Fish Food Fiasco

[AJ Grottke]

Well, I am about 2 weeks away from getting the first fish for my first AP system.  I have done some research on fish feed options, and it seems that the consensus is that there is no organic feed in the US (which completely sucks).  If anyone does know of a OG feed plz speak up! Looking at standard feed, they all have alot of corn and soy in them.  Most likely these are GMO (genetically modified organisms).  If there is GMO in the fish feed, then it is entirely possible that all the organisms grown within the AP system are contaminated :(  We do not know for sure how the GMO's assimilate into the surrounding organisms and what their effects are. I feel that this is a hughe bottleneck in the AP community.  How the hell can the AP produce be "organic" if GMO's were put into the system (which they are in the feed)???  The organic label has turned into a sham for big corporations to make money, which destroys the original vision of the small, local, and earth-friendly farmers who originated the idea of OG certification. Most small farmers cant even afford the certification process (like me and my peers lol).  Sorry, enough rambling...  So does anyone know of a non-GMO feed available? It is really important to mine and the worlds health, to avoid GMO's if at all possible.  We need to put pressure on these companies to make non-GMO or even better organic fish feeds. I have already emailed 3 feed companies stating how important this issue is.  This transition to organic fish feed by the feed companies will have to be powered by the will to make the earth a better place, not by money. Commercial aquaculturists are the main group who supports these feed companies, and large aquaculture facilities may not be able to or want to pay a premium for Organic feed.  This would make  producing organic fish feeds for the feed companies non-profitable. AP growers need to send more emails, and make it better know to these companies that Organic Feed is a MUST HAVE!  We must also let them know that while the number of small scale AP growers is low now, that wont last for long.  The demand for the organic feed will grow larger everyday, in my opinion, and any feed company that does end up creating organic fish feed will be pioneers of the health food movement. This is due to AP's feasibility in producing healthy local food with little H20, space, and other inputs.  Let me here what you guys think about this, or even better if some1 has found non-GMO feed share some info on it.

[TCLynx]

Can you share the contact info in order for more people to send letters or messages to the feed producers and ask for organic feeds?

[AJ Grottke]

Yeah, the best would be to email the company you already buy feed from and state the situation.  If you are a previous customer they should value your opinion more than a random. But i just emailed, Purina Mills, Zeigler feed, R&D aquafarms, aquafarms fish food, helfterfeeds (which i have heard rumors they may have or are working on OG fish feed), and any other fish feed supplier.  The contact us pages on their website will have their email addresses.  Its just like making a good choice in life, most people think that 1 "wont do anything", but in reality these things accumulate and end up being able to have a lot of influence. Some1 has to start questioning things, some1 has to start speaking up, some1 has to make the change; it all starts with 1.

[tilly the tilapia]

what kind of fish are you trying to feed

[AJ Grottke]

Tilly Im mostly looking into tilapia or catfish feed.  But i think non-gmo or organic feed should be provided for all types of fish. Id love it if all feed for all fish was GMO free (but that wont happen until Monsanto dies lol).  I could sit here and write pages about the horrors of GMO's and giant corporate agribusiness' but this is an AP forum and i dont wana get too off subject.  Also i feel most people who have questioned GMO's and Monsanto have done some homework on their own and realize how scary they are without my bantering. 

[tilly the tilapia]

hi

i have been using our organic tilapia food on one section of our tilapia for a while now

this feed has no fish oils ,this is from birth now about 2.5 years

tilapia are one type of fish that do not have to have fish oils

as far as getting feed companys to make a organic feed i think you have a hope in you no where

there is certified organic feed avaiilable if you trust their certification

it is not only monsanto ,it is the salmon industry

[Dan Brown]

The technology exists.

 

http://www.foodnavigator.com/Financial-Industry/Natural-feed-finali...

[tilly the tilapia]

Hi Dan

do not be misled by antitoxidents

This is but one of the many problems with a majority of commercial  fish feed

fish feed has antibiotics built right in as well as anti lice chemicals

these are called feed inputs and are not usually labelled on the bag ,

Dan Brown said:

The technology exists.

 

http://www.foodnavigator.com/Financial-Industry/Natural-feed-finali...

[Dan Brown]

What are you talking about anti-oxidants for? I siad that the technology exist to produce an organic food and was supporting your argument. I don't understand the function of stating that you believe I am being misled. Please explain.



tilly the tilapia said:

Hi Dan

do not be misled by antitoxidents

This is but one of the many problems with a majority of commercial  fish feed

fish feed has antibiotics built right in as well as anti lice chemicals

these are called feed inputs and are not usually labelled on the bag ,

Dan Brown said:

The technology exists.

