According to Innovafeed, the industry is currently facing the most "severe" fishmeal crisis ever recorded.
Innovafeed
Innovafeed has published a white paper analysing the marine ingredients market, in which it argues that the industry's focus should shift from replacing traditional raw materials to prioritising feed functionality and performance.
The proposed solution is not to find a single "miracle" replacement, but to build a hybrid approach combining complementary ingredients such as microalgae oil for long-chain omega-3s, single-cell proteins for highly digestible amino acids, and insect-derived ingredients for bioactive functions.
The French insect ingredient company developed Hilucia™, an ingredient made from black soldier fly larvae. It contains antimicrobial peptides, lauric acid, chitin and nucleotides, supporting gut health, immune response and survival under health challenges.
According to data provided by IFFO, The Marine Ingredients Organisation, global fishmeal production in the first quarter of 2026 declined by 28% year on year.
In addition, RaboResearch, which specialises in economic and sector analysis, has already warned that fishmeal shortages could emerge as early as 2028.
To widespread surprise, Peru, the world's largest source of fishmeal, completely suspended the anchoveta fishery and extended the closure until June due to continued biomass weakness.
Furthermore, Chile reduced its anchoveta quotas by 44%, and several fisheries in Northern Europe lost their sustainability certifications.
Innovafeed highlights that the global supply of marine ingredients has remained largely stagnant at around 5.5–6 million tonnes for years. These combined factors are contributing to what is now considered the most "severe" fishmeal crisis ever recorded.
The international scientific journal Nature Food estimates that maintaining global aquaculture production at 2022 levels would require integrating approximately 1.8 million tonnes of alternative ingredients annually.
Innovafeed believes this challenge must be addressed from the perspective of feed developers and manufacturers. Its approach is to build a diversified portfolio of functional ingredients together with the industry to strengthen the resilience of the aquaculture sector.
