I N C O R P O R AT I N G

F I S H FA R M I N G T E C H N O L O G Y

November | December 2014

THE POWER OF ALGAE:
The second annual Breizh Algae Tour 2014
commences in Nantes

International Aquafeed is published six times a year by Perendale Publishers Ltd of the United Kingdom.
All data is published in good faith, based on information received, and while every care is taken to prevent inaccuracies,
the publishers accept no liability for any errors or omissions or for the consequences of action taken on the basis of
information published.
Copyright 2014 Perendale Publishers Ltd. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced in any form
or by any means without prior permission of the copyright owner. Printed by Perendale Publishers Ltd. ISSN: 1464-0058

The International magazine for the aquaculture feed industry

FEATURE

THE POWER OF ALGAE:

The second annual Breizh Algae Tour 2014 commences in Nantes
by Olivia Holden, editorial executive, International Aquafeed

he relationship between Brittany

and algae is a historical one
dating back 2,500 years when the
Armorican Celts used seaweed in
food, in fodder for animals, as fertilisers for
the land and to make soap. Drawing upon
this rich Breton association with algae, since
its inception in 1995, a desire to provide
natural alternatives to agricultural additives
has seen the Breton based company Olmix
become one of the major global specialists in
marine biotechnology.
On the 15th of September, over 500
participants from 43 countries gathered to
participate in the second annual Breizh Algae
Tour 2014 in France, held by Olmix. The tour
commenced in Nantes at La Cite Nantes
Events Centre. Nantes, historically known as
the little Venice of Brittany is now one of the
worlds richest bio-diversity zones along the
west coast of France.
The city played host to the forefront of
pioneering algae exploration presented by
Olmix and a number of renowned researchers. The tour demonstrated through a multitude of workshops and talks how algae offers,
as Olmix CEO Herve Balusson confirms,
exceptional untapped potential throughout
plant, animal and human care sectors.

Algae and Nutrition

This year, the focus of the tour was

Algae and Nutrition: a new approach to
health. It has been discovered by Professor
Bernard Kloareg from Station Biologique
de Roscoff that algae offers a new way to
communicate with the gut. Extracts can
have a favourable influence on our digestive
ecosystem, act on the microbiota, stimulates
our enteric nervous system and the myriad
of receptors of the immune system lining
the stomach wall.
This new knowledge opens up a very
encouraging prospects which make algae a
new avenue for approaching health through
nutrition, said Professor Kloareg. Olmix
brought together five renowned researchers including Professor Kloareg in order to
present their latest findings on the gut and its

wide-ranging functions critical to health and

wellbeing of both humans and animals.
Professor Herve Blottiere, director of
research UMR INSERM U19 in Nantes, gave
the first talk of the morning. He addressed
delegates on the importance of the gut as an
ecosystem and that it should be fed properly
as we are what we eat. Secondly, Professor
Neunlist, Director of research UMR INSERM
U913 in Nantes, revealed new research
showing that the gut is a second brain that
contains 200 million independent neurons.
Our small intestine is a concentrate of
intelligence, the equivalent of that of a small
pet. A significant part of our neuronal activity
occurs in the gut.
Nutrition will help to regulate the balance
of the enteric nervous system and even the
central nervous system. Therefore, we can
influence our nervous system by what we eat,
by changing our enteric ecosystem in direct
connection with our brain, he said
Professor John B Furness, Research scientist in digestive physiology at the University of
Melbourne, Australia, then addressed how the
gut is the main organ of immune system that
provides the largest area of contact with the
outside environment.
These areas of contact, which in men or
pigs can be as large as a tennis court, must
ensure the proper supply of nutrients and,
at the same time, manage the reaction to
pathogens, toxins and parasites.
Algae offers further innovative potential
as set out by Mustapha Berri research engineer UMR INRA 1282, Tours. By replacing
additives, pesticides and antibiotics used in
the food processing industry with natural elements extracted from algae along the entire
food chain, it would be beneficial to nutrition
and health considerably.
In all, these talks demonstrated the vast
potential and scope that algae have to offer
with regards to human and animal health. As
well as innovative and pioneering research that
was presented regarding algae and nutrition,
scientists and doctors from research groups in
the Brest and Nantes teaching hospitals were
present at the talks. In Brest, professors Eric
Deslands and Christian Berthou are attempt-

ing to develop a medicine for leukemia using

a molecule from red algae.
In Nantes, Effimune is conducting research
to treat autoimmune diseases with green
algae. As well as being an abundant and
sustainable natural resource (over 700 different types of algae are found on the Atlantic
coast out of the total 10,000 species found
worldwide), It was clear from the talks given
in the morning that scientists and doctors are
turning their attention to algae as a revolutionary resource that could transform modern
medicine.

12 | INTERNATIONAL AQUAFEED | November-December 2014

FEATURE
Mortality Syndrome (EMS) explained different
strategies in fighting against this pathogen and
how algae can be part of the solution.

