Speaking at the European Maritime Day in Sweden on May 22, Ewos’ CEO Kjell Bjordal argued that farmed seafood supply must reach 120 million metric tons by 2030 if the industry wants to meet the needs of a growing population. The world’s population is set to reach 8.2 people in 2030, up 17 percent from 7 billion today.
Fish is not only the best poised protein to meet this growing demand, the industry is also able to take on this growth by using substitutes for marine feed and by continuing to innovate, Bjordal said.
According to him farmed fish’s efficiency -- its low feed conversion ratio and carbon footprint -- combined with its healthy attributes mean it will be the winner on the global market. “We believe that the market allocates the raw materials to the most efficient production -- and fish, is the winner,” his presentation read. Carnivorous fish are only a drop in the ocean of farmed fish.
Only 3 percent of global farmed fish are carnivorous, and their production is expected to increase at an annual rate of 3.5 percent, reaching 5.2 million metric tons in 2030, up from 2.6 million metric tons in 2010. In contrast non-carnivorous fish production is expected to grow by 4.8 percent to 149 million fish in 2030, up from 57 metric tons in 2010.
“We can expect [the] percentage of non-carnivore fish ‘on feed’ to increase from 50 percent in 2010 to 80 percent in 2030, Bjordal’s presentation says.
Marine proteins are often cited as the main limitation to expanding aquaculture. While marine proteins can “to a large extent be replaced by vegetable proteins, the “only obvious limitation” consists of marine oils, namely the EPA and DHA fatty acids, Bjordal said.
However, here again there is hope. “We now have the technical capability to grow salmon on zero marine raw material,” even though the solution is not commercial viable at this stage, he said.
His comment referred to the industry’s progress in using oil from omega-3 rich algae to replace marine raw material. However, this technique is still relatively expensive compared to using fish oil.
In the future, the industry will look at solutions such as genetically modified vegetable oils, omega-3 producing micro-organisms and “harvesting oceans down the chain” to increase supply of the valuable fatty acids, Bjordal said.
This refers to the possibility of using algae as a potential future substitute for fish oil. Ewos is notably behind a project called CO2Bio which aims to take purified CO2 from the industrial site of Mongstad in Norway to cultivate algae.
(seafood.vasep.com.vn) The year 2025 marked a pivotal milestone for Vietnam’s seafood industry in its restructuring process toward sustainability, transparency, and higher value creation, amid continued uncertainties in the global economic and trade environment. Prolonged inflation in major economies, the rising trend of trade protectionism, and increasingly stringent requirements related to environmental standards, traceability, and social responsibility have posed significant challenges to seafood production and exports. Nevertheless, overcoming these pressures, Vietnam’s seafood sector has gradually demonstrated its adaptability, maintained growth momentum, and laid an important foundation for the next stage of development.
(seafood.vasep.com.vn) Amid the increasingly evident impacts of drought and saltwater intrusion, the shrimp-rice production model in Ca Mau province continues to prove itself as a viable direction, contributing to higher farmer incomes, improved soil conditions and the promotion of ecological and sustainable agricultural development.
(seafood.vasep.com.vn) The management of fishing vessels, monitoring of fishing activities, and handling of violations in the fisheries sector in Lam Dong province have continued to be implemented in a synchronized and stringent manner, contributing to raising awareness of legal compliance among fishermen and aiming to end illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing.
(seafood.vasep.com.vn) Can Tho’s fishery industry sustained steady growth in 2025 with total aquatic and marine output reaching nearly 783,000 tons, fulfilling 100% of the annual target. Aquaculture, capture fisheries and fishing fleet management were further strengthened, aiming for sustainable development in the coming years.
(seafood.vasep.com.vn) In 2025, Vietnam’s pangasius export turnover reached nearly USD 2.2 billion, up 8% year-on-year. This result indicates that pangasius exports maintained their growth momentum despite significant volatility in the global market environment. In December 2025, pangasius export value reached USD 200 million, up 10% compared to December 2024. This solid performance in the final month of the year reflects increased import demand for consumption and inventory replenishment in key markets.
(seafood.vasep.com.vn) In 2025, Vietnam’s tuna exports to Spain experienced significant fluctuations. According to Vietnam Customs, during the first 11 months of 2025, export turnover for the first 11 months of the year edged up by 0.3% year-on-year, reaching nearly $15 million.
(seafood.vasep.com.vn) Deputy Prime Minister Bui Thanh Son has signed Decision No. 16/QD-TTg, dated January 5, 2026, approving the implementation plan for the Vietnam-Israel Free Trade Agreement (VIFTA). Under the plan, in the coming period, ministries, ministerial-level agencies, government-affiliated entities and People’s Committees of provinces and centrally-run cities must institutionalize and execute tasks focused on the dissemination of information regarding VIFTA and the Israeli market; legislative and institutional development, as well as enhancing competitiveness and human resource growth...
(seafood.vasep.com.vn) Beyond achieving double-digit growth, Vietnam’s fish cake and surimi exports are showing a notable year-end "inflection point": the EU his accelerating with nearly twofold growth, China & Hong Kong are rising sharply, while the largest market, South Korea, signaled a slowdown in November. According to Vietnam Customs data, export turnover of fish cake and surimi reached $327 million in the first 11 months of 2025, up 22% year-on-year; November 2025 alone accounted for $35 million, marking a 5% increase. This serves as a critical foundation for exporters to reassess market structures and competitive intensity while finalizing order strategies for 2026.
(seafood.vasep.com.vn) Ca Mau, widely regarded as the nation’s “shrimp capital”, continued its strong performance in 2025 as shrimp output reached nearly 600,000 tons, maintaining its position as Vietnam’s leading shrimp-producing locality.
(seafood.vasep.com.vn) On December 29, 2025, at the 2025 Pangasius Industry Review Conference held in Can Tho City, the Vietnam Pangasius Association announced that fingerling prices have surged to record levels due to acute supply shortages.
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