Paper short abstract:

Should Lake Victoria sardine be used as human food or a feed ingredient for industrial tilapia production? Tension exists between its micro-nutritional importance in worse-off diets and opportunities for smallholder income generation by development of fishing and processing for aquafeed mills.

Paper long abstract:

While Lake Victoria is well-known for its ecological collapse, its lakeshore poverty and food insecurity has also been a significant concern. Introduced species (Nile perch and Nile tilapia) plus a range of anthropogenic factors impacted on the lake ecosystem resulting in significant biodiversity loss; however, a vibrant Nile perch fishing-based economy boomed, financed by international export markets and amplifying local economies. Despite the subsequent economic collapse of the Nile perch trade, Kenyan lakeshore residents continue to rely on these fisheries, particularly omena (Rastrineobola argentea, Lake Victoria sardine). Residents’ diets – once rich in diverse small and large fish species – now rely on omena as a cheap and nutritious food. Furthermore, omena has provided some fishers with an alternative fishery to Nile perch and lower-income women with ample smallholder processing jobs. In parallel, demand for omena as an ingredient by livestock feed processors has grown, supporting smallholder livelihoods through a value-chain that encompasses fishing, processing, and trade.

Recently, industrial aquaculture has burgeoned such that >10,000 tonnes of caged tilapia are produced in Homa Bay county alone, offering significant employment opportunities. As aquaculture expands, their need for locally-produced feed augments demand for aquafeed ingredients, potentially undermining its importance in supporting the micronutrient sufficiency of local diets. However, aquaculture is increasingly supporting local livelihoods, which are dependent on cash for food purchasing. Thus, this work situates this small, wild, extensively produced fish within social tension: is omena higher-value as a micronutrient source or income-generating, ‘industrially’ produced farmed fish sold to the better-off?