ADM opens 5,000-tonne aquafeed facility in China

CHINA – ADM has opened a new aquafeed facility in Tianjin with an annual design capacity of approximately 5,000 metric tonnes, strengthening its production of specialised feeds for fish and shrimp hatchery and nursery stages in China and across the Asia-Pacific (APAC) region.

The Tianjin Early Nutrition Aqua Feed Facility is ADM’s second production site dedicated to aquaculture hatchery and nursery feeds, following its facility in Belgium. 

The company said the new plant builds on 25 years of international expertise in early-stage aquaculture nutrition while expanding its local manufacturing capabilities in China.

The facility can produce feed particles ranging from 50 microns to 3 millimetres and uses cold micro-extrusion and marumerization technologies to produce water-stable micro-particles. 

These processes are designed to help maintain nutrient integrity in water and support nutrient uptake during the early growth stages of fish and shrimp.

“The Tianjin facility enables us to produce specialized hatchery and nursery feeds closer to customers in China and across APAC, while further improving regional supply efficiency,” said Eric Carfi, general manager, Animal Nutrition, China, at ADM.

He added that hatchery feed requires specialised formulation and production, with R&D, manufacturing and customer application working together to meet the needs of different species and growth stages.

Expanding early-stage aquaculture nutrition

The facility will supply customers in China as well as other APAC markets, supported by Tianjin’s port infrastructure and location. 

ADM said the investment also strengthens coordination between its Chinese production facilities, APAC research resources and global aquaculture applications.

ADM’s APAC Aquaculture R&D Center in Vietnam conducts fish and shrimp nutrition research and application trials, supporting formulation development, product validation and product optimisation.

“With the Tianjin facility now operational, ADM has further strengthened coordination among its APAC R&D resources, local production in China and market applications,” said Marc Campet, technical sales director, Animal Nutrition, APAC, at ADM.

The Tianjin plant will manufacture specialised hatchery feeds including the MeM and MeM Prime ranges. 

The MeM range is primarily used during the late larval and nursery stages and is available in different particle sizes to match feeding characteristics and nutritional requirements at different growth stages.

China’s aquaculture sector produced more than 63 million metric tonnes in 2025, according to data from the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, representing a 4.38% year-on-year increase. 

ADM said continued growth in aquaculture is increasing attention to seedstock quality and nutrition management during early production stages.

The company also supplies specialty feeds, feed ingredients, feed additives, probiotics and premixes for later grow-out stages.

 The Tianjin facility therefore extends ADM’s aquaculture nutrition portfolio further into hatchery and nursery production in China.

In August, ADM also announced a US$55.5 million investment to expand precision fermentation capabilities in Iowa, adding to the company’s recent investments in nutrition and biotechnology production capacity.

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