Fish Farming: Meeting the World´s Demand of Fish Supply

“How to Farm a Better Fish” by Joel K. Bourne, Jr. was published in National Geographic’s June, 2014 edition magazine. This particular article characterizes the differences between the various types of aquaculture, as well as what species to feed and the ingredients that make up the food given. The reporter who composed this editorial informed the reader of the advantages and downfalls of an indoor fish tank vs. an outdoor fish pen. The reporter pointed out the numerous ways an aquacultural company may feed their harvest of fish. He even explained that some fish farms have a whole ecosystem of aquatic animals and plants that they feed instead, to supply the whole food chain with enough nutrients. This is a rather important article because

Overfishing is a global issue that has many negative effects on the environment (Fisheries and Oceans Canada, 2009). Fish are a major resource that many people rely on for not only nutrition, but also for a means of income (Fisheries and Oceans Canada, 2009). As the population of the world increases, so does the demand for fish, which puts oceans under a lot of pressure (Fisheries and Oceans Canada, 2009). Due to advanced fishing technologies and equipment, going out further into the oceans and catching huge amounts of fish is easier than ever (Fisheries and Oceans Canada, 2009). Froese (2004) defines overfishing as capturing the fish before they reach their full growth potential and diminishing their chance of reproduction. In other

Delgado, C. L., Wada, N., Rosegrant, M. W., Meijer, S., & Ahmed, M. (2003). Fish to 2020: supply and demand in changing global markets. Retrieved from http://www.ifpri.org/sites/default/files/pubs/pubs/books/fish2020/oc44.pdf

Salmon has been a highly demanded product by millions of customers as well as the countries who rely on seafood as a primary dish. However, with the influx of people’s wants come the consequences of these species are decreasing in populations around the world due to the causes and practices of human fishing. As stated by the World Wildlife Fund (WWF), there were an estimated 50% decline worldwide of salmon over the last twenty years. Several sources play a factor in the huge amounts of salmon being depleted including overfishing, loss of habitat, and even dams. Since the late 1900s, other ways of reversing what was happening to populations were being proposed and one new technical approach to re-populate the salmon fish exponentially was known as salmon farming, but the process brought more problems to the salmon species then there were good.

According to a study done by Living Planet Report in 2015, 29% of the world’s fishing stocks are considered overfished and an additional 61% is fully exploited with no possibility to produce more fish. Our environment is currently afflicted by a number of different problems, one of which is overfishing. Overfishing is defined by FishOnline as, “Fishing with a sufficiently high intensity to reduce the breeding stock levels to such an extent that they will no longer support a sufficient quantity of fish for sport or commercial harvest.” The overfishing situation is being exacerbated by non-sustainable and destructive fishing practices and unfair fisheries partnership agreements; while there are currently attempts being made at fixing these problems and their effects on overfishing, nothing has been extremely effective.

For human populations, particularly people in the poorest countries across the globe, fish is an important source of nourishment and food. As a result, fisheries catches represent a huge export of energy and mass that can no longer be utilized by trophic levels that are higher than those fished. For a long period of time, several human populations across the globe have continued to depend on fish as a significant source of food and nourishment, which has contributed to widespread overfishing. The widespread overfishing has in turn resulted in the decrease in the global catch of fish. Nonetheless, the links between overfishing and food security have remained largely unclear and uncertain. According to the findings of research, approximately 50 percent of commercial marine species have been overfished in the past five decades (Srinivasan, Cheung, Watson & Sumaila, p.1).

This problem is amplified in the recent overfishing of Bluefin tuna which is bringing the fish to near extinction. The documentary provides us with two alternatives for sustaining the population. The first is to counter demand by educating people on the hazards of over fishing and providing them with other alternatives such as flounder and other less at risk fish. However, time and time again modernity has shown that people are not prone to moderation and while the movement has gained some traction it has unfortunately failed to have to curve demand. The second option is to grow fish in aquacultures or farms which seems like a good idea at the surface. Capturing and growing juvenile Bluefin Tuna creates a controlled environment that does not require fishing and makes it easier to manage the population of fish in captivity and in the wild. However, Tuna ranchers use approximately 15 pounds of raw fish to produce 1 pound of Tuna. That’s a steep price to pay and may actually cause more harm to the environment. Therefore, until another source of protein is developed ranching is also an ineffective method for helping the Bluefin Tuna

