A study from Acharya Nagarjuna University found that dextrose, a simple sugar, outperforms fructose and lactose as an organic carbon source in biofloc shrimp hatcheries. Pacific white shrimp larvae raised in zero-water-exchange tanks with dextrose reached 93 percent survival at postlarval stage 1, versus 79 percent in the control. Ammonia and nitrite levels stayed lower in the biofloc tanks, reducing toxic stress during the most vulnerable larval stages. Biofloc technology uses bacteria to convert nitrogen waste into microbial biomass, so hatcheries do not need continuous water flushing. The researchers tested a 15:1 carbon-to-nitrogen ratio and found dextrose produced the most floc volume and the highest survival through postlarval stage 10. Zero-water-exchange operation cuts pumping, filtration, and disease entry routes, which matters for an industry facing tightening environmental regulations.
