Feedactiv Project

🔬 Knowledge exchange in action!

As part of the FEEDACTIV MSCA Staff Exchanges programme, Giuseppa Scarfì from the University of Messina (UNIME) completed a successful secondment at the National Technical University of Athens (NTUA).

During her stay, she contributed to the development of functional fish feed based on marine and herbal bioactive compounds, while fostering scientific collaboration, knowledge exchange, and innovation in sustainable aquaculture.

Thank you to all partners for making this secondment a success!

Reducing antibiotic use in aquaculture is one of the key challenges for sustainable fish farming — and it starts with what's in the feed.
FEEDACTIV develops functional fish feeds enriched with bioactive compounds drawn from marine organisms and medicinal herbs. The aim is to support fish health and immunity naturally, lowering dependence on antibiotics while keeping aquaculture productive and sustainable.
With 8 partners across Greece, Romania and Italy — and recognition as an official MSCA Success Story — it's a project we're proud to be part of. 🐟
Discover more 👉 feedactiv.eu

🐟 Proud to share a key milestone from the FEEDACTIV project: we've successfully developed and evaluated functional fish feed formulations enriched with natural bioactive compounds of marine and herbal origin.
Through our research, we incorporated phytobiotic ingredients — including olive leaf extract, eucalyptus essential oil, lemon peel extract, and algae — into aquafeeds, assessing their stability, functionality, and sustainability.
A central focus was the comparison between direct addition and encapsulation of the bioactive compounds. Our results showed that encapsulation can notably improve the stability of sensitive ingredients, limiting oxidation and better preserving their antioxidant activity.
In parallel, using Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) and Life Cycle Costing (LCC), we evaluated the environmental and economic footprint of different production scenarios. A key finding: improving the Feed Conversion Ratio (FCR) can lead to lower environmental impacts per kg of fish produced.
A meaningful step toward more sustainable and functional aquaculture. 🌊

What if the future of sustainable seafood started not in the ocean, but in the feed factory?
A new feature on Știință cu sare și piper takes a deep dive into FEEDACTIV — an EU-funded project transforming algae, Mediterranean herbs, and agri-food by-products into next-generation fish feed additives. Researchers from Greece, Italy, and Romania are working together to develop bioactive-enriched feeds that boost fish health and help aquaculture move away from routine antibiotic use.
From green extraction and encapsulation to real-farm trials across Southern Europe, the article walks through the science behind the innovation — and why it matters for the future of food.
🔗 Read the full article: https://stiintacusaresipiper.ro/2026/03/23/feedactiv/

FEEDACTIV | Știință cu sare și piper European Researchers turn algae, herbs and agri-food by-products into Sustainable Fish Feed: Inside FEEDACTIV’s Green Innovation

🗞️ FEEDACTIV in the media spotlight!
A recent feature in the Greek newspaper Politiká Lésvou takes a deep dive into how the FEEDACTIV project is rethinking fish nutrition — from lab bench to commercial fish farm.
The article walks through the project's full research pipeline: green extraction of bioactive compounds from seaweed, Mediterranean herbs, and agri-food by-products; microencapsulation to protect these sensitive compounds during feed processing; pilot-scale feed development with quality and sustainability assessments; and semi-pilot trials at the University of the Aegean in Mytilene, where European sea bass are already showing improved tolerance and growth with select formulations — including those based on olive by-products.
With commercial trials now underway across Southern Europe, FEEDACTIV is demonstrating that sustainability in aquaculture doesn't start at sea — it starts at the feed factory, where science and nature work together.
A great example of how EU-funded research can make a real-world difference 🌊
🔗 Read the full article (in Greek): https://www.politikalesvos.gr/evropaioi-erevnites-metatrepoun-fykia-votana-kai-agrodiatrofika-ypoproionta-se-viosimes-ichthyotrofes-mesa-apo-tin-prasini-kainotomia-tou-feedactiv/

Ευρωπαίοι ερευνητές μετατρέπουν φύκια, βότανα και αγροδιατροφικά υποπροϊόντα σε βιώσιμες ιχθυοτροφές: Μέσα από την Πράσινη Καινοτομία Ανακαλύψτε το FEEDACTIV και τη βιωσιμότητα στην υδατοκαλλιέργεια μέσω καινοτόμων συστατικών ιχθυοτροφών.

📢 Fresh research from the FEEDACTIV project!
Our team just published a comprehensive review in the field of biopolymeric delivery systems, examining how micro and nanoscale colloidal carriers can enable controlled release of active compounds in the pharmaceutical sector.
From natural biopolymers like proteins and polysaccharides to engineered synthetic polymers such as poly(lactic acid), the review maps out how these materials can be tailored to achieve sustained, targeted release — improving drug efficacy while minimising side effects. Key release mechanisms including diffusion, erosion, and swelling are critically compared for applications ranging from cancer therapy to nutraceutical delivery.
While the potential is enormous, the study also highlights the road ahead: scalability and in vivo validation remain crucial steps to move these innovations from the lab to the market.
🔗 Read the full review here: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.biortech.2026.134626

Redirecting

🌿 New FEEDACTIV publication alert!
Our latest study, published in Food Science & Nutrition, explores how plant-derived essential oils — from garlic, thyme, conehead thyme, rosemary, and eucalyptus — can serve as sustainable alternatives to conventional antibiotics in aquaculture.
Antimicrobial resistance is a growing concern in fish farming, and nature may hold the answer. Our team profiled the chemical composition and bioactivity of five essential oils (EOs), revealing strong antimicrobial performance — in some cases matching or even outperforming conventional antibiotics like gentamicin — alongside notable antioxidant and antifungal properties.
But essential oils are volatile and chemically unstable, making them difficult to incorporate into fish feed. To overcome this, we developed spray-dried microcapsules using maltodextrin and starch carriers, achieving encapsulation efficiencies of up to 71% while preserving the oils' bioactivity and improving handling stability.
These findings bring us one step closer to effective, natural feed additives for healthier and more sustainable aquaculture practices.
🔗 Read the full paper here: http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/fsn3.71739

Phytobiotic Essential Oils as Antibiotic Alternatives in Aquaculture: Antimicrobial and Antioxidant Properties of Garlic, Thyme, Thyme Conehead, Rosemary, and Eucalyptus Microencapsulation of garlic, thyme, rosemary, and eucalyptus essential oils using maltodextrin and starch matrices enhances their stability, bioactivity, and controlled release, supporting their use...

🐟 Aquaculture now supplies over half of the world's seafood — but its growth depends on rethinking what goes into the feed.
A recent article by S2G Investments explores how the aquaculture industry is moving beyond conventional fishmeal and fish oil toward next-generation feed solutions. From algae-based proteins to bioactive compounds that strengthen fish immunity, the message is clear: functional feeds are no longer a "nice-to-have" — they're essential for sustainable growth.
This is exactly the challenge that FEEDACTIV is tackling. Our project focuses on developing functional fish feed enriched with bioactive compounds of marine and herbal origins, designed to boost fish health and resilience without relying on antibiotics or synthetic additives.
As the global demand for seafood continues to rise, projects like FEEDACTIV are helping shape the science behind a more sustainable aquaculture future.
🔗 Read the full article here: https://www.s2ginvestments.com/insights/aquaculture-feed-innovation-reimagined-future

Aquaculture Feed Innovation and a Reimagined Future Larsen Mettler explains how aquaculture’s ability to scale largely depends on building a more diverse and resilient feed system.