Inclusion of oil from transgenic Camelina sativa in feed effectively supplies EPA and DHA to Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar) grown to market size in seawater pens

Abstract

Atlantic salmon were fed either a diet reflecting current commercial feeds with added oil supplied by a blend of fish oil and rapeseed oil (COM), or a diet formulated with oil from transgenic Camelina sativa containing 20% EPA+DHA (TCO). Salmon were grown from smolt to market size (>3kg) in sea pens under semi-commercial conditions. There were no differences in growth, feed efficiency or survival between fish fed the TCO or COM diets at the end of the trial. Levels of EPA+DHA in flesh of salmon fed TCO were significantly higher than in fish fed COM. A 140g fillet from TCO-fed salmon delivered 2.3g of EPA+DHA, 67% of the weekly requirement level recommended by many health agencies, and 1.5-fold more than the 1.5g of EPA+DHA for COM-fed fish. Oil from transgenic Camelina supported growth and improved the nutritional quality of farmed salmon in terms of increased “omega-3” supply for human consumers.