 

http://www.foodnavigator.com/Financial-Industry/Natural-feed-finali...

[AJ Grottke]

Tilly where are you getting this Organic tilapia feed and what are the growth rates??? In response to the link... that is just an article from Europe with no links to purchase OG feed, also im in the USA. Is there a link to buy the bag of feed that is organic in your link??? Im not talking about the technology existing, i know the technology exists thats why i want to buy it LOL. We humans are only limited by our creativity & imagination, and im sure we humans are creative enough to design non-gmo or OG feed.   Im looking to buy that non-GMO or organic fish feed.  I will get into designing my own feeds l8r on (which is obviously the most sustainable route even if it only accounts for %30 of the diet), but for now i do not have the time/experience with tilapia so i need a packaged fish feed first.  You guys are making it sound like every1 has easy access to OG fish feed.  Most forums ive been on have been rife with posts about the need for OG fish feed in USA.  If there is OG feed we need to tell all the APers about it because i dont think most of them know of any and im sure they have been looking.

 

PS  In response to tilly "these are called feed inputs and are not usually labelled on the bag":
Doesnt anyone think it is messed up that not all of the ingredients or antibiotics are labeled on the bags.  I Want to know what my fish, plants, and family are consuming.  Thats why im on this quest to grow all of my family's food on our property.  Ill know whats in it, and ill know that earth-friendly techniques were used.

[tilly the tilapia]

sorry dan i must have misunderstood

when any statements are made by the farmed salmon industry I would be looking into the statements very carefully as

this industry is noted for there use of the english langauge [word smithing]   and when the word natural is used I have learned that natural can mean many things

the anti -oxidents are used to keep the fish oils from going rancid ,so when you look into this fish organization that is certified organic what where they doing before for the last 20 years

Dan Brown said:

What are you talking about anti-oxidants for? I siad that the technology exist to produce an organic food and was supporting your argument. I don't understand the function of stating that you believe I am being misled. Please explain.



tilly the tilapia said:

Hi Dan

do not be misled by antitoxidents

This is but one of the many problems with a majority of commercial  fish feed

fish feed has antibiotics built right in as well as anti lice chemicals

these are called feed inputs and are not usually labelled on the bag ,

Dan Brown said:

The technology exists.

 

http://www.foodnavigator.com/Financial-Industry/Natural-feed-finali...

[Harold Sukhbir]

Hi Tilly,

Is there any disadvantage with growth rate, eating habits etc. and would you mind sharing how you make your organic tilapia fish feed?
tilly the tilapia said:

hi

i have been using our organic tilapia food on one section of our tilapia for a while now

this feed has no fish oils ,this is from birth now about 2.5 years

tilapia are one type of fish that do not have to have fish oils

as far as getting feed companys to make a organic feed i think you have a hope in you no where

there is certified organic feed avaiilable if you trust their certification

it is not only monsanto ,it is the salmon industry

[tilly the tilapia]

hi

we make it ourselves ,and our growth rates are slower than conventional feeds

but that is okay

when I have more time to work on it ,I am sure that I can speed up the growth a bit

but have already changed the omega content of the fish from o6 to o3

At this time we are trying to get a feed extruder from china

and as far as resale ,the amount of regulations involved are unreal

am in for the long haul

I tracked two companys that sell what they call organic feed and not in north america

AJ Grottke said:

Tilly where are you getting this Organic tilapia feed and what are the growth rates??? In response to the link... that is just an article from Europe with no links to purchase OG feed, also im in the USA. Is there a link to buy the bag of feed that is organic in your link??? Im not talking about the technology existing, i know the technology exists thats why i want to buy it LOL. We humans are only limited by our creativity & imagination, and im sure we humans are creative enough to design non-gmo or OG feed.   Im looking to buy that non-GMO or organic fish feed.  I will get into designing my own feeds l8r on (which is obviously the most sustainable route even if it only accounts for %30 of the diet), but for now i do not have the time/experience with tilapia so i need a packaged fish feed first.  You guys are making it sound like every1 has easy access to OG fish feed.  Most forums ive been on have been rife with posts about the need for OG fish feed in USA.  If there is OG feed we need to tell all the APers about it because i dont think most of them know of any and im sure they have been looking.

 

PS  In response to tilly "these are called feed inputs and are not usually labelled on the bag":
Doesnt anyone think it is messed up that not all of the ingredients or antibiotics are labeled on the bags.  I Want to know what my fish, plants, and family are consuming.  Thats why im on this quest to grow all of my family's food on our property.  Ill know whats in it, and ill know that earth-friendly techniques were used.