The fish population in the Pacific Ocean along the west coast of South America, the North Sea and the Baltic Sea, and the waters around Iceland where fish for the production of fishmeal are caught, is constantly and carefully measured and observed by monitoring programmes under the direction of independent scientists in order to avoid overfishing.

To ensure that the fish population can regenerate after a natural phenomenon such as El Nino off the Pacific coast the catches are limited by controlled fishing bans for all fish species. Along the Peruvian coast, for instance, fish may be caught only for 2-3 months in the year due to the spawning times. Fish used for the production of fishmeal are only caught by licensed vessels whose net sizes are controlled by authorities. The species used for the production of fishmeal and fish oil such as capelin, Norway pout and anchovy, are not considered to be overfished according to FAO regulations and are in any case hardly used for human consumption because of either their taste or their high quantity of bones. With the small fishing quotas for industrial fish and strict controls in the individual producer countries, overfishing is not to be expected even in view of the growing demand in the aquaculture sector.

When aquafarming was still in its infancy, mainly fish cuttings from food stuff production were processed into so-called “wet-pellets” and used to feed the fish. With the rapid growth of this industry, however, it soon became evident that this production method could not meet either demand or the requirement for quality. The environmental impact (water pollution) was also not in keeping with the times.

Protein concentrates were developed very similar to the natural diet of fish – fish oil with up to 40 per cent oil content and a protein content that closely resembled the natural salmon diet.

The question is whether the practice of feeding wild fish in the form of fishmeal and fish oil can continue if the aquaculture continues growing? The entire fishing fleet is controlled via satellite by means of a “tracker” which is able to determine the exact position of all vessels. This form of control seems to be most effective, as up to now the permitted quotas have never been exceeded.

The worldwide production of fishmeal and fish oil has for years remained constant at six to seven million tons, although the production of dry feed for aquaculture has increased drastically. In the course of this development in the aquaindustry, the demand for fishmeal has lessened in other fields , such as pig breeding and poultry farming. In addition the growing demand for fish oil in fish feed was able to be met by reducing the content of fish oil in margarine.