Tag Archives: fish

How ocean farming can coexist with marine biodiversity

Earlier this month, Mowi Scotland sent me a press release and some underwater photographs taken around its salmon farm at Loch Hourn. The images were taken by a dive team from Tritonia Scientific, an independent marine survey consultancy, after Loch Hourn was the subject of a recent environmental pollution report. They show how a huge range of species is thriving, with the seabed and mooring lines teeming with life from feather stars, kelp and sponges to squirts, jellyfish, wrasse and anemones.

The press release also included some comments from Stephen MacIntyre, Head of Environment at Mowi Scotland.

“Protecting our marine environment is at the heart of everything we do,” he said. “That’s why we commissioned an independent environmental survey of the seabed and waters around our salmon farm at Loch Hourn.”

“There are a lot of misconceptions around the environmental effects of fish farming, with rush to judge and apportion cause and effect,” he continued.” In response, it’s important we acknowledge such concerns but that we also investigate, monitor and transparently present observational field data to inform more reasoned opinions. At Mowi, we are committed to responsible and sustainable operations that ensure we meet our environmental standards and thresholds. We take any concerns that we are not operating to those standards seriously. When claims were made that our farm was harming the loch, we investigated. The results are clear: salmon farming in Loch Hourn is not damaging the marine ecosystem. In fact, it’s coexisting with it.”

“The photos definitely speak for themselves. This is what responsible fish farming looks like in a well-managed environment,” MacIntyre concluded.

Fish farming is a huge food production sector that contributes to the global economy, food safety and more specifically to rural development in coastal areas where employment opportunities are often limited, e.g. islands. However, with the global push towards sustainable development and blue growth, understanding and addressing the environmental impacts of fish farming is crucial. We often hear about its negative impacts, such as water pollution from the release and accumulation of waste, the transmission of disease, escapes and the use of antibiotics and chemicals. However, when done wisely, fish farming can be part of the solution, slowing or stopping the negative impacts and helping to restore ecosystems. As Mowi Scotland’s photos show, Atlantic salmon and the wider ecosystem in Loch Hourn can flourish side by side. This is just one of many examples of how offshore fish farms can co-exist alongside, and significantly benefit, marine life.

In the Mediterranean, finfish, in particular bluefin tuna farming, is one of the most common types of aquaculture. There, one study confirms the benefits of fish farms to the surrounding marine environment. Researchers at the Institute of Oceanography and Fisheries in Split, Croatia, say that wild fish aggregations near caged farms can persist year-round due to abundant food supplies. Fish are also attracted by additional structures that provide protection and numerous favourable habitats for juveniles. According to the researchers, this impact of aquaculture on marine life can be considered positive as it enables adults to be in good condition for future spawning, while artificial nursery grounds can be provided for juveniles that inhabit areas within aquaculture installations. Considering the fact that each fish farm represents additional nutrient/energy input into the surrounding ecosystem, the role of wild marine biota aggregated around farming sites is also important in preventing local degradation of the environment.

The study concludes by saying that well-balanced, properly managed marine aquaculture operations should not significantly alter the surrounding environment. It adds that identifying potentially suitable areas for fish farming should take into account the ecological, technological, economic and socio-cultural impacts of different locations to avoid any environmental pressures.

Researchers at the University of Michigan agree that carefully managed farms make it possible to farm more food from the sea while reducing any negative impacts on biodiversity. In order to predict the impact of increased seafood production, the researchers built a model to determine the effect of offshore farms on over 20,000 species of marine fauna, and how this could change by 2050 depending on what was farmed and where. They found that building farms in the most eco-friendly areas led to promising results for both fish and shellfish. Bivalve production could increase by 2.36-fold and finfish production by 1.82-fold compared to current production, while global farming impacts would decrease by up to 30.5 percent under the best-case scenario. The researchers also point to the importance of strategic planning when installing farms and working with experts from various fields who can assess a wide range of considerations.

