Benchmark boosts breeding business
GM crops in fi sh oils breakthrough
SCIENTISTS at Rothamsted Research have produced the first field crop of oilseed plants genetically engineered to make omega-3 fish oils in their seeds. In a landmark paper published last month in
BENCHMARK Holdings has strengthened its positi on in aquaculture geneti cs and moved into the ti lapia geneti cs and breeding sector in a deal worth £11 million. It announced the
acquisiti on last month of Norwegian aquaculture geneti cs and research business Akvaforsk Geneti cs Center (AFGC) and Spring Geneti cs, a US based ti lapia geneti cs and breeding business. AFGC is a leading
provider of technical geneti c services, with long term customer contracts across many aquaculture species in Norway, Canada, Thai- land, China and the USA. Customers include Ma- rine Harvest (salmon), Nireus (sea bream and sea bass), Hainan Progift Aqua-Tech and Manit Farm (ti lapia), Stolt Sea Farm (turbot) and Sal- moBreed1 (salmon).
DANISH feed producer BioMar has appoint- ed the research and development director for BioMar Norway, Håvard Jørgensen, as new global R&D director, while Patrick Campbell takes over as managing director of BioMar UK, replacing Guy Mace, who has retired. Meanwhile, Roger Hendry will join BioMar as global technical director.
Carlos Diaz, CEO of the BioMar Group, said: ‘I am very pleased that we have been able to fill the important positions both
the journal Metabolic Engineering Communi- cations, the researchers announced the first year results of the field-scale trial of the GM Camelina oilseed plants. Omega-3 fish oils - specifically long-chain
polyunsaturated fatty acids (omega-3 LC-PUFA) eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahex- aenoic acid (DHA) - are acknowledged by the medical community to be beneficial compo- nents of the human diet. The primary dietary sources of EPA and DHA
are marine fish, either wild or farmed. Fish, like humans, accumulate the omega-3
fish oils by feeding on other organisms in the marine food chain or, in the case of farmed fish, through fishmeal and fish oil in feed. As the production of fish through aquaculture increases so does the need to find alternative sources of omega-3 fish oils. Rothamsted’s new data - which demonstrate
that a crop plant can be engineered to synthe- sise these beneficial fatty acids in seeds - pro- vide hope for sustainable land-based sources of omega-3 fish oils. Although previous experiments in glass-
URGENT PRIORITY Our results give hope that
oilseed crops grown on land can
contribute to improving the sustainability of fi sh farming and the marine environment
Above: Healthy oils
houses had given positive indications for the performance of this trait, this trial demon- strated the stability of the trait and the ability of the GM Camelina plants to synthesise useful quantities of fish oils without any negative effects on yield. Dr Olga Sayanova, the senior Rothamsted
researcher who developed the GM Camelina plants, said: ‘Finding a land-based source of feedstocks containing omega-3 fish oils has long been an urgent priority for truly sustaina- ble aquaculture. ‘Our results give hope that oilseed crops
grown on land can contribute to improving the sustainability of the fish farming industry and the marine environment in the future.’
Above: Steve Bracken QUALITY NETS FOR FISH New roles for BioMar bosses
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as head of our activities in the United Kingdom and as head of our glob- al R&D with very strong internal candidates, and at the same time attract a strong experienced
www.fishfarmer-magazine.com
profile for the role as global technical director.
‘It will provide both continuity and a strong focus on further devel- opment.’
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All the latest industry news from the UK Fine half century
Marine Harvest’s busi- ness support manager Steve Bracken receives the special supplement marking the company’s 50th anniversary. With photo galleries, stories from the archives, and interviews with aquaculture pioneers, the 164-page issue cel- ebrates the success of Marine Harvest, and the whole Scottish salmon industry. The glossy tribute, produced by Fish Farmer, will be distrib- uted to Marine Harvest employees and can also be ordered from www.
fishupdate.com
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