Contact: Kristen Dechert

STARKVILLE, Miss.—The international Feed the Future Innovation Lab for Fish has made the first round of awards for research, granting $100,000 each to five projects in four countries.

Funded by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and led by Mississippi State University, the Fish Innovation Lab supports sustainable and resilient aquaculture and fisheries systems by initiating and supporting research to enhance food safety and nutrition, improve fish production systems, and increase trade and domestic market opportunities to ultimately improve the nutrition and livelihoods of households and small-scale producers in developing countries. The lab will fund approximately $7.5 million in research grants through 2023 to researchers working with small-scale producers in Feed the Future focus countries.

Known as “Quick Starts,” these early projects span one year and will provide valuable information to guide lab efforts over the next five years. Leveraging existing knowledge and expertise at Mississippi State, all Quick Starts include at least one MSU researcher. Additional details about the projects are provided below:

—Bangladesh: Use DNA sequencing to inform broodstock selection programs, thereby improving aquaculture production and livelihoods of farming communities using sustainable approaches. Partners: Bangladesh Agricultural University, Bangladesh Fisheries Research Institute, WorldFish

—Kenya: Inventory and market analysis of coastal marine fish for food that maintain ecosystem functioning and address micronutrient deficiencies in vulnerable groups. Partners: Egerton University, Pwani University, University of Rhode Island, Washington University in St. Louis

—Nigeria: Analyze the aquaculture post-harvest chain to better understand the fate of harvested fish from production to consumption. Partners: Washington University in St. Louis, WorldFish

—Zambia: Investigate the effect of partially or totally replacing fishmeal by single-cell protein ingredients in a tilapia commercial feed. Partners: Aller Aqua Zambia, Meridian Biotech, Natural Resources Development College, Texas A&M University, WorldFish,

—Zambia: Increase quality/quantity of fish benefitting nutrition and food security, especially for women and children in the critical first 1,000 days of life. Partners: University of Rhode Island, University of Zambia, WorldFish

“The Fish Innovation Lab is an integral part of USAID’s goal to advance aquaculture and fisheries in Feed the Future countries, and these Quick Start projects are a key to our success because they will give us early results on which to build our larger research agenda,” said Mark Lawrence, director of the lab and professor at Mississippi State University.

Results of these studies are expected later this year and will be shared at the global platform meeting the lab will host for stakeholders this summer.

For more information about the Feed the Future Innovation Lab for Fish, please visit www.fishinnovationlab.msstate.edu or contact Shauncey Hill, program manager, at Shill@international.msstate.edu.

About USAID
USAID is the lead U.S. Government agency for international development and humanitarian efforts to save lives, reduce poverty, strengthen democratic governance and help people progress beyond assistance.

About Feed the Future
Feed the Future is the U.S. Government’s global hunger and food security initiative. With a focus on smallholder farmers, particularly women, Feed the Future supports partner countries in developing their agriculture sectors to spur economic growth and trade that increase incomes and reduce hunger, poverty and undernutrition. For more information, visit www.feedthefuture.gov.

About the Fish Innovation Lab
Funded by the USAID, the Feed the Future Innovation Lab for Fish at Mississippi State University aims to reduce poverty and improve nutrition, food security, and livelihoods in developing countries by supporting the sustainable development of aquaculture and fisheries. For more information, visit www.fishinnovationlab.msstate.edu.

This post was made possible by the generous support of the American people through the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) under the Feed the Future initiative. The contents are the responsibility of the Feed the Future Innovation Lab for Fish and do not necessarily reflect the views of USAID or the United States Government.