Shellfish aquaculture is also deemed as having positive effects on the marine environment. Not only is it able to improve water quality by assimilating nutrients from surrounding waters, but it also provides habitats to juvenile fish in areas where oyster reefs, algae ecosystems or seagrass beds have degraded. Compared to fish, shellfish typically do not require any chemical treatments such as high amounts of antibiotics. One of my favourite examples of shellfish farming improving ocean health and biodiversity is mussels. These can be grown on ropes suspended in the water, resulting in little to no habitat disruption. Because they feed naturally by filtering algae and other plankton, they also play a key role in improving the quality of the surrounding water. In addition, by creating biogenic reefs on the seafloor from clumps and shells, it’s possible to attract a range of species from demersal fish to macroalgae and mobile benthic invertebrates. Studies in New Zealand’s Hauraki Gulf also show that mussel farms not only support marine biodiversity but also increase wild fish populations. Research at the University of Auckland has revealed that marine species near mussel farms display greater diversity and abundance. Fish also appear to consume more nutritious diets near farm sites, suggesting that mussel farms can bolster biodiversity and fisheries productivity when implemented in the right locations.

These examples represent a paradigm shift in farming at sea, transforming it from a potential environmental threat into a tool for increased biodiversity and restoration. As aquaculture expands and we look to the future of sustainable, responsible seafood production, fish and shellfish farming stand out as promising solutions, acting as biodiversity hotspots, nurseries and places of refuge for a variety of species. With continued research and development, they have the potential to make a difference by playing key parts in the production of sustainable protein and contributing to marine conservation objectives. This, in turn, is likely to greatly boost social and economic benefits in certain areas. Hopefully, these efforts will continue and we reach a future where more fish and shellfish farms help restore and protect marine biodiversity while feeding the world.

How aquaculture can restore mangroves

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Mangrove forests are one of the world’s most productive ecosystems. They are huge biodiversity hotspots, providing habitats for various species and supporting coastal communities by protecting them from storm surges, erosion and tropical storms. They are also a vast carbon sink that can store up to five times more carbon per acre compared to rainforests.

However, mangroves have been declining significantly over the years. By the end of the 1990s, global mangrove cover was estimated to have decreased by 35%. This was followed by a further 2.1% (3,363km²) decline between 2000 and 2016. The cause is primarily due to human activity, such as forest clearing and exploitation for timber production and raw materials, rapid coastal population growth, urban expansion and conversion to agriculture and aquaculture. In fact, growing aquaculture development has resulted in swaths of mangroves being converted into shrimp ponds to meet the rising global demand for farmed shrimp.

Shrimp farms have long been accused of widespread mangrove destruction, but is this claim a fair one? This month, I took a deep dive into shrimp farming and mangrove deforestation and discovered some good news — that transformation is possible. Many countries, NGOs and private firms are actively looking for better ways to farm shrimp while safeguarding and replanting mangroves. I discovered a range of initiatives to establish tools and frameworks for environmentally responsible shrimp production and the farming of other species. The aim of these initiatives is to plant and restore mangroves through responsible farming, allowing mangrove ecosystems to flourish and provide a host of benefits.

Ecuador and Indonesia are two countries that have experienced rapid mangrove loss over the years. According to the National Coordinating Corporation for the Defence of the Mangrove Ecosystem of Ecuador, more than 70% of mangroves have been destroyed to make way for shrimp ponds. Meanwhile in Indonesia, 800,000 ha have been converted mainly into shrimp ponds over the past 30 years.

However, shrimp farming in both countries plays a prominent role in global shrimp production and exports. It is also key to supporting small farmers, and this is where Conservation International comes in. This US NPO has developed an approach to farming shrimp that can help boost yields while restoring mangroves. The approach is to take half of a shrimp farm and restore it as a mangrove forest, while helping farmers increase their output on the rest. With pilot programmes in Ecuador and Indonesia, financing and technical expertise are provided to help farmers produce more shrimp, increase profits and restore mangroves. A loan fund is also being set up so that farmers can transition to more efficient production systems, while AI-based tools help to identify optimal sites for mangrove restoration.

