What does the future hold for the fish feed and aquaculture markets? Our world's population is growing more rapidly than ever before, causing strain on our ability to produce enough food for everyone, partially because of the increase in the number of people and partially because of the related loss of arable land from the same factor. At the same time, the push for a healthier diet has improved the outlook for aquaculture operations. Here's a quick look at some of the growth predictions from across the industry for the upcoming year.
2020 predictions
A report released last year by Technavio expected the world's aquaculture industry to see robust growth through at least 2022. The numbers in this report were based on several factors that could impact the industry, including end-user data, product type, marine environment, culture type, geography and market data. Though it showed an overall CAGR of 4.46%, it also reflected strong ongoing growth, with anticipated changing CAGRs of 3.72% in 2018, 4.12% in 2019, 4.5% in 2020, 4.83% in 2021 and 5.15% in 2022. It attributed this strong growth to globalization, which makes international marketing and improved logistics easier than in the past. Over the same 5-year timeframe, the aquaculture industry is expected to grow from $180.2 billion USD to $224.2 billion USD, overtaking wild-caught fisheries in that same timeframe, with the greatest limitations on this growth being caused by disease, which can be limited through proper nutrition and medicated feeds, and climate change.
Fish for a healthy diet
This strong growth is reflected in changes in diet. Though there have been many changes to exactly what type of nutrition is ideal for the human body, the range of options provided by aquaculture fisheries meet virtually every option short of most vegetarian or vegan options. Paleo, ketogenic and Mediterranean-based diet options include a wide range of fish, while low-fat diets work well with several species that deal well with aquaculture operations. Scientific evidence points to the many health benefits of fish oil, including reduced inflammation, improved heart health, improvement of many mental health disorders, supporting eye and skin health, reduction of liver fat, improved pregnancy outcomes, improved bone health and reduced symptoms from asthma and allergies.
Growing importance of aquaculture
At the same time, our world's growing population must be fed. Growing population increases the demand for housing, some of which will occupy farmland that is currently in production. That decreased amount of available farmland means that the world must look to other locations to produce enough food to feed the planet, which places aquaculture in a prime location for growth. Instead of competing with cropland that must be used to produce feedstock for animals, aquaculture instead uses our world's waterways to produce food, all without causing loss of production. This means that it's easier to produce more food for our burgeoning population, rather than more difficult. This is especially important because in parts of the world where population is growing the strongest, aquaculture production is anticipated to see the most growth, such as China, India, Indonesia and Chile.
Is your strategy future-proof?
But what do these numbers predicting increased growth mean for aquaculture businesses? For companies that produce their own feed or are producing feed for the industry, it's expected that a shortage may begin to appear. These shortages may have additional impacts on your business, such as higher prices for feedstocks that go into your feed, potential shortages or similar issues. Among the best strategies to deal with these issues is to economize your operation to reduce waste, produce the best feed rations at the minimum costs and make sure that you have a solid strategy in place to weather the storm.
Adifo's solution for aquaculture industry
One of the most overlooked strategies for improving your operational efficiency is by upgrading your feed management software. Whatever your aquaculture company's future expectations, Adifo Software can help you find comprehensive solutions for ensuring high quality, consistent results and unsurpassed operational efficiency. If you're ready to upgrade your feed mill to ensure better results for your business, we can help. Please feel free to contact us today with any questions, to request more information or to get started on a stronger feed strategy for your business.