The U.S. Grains Council (USGC) and Aydin Adnan Menderes University’s Faculty of Agriculture signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) that will result in a new aquaculture training center opening in Turkey.

“This partnership will be essential to beginning our aquaculture engagement in the Turkish market,” said Reece Cannady, USGC assistant regional director for the Middle East and Europe. “The faculty at Aydin Adnan Menderes is at the forefront of aquaculture research in Turkey, as well as having longstanding experience using distiller’s dried grains with solubles (DDGS) in fish feeds.”

The council, with funds from the North Dakota Corn Utilization Council, will donate equipment to be used in a feeding trial conducted at the center investigating DDGS in rainbow trout rations. In addition to the trial, the council will bring in Turkish industry representatives to provide education on effectively milling DDGS into pelleted fish feeds.

The feeding trial will continue throughout 2022 and will be followed by a presentation of the results to the Turkish industry. The center will remain open for the next five years as the council plans to continue using the equipment to conduct other feeding trials, in addition to providing various training sessions.

“Using new ingredients in fish feeds can be a fairly complex process,” Cannady said. “You have to consider water salinity and floating versus sinking feeds, among many other variables. Bringing in teams to gain hands-on experience will be essential to the widespread adoption of DDGS in aquafeeds.”

The rainbow trout market has seen substantial growth – up 30% annually over the last two years. Rainbow trout is viewed as a less expensive alternative to natural catch salmon, and the use of DDGS in the feed can provide a low-cost, high-quality feed alternative for the growing sector.