DAST — Department of Agriculture SBIR Phase II: Aquaculture is the fastest growing segment in U.S. food production, and in 2011 NOAA estim

Description

Aquaculture is the fastest growing segment in U.S. food production, and in 2011 NOAA estimated that the U.S. aquaculture industry was worth $1.2 billion. The FAO estimates that aquaculture will soon overtake captured fisheries as a source of food fish. The rapid global expansion of aquaculture has led to a corresponding increase in demand for fish meal protein, the primary ingredient in aquaculture feeds. Meanwhile, the harvest of species used to produce fish meal has been on a steady decline over the last decade due to the same over-exploitation that has impacted fish/shellfish production. These trends are unsustainable, as aquaculture will soon consume the entire fish meal resource. This is reflected in the rapid escalation of fish meal prices (exceeding $2,000/MT in some cases) which are already affecting the profitability of aquaculture operations. Adding to this problem are competing uses for fish meal in other livestock and companion animal feeds. Consequently, there is a significant market opportunity for a high quality, economical plant protein concentrate to replace fish meal in aquaculture and other feed markets.Distillers & #39; dried grains with solubles (DDGS) has been tested as a partial replacement for fish meal, however the relatively low protein content and less than desirable amino acid profile have limited inclusion rates to low levels. In our Phase I study, Prairie AquaTech showed that our High Protein DDGS (HP-DDGS) performed substantially better in relative growth performance compared to unconverted DDG. Recent modifications to our microbial conversion process resulted in enhanced HP-DDGS protein levels that we expect will result in growth performance metrics more comparable to fish meal. This Phase II project will further develop and commercialize this innovative process through the following objectives: & bull; Optimize the HP-DDGS production process, and scale-up to the pilot scale level; & bull; Test the resultant HP-DDGS as a replacement for fish meal in grower diets; & bull; Validate process costs and energy requirements for the pilot scale system; and & bull; Complete initial steps for commercial scale-up and deployment.This will involve the coordinated efforts of our experienced team of scientists, engineers, and business development specialists whose comparable work to develop a high protein soybean meal replacement for fish meal (PisciZyme & trade;) has already received national awards and is transitioning through an NSF SBIR Phase II award into commercialization.Commercial deployment of the proposed HP-DDGS product will further increase the availability of plant-based proteins as direct replacements for animal-based proteins, which are costly, over-exploited, and generally unsustainable. This technology will also bring more value to and higher use of the chief by-product of U.S. corn ethanol production, of which one third is currently exported. This innovation will increase U.S. food supply security by providing domestic aquaculture producers with a lower cost and more sustainable replacement for imported fishmeal, while increasing their economic competitiveness. This will encourage industry expansion as supported by current USDA, NOAA, and Department of Commerce initiatives.