Shrimp farming in Indonesia, while economically significant, faces several issues and challenges that have emerged as a result of its rapid development. These include disease outbreaks, massive shrimp mortality and economic losses, and water quality degradation due to the accumulation of organic matter and other pollutants in pond water and surrounding areas. In light of this, researchers are studying a mangrove-friendly shrimp farming model called silvo-fishery, which brings shrimp farming and mangrove restoration together in a low-intensity manner. The idea is to reduce environmental impacts, preserve biodiversity, and enhance carbon sequestration. According to Esti Handayani Hardi, professor at the Faculty of Fisheries and Marine Sciences at Mulawarman University, the practice promotes a more responsible and productive system by enhancing the natural ecosystem and improving livelihoods. She says that it offers a “win-win scenario” for more effective and sustainable mangrove rehabilitation and shrimp farming.

India, too, has been accused of mangrove destruction through its expansion of shrimp farming, especially along the east coast. But the country is dedicating extensive research, money and time into finding better ways to farm shrimp while increasing mangrove replanting efforts. The Swaminathan Foundation is a research institution in Chennai with a focus on sustainable rural development. Since 1993, it’s been working in Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, and Odisha on the east coast, where the majority of India’s shrimp farms are concentrated, and where shrimp farms and mangroves have long competed for scarce land along coastal creeks and riversides. Meanwhile, under a new initiative in the Sundarbans called Sustainable Aquaculture in Mangrove Ecosystem (SAIME), farmers are rearing black tiger shrimp. The aim of the project is to establish a model to demonstrate biodiversity-friendly aquaculture that will build a resilient ecosystem, and identify the extent to which blue carbon emissions associated with brackish water aquaculture could be reduced by integrating mangroves into shrimp farms.

It was also encouraging to hear that other types of aquaculture are doing their part, too. Back in May, I chatted to Megan Sorby, Co-Founder and CEO of Pine Island Redfish, a redfish farm in Florida that’s created a sustainable, circular food system with fish waste. The farm’s recirculating aquaculture system (RAS) produces redfish and repurposes fish waste to cultivate red mangroves and nutrient-rich plants, such as sea purslane and barilla. After discovering that the nutrient profile of the waste from their farm is ideal for growing mangroves, Sorby and her team joined forces with an environmental apparel company to do their part. They collect mangrove seeds, which are nurtured in Pine Island Redfish’s nursery spaces, and transplant them along the west coast of Florida.

“We can monitor and manage the waste nutrients that go into the mangroves very effectively, in other words fine-tune the waste to ensure that the mangroves grow in the most efficient way,” Sorby told me. “It’s very powerful to be able to say that we are using waste from farming redfish to grow plants that act as a nursery for juvenile redfish in the wild.”

These initiatives prove that systemic transformation is possible, and it’s great to see positive trends that could act as examples for other species and regions that are facing similar challenges. Through efforts to protect ecosystems like mangroves, people in coastal regions can safeguard their natural resources and livelihoods, while such efforts also contribute to other areas like emissions reductions and blue carbon. Supporting these types of initiative is imperative for creating long-term, responsible solutions that contribute to even better farming and environmental conservation.

All about krill

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Amidst the feed ingredients that are emerging as viable protein sources in the face of growing global food demands, krill stands out as a particularly promising one for future salmon production. But what makes it so appealing, and how is it being integrated into salmon diets?

At the North Atlantic Seafood Forum in Bergen last month, I listened to a presentation by Sigve Nordrum, CCO of Aker QRILL Company, an Antarctic krill-harvesting company that develops krill-based ingredients. During his talk, Nordrum introduced some of the most important health issues in farmed salmon in Norway, including delousing injuries, gill disease, wounds and vinter ulcers, before highlighting the ability of Antarctic krill (Euphausia superba) to provide salmon with a package of nutrients, attractants and proteins, such as peptides, astaxanthin, choline, phospholipids and omega-3s. He also introduced some studies, conducted by Aker QRILL Company, which show that krill meal can help to reduce sea lice (25% reduction in sea lice compared to a control diet), heal wounds (55% reduced scarring and better gross appearance of wounds compared to a control diet), reduce melanin spots (0% melanin spots in salmon given krill meal compared to 13% in salmon on a control diet), and offer better growth and reduced mortality.

These advantages, the feed attractant properties of krill, which enhance feed intake and growth performance, and the transfer of astaxanthin to salmon fillets, improving pigmentation and overall fillet quality, really stood out to me during the presentation. It was clear why one of the most abundant animal species on the planet is a front-runner as a possible fishmeal and fish oil alternative.