In recent years Pacific salmon have felt the true burdens of the aquaculture productions of farmed salmon in the natural rivers that have hosted these salmon for centuries. Salmon farming has been on the rise since the early 1990s and over these twenty-five years, it has put an immense amount of pressure on the wild salmon population and their ability to spawn. These negative impacts can be directly link to numerous problems with farmed salmon, which includes the pollution and contamination they produce to nearby water sources. Next, is the dilemma that farmed Salmon have is the negative affect they have on migrating wild Salmon. Their interaction can causes diseases to spread to wild pacific salmon while they swim close to the farms during their seasonal runs. Another major concern with disturbance is the interbreeding between farmed salmon and wild salmon. The final problem, is the health risks that are associated with consuming higher concentrations of possible toxic and carcinogenic contaminant often found in farmed salmon meat. The act of raising salmon in a aquaculture environment can be detrimental to the ecosystem and humans of BC, because of the pollution, contamination, disturbance farmed salmon have on wild salmon and more importantly, the health risks aquaculture has on humans.

According to the United Nations, 17% of fish stocks worldwide are currently overexploited; 52% are fully exploited; and 7% are depleted. This means that only an estimated 20% of worldwide fish stocks are not already at or above their capacity(Seafarms, 2013). Catches of Pacific herring have decreased by 71% since the 1960s, with Atlantic herring catches falling by 63%. Atlantic Cod catches have fallen by 69% in the same time(Seafarms, 2013). These are just a few of many facts and statistics on the topic of overfishing. The effects of these statistics and facts impact people’s and animal's lives around the

Another global effect of overfishing is fish farming or aquaculture. It was first started to help preserve the ocean and hoped to help people to obtain a reliable fish source. Unfortunately, what many came to realize is the downside of fish farming. One example is water contamination, where consequently waste products such as foods eaten, feces and other dead fish, are all dumped into our main water supply which contributes to water pollution. Moreover, chemicals that are used to treat the fish farms like antibiotics and algaecides are all released into the ocean; which is a real cause for concern for our oceans. Fish that come from the fish farms are pumped full of drugs, to prevent sickness in the fish but this is not healthy for us to eat. There is also a great environmental impact which includes the fact that to sustain fish farms, portions of

Many breeds of fish are being captured at a faster rate than they can reproduce. Some species such as orange roughy fishing became popular in New Zealand in the 1970’s. Over time, it spread to many countries around the world. In the last 20 years, there has been a decline in catch up to 75%. It is no longer common to see in grocery stores as well as restaurants. The amounts of fish that are captured and distributed around the world are alarming opposed to the rate the fish can multiply.

A young couple in Iceland, Johann and Rosa, have taken over Johann's parents' farm. Traditional husbandry of cattle and sheep for production of meat and dairy products has gone through a rough time so they have been looking for new opportunities in their farming. Johann believes that arctic charr might suit them well. Before making up their mind they inspect their water resources, the features of their land and other factors that might support or rule against their hopes. They also study the basics of fish farming, collect information on what facilities are required, prices of material and equipment they would have to buy and, of

In order for there to be plenty of fish in the years ahead, fisheries will have to develop sustainable fisheries and some will have to close. Due to the constant increase in the human population, the oceans have been overfished with a resulting decline of fish crucial to the economy and communities of the world. The control of the world's fisheries is a controversial subject, as they cannot produce enough to satisfy the demand, especially when there aren't enough fish left to breed in healthy ecosystems. Scientists are often in the role of fisheries managers and must regulate the amount of fishing in the oceans, a position not popular with those who have to make a living fishing ever decreasing populations.

In today’s global economy sustainability is very important; from the biological aspect to the industries they all play a role on the marine environment. As world population increases the demand of fish rises causing overfishing. Certain laws have been placed to limit the amount of wild fishing to reduce the risk of endangerment. To meet the demand of the population, fish farms are introduced. Pollution and health related issues are part of the challenges of fish farming. Sustainability also affects social areas such as beaches.

Marine fisheries revenues totaled about $70 billion in the late 1990s and accounted for $13 billion in net exports (Botsford, L.W., et. al., 1997). The total revenues for marine fisheries today is $91.2 billion This huge industry also supplies a large food source to populations around the world and is an important source of jobs for many countries. However, almost half of the world’s fish stocks are fully exploited or overexploited. Fisheries management has failed to reach the one goal of marine fisheries, sustainability.