The future of aquaculture, research or problems in aquaculture

Aquaculture is the fastest growing food-producing sector in the world, contributing one-third of global food fish production. The nutritional benefits of fish consumption have a positive link to increased food security and decreased poverty rates in developing states.

Forecasts indicate the global demand for fish production will continue to increase over the next decade, driven predominately by rising populations and urbanisation in developing states. Considered the fastest developing food-producing sector in the world, aquaculture is recognised as a possible sustainable solution for food security and increased dietary nutrition in developing regions. There are a number of limitations which, if not addressed, could impede the successful expansion of aquaculture and global fisheries at large. These include: environmental degradation and reduced water quality, disease, increased fish feed extraction from the world’s oceans, and a lack of governance and regulation in production. At the same time, if aquaculture does not develop quickly enough global price rises can be expected, reducing access to fish for consumption and leaving less developed countries vulnerable to these changes.

The research areas within aquaculture include recirculation technology, water treatment, water quality and nutrient discharge as well as fish feed, nutrition energetics and welfare. The research aims to improve existing and develop new rearing methods and technologies in order to reduce the environmental impacts of aquaculture and to optimize operations taking due consideration of the needs of the fish.

Problems in aquaculture :

• Pollution

The farming of marine fish, crustaceans and even bivalves produces waste in the form of fecal matter and unused feed. These largely nitrogen-based wastes can cause oxygen depletion in coastal environments and a net loss of marine productivity in certain coastal areas. Additionally, the use of antibiotics, antifoulants, and pesticides are all problems that aquaculture can introduce into the marine environment.

• Habitat destruction

Of all aquaculture practices, the farming of shrimp has probably generated the most criticism. Shrimp are farmed in tropical and subtropical ponds and impoundments that are frequently sited within the confines of coastal mangrove forests. Because pollutants can accumulate in ponds over time, in the early days of shrimp culture ponds were often abandoned, only to be replaced by new ponds.

• Diseases

The farming of species in wild environments can be a vector for disease proliferation in the wild environment. Disease transfer in salmon aquaculture is perhaps the most reported instance of this phenomenon.