Algae and the potential to boost

profitability in animal production

Also unveiled by Olmix as part of the

tour was a new product based on seaweed
extracts called MFeed+. With a unique association of clay particles and different seaweed
extracts, the product boosts the use of feed
by animals. It was set out during a workshop
held by Marie Gallissot how the product
MFeed+ acts as a matrix for enzymatic reactions to occur. So, it is the meeting point of
enzymes and feed in the intestine.
MFeed+ also provides many diverse metallic ions, sometimes absent in the feed. These
metallic ions are cofactors required for the
activation of several enzymes.
By optimizing the efficacy of enzymes
in the intestine, MFeed+ increases the use
of the feed, said Marie Gallissot, Technical
Supervisor at Olmix.
Since more nutrients are used for growth,
less undigested feed reaches the large intestine, contributing to the maintenance of the
gut microflora balance and the integrity of the
gut wall, she said.

Green Gold and the

Blue Economy

Algae for Aquaculture

After the mornings talks, delegates then

had the chance to attend a number of workshops that were specific the uses of algae in
plant, animal and human care. Of particular
interest for those attending from the aquaculture industry was the workshop algae for
aquaculture.
Faced with the challenge of feeding 9
billion people sustainably by 2050, as one
of the most important sources of protein
for humans, aquaculture is undergoing considerable growth across the world, notably
in Asia. However, as the fastest growing
sector in agriculture with an annual growth
of 5 per cent during the last decade, this
relatively new industry is not without challenges.
One of the main challenges in aquaculture
will be feed, in particular, the sourcing of raw
materials. This session addressed how algae
can be a solution in substitution of fishmeal
to a more sustainable vegetable meal as a
protein source in aquaculture feed. First to
present their findings were Philippe Serene,
former director of Proconco, a leading feed

manufacturer specialising in aquaculture feed

in Vietnam and Dr Philippe Cacot.
At present, the aquaculture industry produces approximately 1 billion tonnes a year
for the world market. Current predictions
estimate that by 2030, we will require 1.5
billion tonnes. Therefore, the sourcing of raw
materials in order to sustain such demand for
feed is a current and pressing one. Dr Cacots
research focuses upon the use of macro-algae
in fish feed instead of corn or soybean as a
protein source in feed. The solution he affirms
lies in the sea. The use of ulva or algae in this
context has already been trialed in Norway
with positive effect.
One of the other crucial challenges facing aquaculture production is the health and
disease management issue specifically EMS.
The disease, originally occurring in China
spread as far and wide as Vietnam and
Malaysia, with cases first reported in Mexico
in 2013. So devastating was the effect that
people called upon the Vietnamese government when the disease first occurred. Dr
Loc Tran, one of the very first scientists who
discovered the pathogen responsible for Early

In all, the tour demonstrated that Olmix

are at the forefront of cutting edge modern
processes and raw materials. Algae are remarkable ancient plants; furthermore, algae are an
endlessly renewable natural resource covering
70 per cent of the worlds surface. The sea
is now the worlds largest farming area with
the molecules found in algae offering a natural
alternative to classical chemistry. We are now
at the very beginning of a new conquest and
a new phase regarding algae the wealth
of innovation that is offered by this natural
resource also means that understanding and
respecting the ocean is key.
In the final closing address which brought
together Mr Herve Balusson and members
of France Biotec, a poignant and timely reference was made to the French poet Charles
Baudelaire and his poem lhomme et la mer.
The poet declared, homme libre, toujours tu
chriras la mer! (free man, you will always cherish the sea). It was notably evident throughout
the tour that this vision of the sea is enshrined
in Breton culture. As much as man turned to
the sea as a constant and harmonious presence
in 1857 when Baudelaire sought to capture
the very essence of mans fascination with
it - today, in the heart of Brittany, it is clear the
spirit of the sea still resonates throughout, cherished as source of life and sustainability. With
over 2, 700 kilometres of rigid coastline along
with the fourth largest algae field in the world,
Brittany is truly the land of the sea.

November-December 2014 | INTERNATIONAL AQUAFEED | 13

LINKS
This digital re-print is part of the November | December 2014 edition of
International Aquafeed magazine.
Content from the magazine is available to view free-of-charge, both as a full
online magazine on our website, and as an archive of individual features on
the docstoc website.
Please click here to view our other publications on www.docstoc.com.

See the full issue

I N C O R P O R AT I N G
F I S H FA R M I N G T E C H N O L O G Y

Utlisation of Roasted
Guar Korma
as alternative for fishmeal and soybean
meal in shrimp diets

Hydrolyzed yeast
as a source of nucleotides and digestible
nutrients in shrimp nutrition

Biomins World Nutrition Forum

Visit the International Aquafeed website

Contact the International Aquafeed Team

Subscribe to International Aquafeed

"Meeting the needs of the present while improving the

ability for future generations to meet their own needs"

Securing the future

Aquaculture growth and
role in global food production
Fish Farming Technology supplement
- Seal defense, Temperature stress

VOLUME 17 ISSUE 6 2014 - NOVEMBER | DECEMBER

IAF1406.indd 1

12/11/2014 15:19

To purchase a paper copy of the magazine, or to subscribe to the paper

edition please contact our Circulation and Subscriptions Manager on the link
above.

INFORMATION FOR ADVERTISERS - CLICK HERE

www.aquafeed.co.uk