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Rainbouw Trout

Achieve the Perfect Fillet Colour with Alltech Coppens

Enhance your production planning with the Alltech Coppens Fillet Colour Predictor for salmon trout

Achieving the perfect shade of pink in fillets from pigmented rainbow trout can be a challenge. To help optimize this aspect of aqua production, Alltech Coppens developed its Fillet Colour Predictor, a tool designed to streamline the production process and help reduce uncertainty at harvest.

Salmon trout is known as a premium product with a strong marketing position due to the rich pink colour of its fillets. This colour is acquired by adding astaxanthin to the diet, which accumulates in the fillet and subsequently creates the desired colour. Although the process of colouration is well-understood, various dietary and environmental factors influence the final fillet colour — leading to uncertainty about whether the fillets will be adequately coloured at the time of harvesting.

Salmofan

Research on fillet colouring

To gain a better understanding of the nutritional factors that affect fillet colouration, Alltech Coppens constructed a model that helps farmers predict the trajectory of fillet colouration when feeding Alltech Coppens feeds. In advance of creating the model, feeding trials were conducted at the Alltech Coppens Aqua Centre (ACAC) in the Netherlands. This was done over the course of several years by feeding trials with fish feed containing various ingredient compositions and astaxanthin levels. Different growth and body composition metrics were assessed, and the fillet colour was monitored via SalmoFan™, a tool from DSM-Firmenich, that is recognized as the global industry standard for measuring colour in fillets.

Field trial

Model development

Using the data obtained through the research trials, Alltech Coppens constructed a model that can predict fillet colouration based on several nutritional factors and farming conditions that are known to impact fillet coloration. The factors considered in the model include:

  • Water temperature
  • Feeding level
  • Feed type
  • Feed conversion ratio
  • Days of feeding

These various factors can be incorporated into a model farming situation to better predict fillet colouration over a certain time.

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We worked intensively together throughout the development and testing process to ensure that the model would adequately address on-farm challenges and provide accurate and practical results.

Optimize fillet coloration for higher profits

By using the Fillet Colour Predictor, you can adjust your feeding strategies more precisely to achieve optimal fillet coloration when it matters most. This helps ensure better product quality — which, combined with timely market entry, ultimately leads to stronger pricing, reduced waste and higher profit margins.

Download flyer

Interested in this tool and solution for your farm? Download our flyer for more information, calculations and example scenarios, or contact us via the form below.

End product Salmon

Ready to take the next step?

Let us help you enhance your production planning and achieve the perfect fillet colour every time! Get in touch with your sales representative or fill in the contact form below.