, millions of tons of small fish are processed into fishmeal and fish oil (FMFO) each year—key ingredients in aquaculture that help farmed fish, like salmon, grow. A new University of British Columbia (UBC) study has revealed the global distribution of FMFO factories for the...

phys.org

 

[fishorama]

That was interesting & alarming in some ways. I thought "fish meal" was byproducts of industrial fishing; the ground up leftover stuff. My eyes have been opened!

 

[GaryE]

I too always thought of fishmeal as a byproduct. This is a thought provoking post, @gwand .
My eyes were really opened when I was fishing in Central Africa. Our beloved one inch "aquarium fish" are a big part of the local diet, as fish soup was very popular, and small fish were the ingredient. Elephant nose fish were sought after for taste, but tetras, killies, dwarf Cichlids and barbs also went into the pot.

It only makes sense that the machinery of food production would have found a way of exploiting the small stuff.

 

[TwoTankAmin]

Not all fish foods use fish meal. I use Repashy Bottom Scratcher for my plecos among other fish, This is on thh Reapashy site for that food:

Our Meal Replacement Gel for Invertivores of all kinds. All Proteins and Fats come from Invertebrates. Contains No Fish Meal.

https://www.shop.repashy.com/products/repashy-bottom-scratcher

I also use his Spawn & Grow which does list fish meal as the 3rd ingredient. There is also fish meal in the Soilnt green but it is listed as the 8th ingredient:

NGREDIENTS: Spirulina Algae, Algae Meal (Chlorella), Krill Meal, Pea Protein Isolate, Black Soldier Fly Larvae Meal, Rice Protein Concentrate, Fish Meal,

I have no idea what constitutes the fish meal he uses nor from where it originates. I do not know if it means whole fish are used or only the parts that are from larger fish thatare not used for other purposes

The amount of fish food used in aquaculture is a lot more than is used for ornamental fish food for what we keep in our tanks. Here is what the Google AI says about fish meal:

What is fish meal made of?

AI Overview

Fish meal is a solid product made from cooked, pressed, dried, and ground fish or fish by-products. It's primarily used as a feed ingredient for farm animals, including pigs, poultry, and farmed fish.

Here's a more detailed breakdown:

• Raw Materials:
  Fish meal can be made from whole fish, particularly smaller, bony, and oily fish like anchovy, menhaden, herring, and pilchard, as well as from bycatch and fish processing waste.
• Processing:
  The process involves cooking the fish, pressing out excess water and oil, drying the resulting cake, and then grinding it into a meal.
• Uses:
  Fish meal is a valuable source of protein and essential amino acids for animal diets, particularly in aquaculture and livestock production. It's also used in fertilizers and as a supplement in some pet food.
• Sustainability:
  While a portion of the fish used for fish meal could be suitable for human consumption, a significant amount is made from bycatch or fish not commonly eaten by humans, promoting more sustainable fishing practices.

 

[GaryE]

While a portion of the fish used for fish meal could be suitable for human consumption, a significant amount is made from bycatch or fish not commonly eaten by humans, promoting more sustainable fishing practices.
[/LIST]

AI doesn't think critically, and the statement about "promoting more sustainable fishing practices" is a reason why I don't use it as a source. An issue with this product is the disruption of the food chain caused by taking out the smaller species in some regions. There's more to sustainability than what humans eat.

 

[gwand]

Preserving the food chain is essential. Wipe out one tier in the chain and multiple organisms higher up in that chain may perish.

 

[TwoTankAmin]

I have read the ingredient list for number of different fish food products. Many of them contain fish meal in that list somewhere. Not once have ever seen "fish meal from xxxx." I have seen the designation whole fish meal which should mean from the whole fish not just the "waste" parts.

 

[MaloK]

Peoples have lost the connection with nature and lost respect for the 1/3 rule.

1/3 for human
1/3 for nature
1/3 for perpetuity.

Our family had a clearing in our forest that was filled with Ramsons we where taking 1/3 of it every year and the place was growing and every year we had more and more...

One day we arrived on site and someone had find it, and took everything... That was 40 years ago...

Still to this day not a single Ramsons came back, it's lost forever. I'm still mad about it today.