Research: Turning food waste into fish food

A jade perch fish and aquaponics trial with the CSIRO has validated the effectiveness of Food Recycle’s technologies in turning commercial food waste into animal feed.

Food Recycle, which is currently aiming to commercialise its circular economy technology and scale up in Australia and New Zealand, says the evidence-based research done by the CSIRO has been invaluable.

Food Recycle CEO Norm Boyle said: “Food Recycle’s patented process delivers on sustainability, circular economy, and food security outcomes for the global community, so it’s vital that our processes are scientifically validated to achieve the outcomes they are designed for.”

From left to right, Mauricio Emerenciano – CSIRO Senior Research Scientist and Project Leader, Norm Boyle – Food Recycle CEO, Dr Ha Truong – CSIRO Agriculture and Food Business Researcher, Cathryn O’Sullivan – CSIRO Senior Research Scientist, and Jarvis Aland – CSIRO Aquaculture Research Technician. Image credit: Food Recycle

Aquaponics trial

The jade perch aquaponics trial was conducted at the CSIRO’s research facility at Bribie Island, Queensland, and led by Dr Ha Truong, CSIRO's Agriculture and Food Business Researcher. 

In the trial, jade perch were fed a food waste diet, then fish waste is recycled, and the nutrients are used for growing leafy greens.

Truong said: “We wanted to determine if using more sustainable and local ingredients would be beneficial for the growth of the fish and plants.

“The results of the trial confirmed the technical viability, and showed that upcycling waste produced high-quality foods for the future.”

Potential for a circular solution

For every 100 kg of food the world produced, 30 kg is wasted, according to the Australian Government’s Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water.

“If the 30 kg of wasted food goes through a Food Recycle facility, it can produce 15 kg of aquaculture feed. When given to jade perch, this creates 10 kg of fish and through aquaponics, it also creates 80 kg of leafy greens,” Boyle said.

“This Aussie fish can be farmed around the world. Instead of 30 kg of food waste going to landfill, 10 kg of fish and 80 kg of leafy greens goes back to supermarket shelves — that’s what Food Recycle is all about.” 

 Food Recycle’s patented process turns commercial food waste into animal feed. The technology has been scientifically validated in several trials by the CSIRO, including the latest jade perch and aquaponics trial on Bribie Island in Queensland. Image credit: Food Recycle

The trial follows similarly rigorous trials with layer hens, prawns and barramundi, conducted by CSIRO, Western Sydney University (WSU) and University of New England (UNE), all of which saw favourable results using a food waste diet from Food Recycle’s systems.

Top image caption: CSIRO Agriculture and Food Business Researcher Dr Ha Truong (right) conducted a series of trials with Food Recycle (CEO Norm Boyle, pictured left) to determine the viability of a food waste diet for jade perch, with fish waste nutrients then being recycled for aquaponics to grow leafy greens. Image credit: Food Recycle