Today@Dal

Project Title: Investigating sustainably-sourced microalgae as a nutrient source for farmed Atlantic salmon

Location: Dalhousie Agricultural Campus, Truro, Nova Scotia

Project: Aquaculture will be instrumental in maintaining global food security in the future: up to 40 million metric tonnes of seafood will be required by 2030 per year to feed the growing human population. A major challenge in aquaculture is reducing the amount of fish meal and fish oil used in the feed, which is harvested from wild fisheries. As this practice is environmentally and economically unsustainable, the industry must use alternative sources of nutrients in the feed to achieve optimal health and growth of farmed fish. New, innovative, environmentally sustainable and nutritious ingredients are needed for the future of the industry. Using our resources efficiently can help produce new ingredients in aquaculture. In this project, we are working with the largest producer of sheet paper in North America. Their goal is reduce landfill waste and emissions. One of the byproducts is sugar, which can be converted to useful products. Sugar can be used as a feedstock for marine microalgae, which can be an excellent source of essential amino acids, fatty acids and pigmentation for fish. This is a creative potential solution to efficient resource use and food security.

The microalgae will to be evaluated as a nutrient source for farmed Atlantic salmon. The studies will include lab-based experiments with salmon to investigate digestibility and growth performance of salmon fed diets containing the sustainably-source microalgae. Experiments will include biochemical analysis of muscle tissues, for nutrient composition and carotenoid content.
 
Qualifications: Applicants must have a B.Sc. degree in the biological sciences and meet the entrance requirements of the M.Sc. program. Experience in finfish aquaculture an advantage.

Stipend: $21,500 per year for two years

Start Date: September 2018

Contact: Dr. Stefanie Colombo, Dept. Animal Science & Aquaculture (SColombo@Dal.ca)

For Graduate Program Information:
For further information about the M.Sc. Program at the Faculty of Agriculture, contact Pamela Sutherland (Pamela.Sutherland@Dal.ca) or visit the Faculty of Agriculture web site at http://www.dal.ca/faculty/agriculture/programs/graduate-studies.html.​

Project Title: Effect of seaweed as feed additive in growth performance and gut health of salmonids and marine shrimp

Location: Dalhousie Agricultural Campus, Truro, Nova Scotia

Project: Aquaculture will be instrumental in maintaining global food security in the future: up to 40 million metric tonnes of seafood will be required by 2030 per year to feed the growing human population. A major challenge in aquaculture is reducing the amount of fish meal and fish oil used in the feed, which is harvested from wild fisheries. As this practice is environmentally and economically unsustainable, the industry must use alternative sources of nutrients in the feed to achieve optimal health and growth of farmed aquatic animals. Algae (e.g., seaweed) are considered highly attractive sources of essential dietary amino acids, fatty acids, vitamins, minerals, carrageenan, carotenoids, phytosterols, digestible energy and other health-promoting compounds well suited as a nutritional source for aquatic animals. Seaweeds may offer a source of bioactive compounds in fish diets. Therefore the use of seaweed in salmon and shrimp diets may satisfy the demand for natural, health-promoting products and merits investigation.
 
The aim of this project is to evaluate the effect of a red seaweed as feed additive in growth performance and gut health of Atlantic salmon and rainbow trout (in Canada), and marine shrimp (in Brazil). The Ph.D. student will work with the Brazil team on the marine shrimp experiment, and will be located in Brazil for 6 months at The Federal University of Santa Catarina (Florianópolis, Santa Catarina, Brazil). Growth performance, gut histology, gene expression, and flesh pigmentation (for salmonids) will be evaluated.
 
Qualifications: Applicants must have a M.Sc. degree in the biological sciences and meet the entrance requirements of the Ph.D. program. Experience in finfish aquaculture an advantage.

Stipend: $21,500 per year for three years

Start Date: September 2018

Contact: Dr. Stefanie Colombo, Dept. Animal Science & Aquaculture (SColombo@Dal.ca)

For Graduate Program Information:
For further information about the Ph.D. Program at the Faculty of Agriculture, contact Pamela Sutherland (Pamela.Sutherland@Dal.ca) or visit the Faculty of Agriculture web site at http://www.dal.ca/faculty/agriculture/programs/graduate-studies.ht​ml