Optimized Diets for Shrimps in Aquaculture

The rapid growth of aquaculture relies heavily on compound aquafeeds, formulated over the last 70 years to provide essential nutrition for fish and crustaceans. These feeds, while significant in cost, are crucial for normal development and can represent 50-60% of overall production expenses. Formulating aquafeeds involves combining various ingredients due to nutrient limitations, aiming to optimize growth while minimizing environmental impacts associated with intensive cultivation techniques.

What are feeds? 

Shrimp, prawns, and land animals share similar nutritional needs, requiring energy, proteins, lipids, vitamins, and minerals for growth and physiological functions. Formulating feeds for these species involves understanding their specific nutrient requirements and providing them in the right proportions to meet their dietary needs and support optimal growth and health.

Know your Feed

When buying feed for shrimps, one should be able to differentiate between good and bad feed.  A feed is characterized as good feed if it has the following characteristics:

  • Good Quality without any mould growth
  • Optimal Nutrition 
  • Digestible protein content
  • Distinctive aroma
  • Uniform shape of the pellets
  • Stable in water for 2-3 hours
  • Strong palatability

Different types of feeds 

Hatchery feeds

These feeds are used for the larval development of shrimps. They are exclusively used in hatchery systems. They are manufactured based on a good maturation process and higher conversions of nauplii into postlarvae.

Natural feeds

Natural feeds are phytoplankton and zooplankton initial stages of larval forms depend on natural feeds in the surrounding environments.

Nursery feeds

These feeds are specifically made for shrimp nursery systems in controlled conditions and these feeds are manufactured for highly intensive farming for better survival they contain immunostimulants, digestible marine proteins and prebiotics that enhance the shrimp's juvenile growth and immune resistance.

Balanced Feeds for specific species 

Balanced feeds promote growth and water quality in the pond environment, and these are generally species-specific and work in a wide variety of farming practice environments generally it contain all nutrients for specific species' needs.

Functional feeds

Functional feeds promote the growth and health of the organisms which improves their immune system and induces physiological benefits beyond traditional feeds functional feeds contain organic acids, yeast cell wall fractions, prebiotics and glucans