With almost half of all seafood consumed in the US stemming from aquaculture, but very little farmed domestically, the US Government has proposed its first aquaculture policy.
Citing growing interest in seafood’s health benefits, as well as increasing consumer concern about how fish is produced, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) published guidelines with a strong focus on how domestic aquaculture can be carried out sustainably.
“Growing consumer demand for safe, local, and sustainably produced seafood, increasing energy costs, and the decline of fishing-related industries and working waterfronts are emerging drivers that support sustainable domestic aquaculture production”, the agency said in the document.
The policy document outlines general standards that aquaculture fisheries will have to meet in an effort to ensure minimum impact on wild fish stocks and marine ecosystems. These include recommending more research into alternative feeds for farmed fish so they are not fed smaller wild varieties, which contributes to the decline in wild fish populations, and a proposed ban on stocking fish farms with non-native fish, pending more research into potential outcomes if they should escape.
“Aquaculture production – both small-scale and large-scale – is evolving toward sustainable practices through regulations at the federal and state levels, scientific advancements, consumer demand, technological innovation, industry best management practices, and protocols for responsible stock replenishment and hatchery practices,”the document said.
“Americans love seafood, and we consume approximately 5 billion pounds (2.27 billion kilograms) of it each year—a significant portion of which are imports. In fact, our current trade deficit is approximately $9 billion,” Commerce Secretary Gary Locke said.
“Supporting the U.S. aquaculture industry will encourage economic growth and employment opportunities at home, support exports to global markets, and spur new innovations in technology to support the industry.”
The NOAA proposal was submitted in early February for a 60-day public consultation period.
Globally, the amount of seafood produced through aquaculture surpassed that caught in the wild for the first time in 2009. Eighty-four percent the United States’ seafood is imported and about half of that comes from aquaculture. Only five percent of all seafood consumed in the USA is farmed there.
As for the European Union, the Commission published in the spring of 2009 an Aquaculture Strategy to “give new impetus to the sustainable development of European aquaculture”.