Krill is usually integrated into salmon diets during the final production stage before harvesting. It is integrated primarily through feed that is made from dried and ground krill, and krill oil. It is added as a supplement in small amounts, no more than 10%, in order to provide an array of benefits. Because it cannot be taken as a regular protein source or as a complete fishmeal or fish oil replacement, it is considered a feed additive and must be used strategically, taking all key nutrients into account, in order to make it cost-effective. According to a 2022 research paper, just 8 – 10% of krill meal for 10 to 12 weeks is considered sufficient to achieve growth performance benefits.

Before delving into the potential of krill in salmon farming, I did a bit of reading to find out more about the positive attributes of these small, shrimp-like creatures, and learned about their importance to the health of the ocean and the atmosphere. Interestingly, they can increase the store of carbon in the deep ocean by releasing essential nutrients such as ammonium and iron into the water (these nutrients are excreted as waste products through faeces.) Tiny plants at the base of the marine food web, like phytoplankton, can then use these nutrients to photosynthesise and grow. Krill can increase the store of carbon in the deep ocean because their faeces, in pellet form, sinks quickly and remains on the sea bed for years. One study shows that young krill that live near sea ice may be particularly important in the carbon sink because they live deeper in the water column compared to adult krill. This means that any faecal pellets released by younger krill could escape any currents that may return them to the surface, and instead sink further until they reach the deep.

Meanwhile, aquaculture has long been searching for different protein sources to reduce its dependence on marine resources. It is also becoming clear that aquaculture cannot rely on just a few sources of raw materials, especially scarce and limited marine resources. Aquaculture is now at a point where searching for new ingredients for the formulation of feed has become one of its key focal points. Over the years, krill meal has been vastly studied, and its benefits, such as improved feed intake, growth performance, fillet quality and fish health, have been well documented.

The array of benefits that krill provides has contributed to increased demand for krill fishing from sectors such as pharmaceuticals, as well as aquaculture. These benefits have changed the nature of the krill fishery by showing that it’s possible to obtain more valuable products from krill than was initially thought, according to Dr. George Watters of the Antarctic Ecosystem Research Division at NOAA. In addition, logistical, sustainable and harvesting concerns remain over how much krill is fished and from where. Catching and processing krill can also be expensive, while concerns are high that krill fishing could decrease the species’ carbon sink capacity and create competition for natural predators of krill. The Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources (CCAMLR), which manages the Antarctic krill fishery, has acted by regulating the total krill catch within a 620,000 tonne ‘trigger’ level across four regions in the southwest Atlantic, and establishing an overall catch limit of 5.6 million metric tonnes a year to prevent krill fleets from concentrating their fishing activities in small areas. Hopes are high that this could regulate fishing, ensure that krill’s natural predators have access to food, and protect krill stocks in a fragile ecosystem while making sure that the resource is healthy and sustainable.

Aquaculture has acknowledged the issues that come with harvesting krill. While committing to keeping its krill fishery operations away from penguin colonies in the Antarctic Peninsula during breeding season, Aker QRILL Company has offered support for the Antarctic Wildlife Research Fund (AWRF) to promote Antarctic marine ecosystem research, including projects that focus on fishery management for Antarctic krill. Aker QRILL Company has also received an A rating from the Sustainable Fisheries Partnership for having a krill fishery in very good condition.

With more awareness towards the concerns, and at a time when the ocean is already under pressure from threats like climate change, krill fisheries and the use of krill, not only in aquaculture but also in other sectors, is drawing attention. Because these sectors benefit from krill, hopefully they will make positive contributions in return, for example supporting krill ecosystem-based management systems and working to ensure that fisheries do not have any negative ecological impacts. My hope is that they can work methodically and sustainably to ensure that resources like krill are being used responsibly.

Looking back on Responsible Seafood Summit 2024 in Scotland

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Last month, I went to St Andrews in Scotland, where over 300 people attended the Responsible Seafood Summit, an annual conference hosted by Global Seafood Alliance (GSA) in the US and national industry body Seafood Scotland. Key issues in fisheries and aquaculture were discussed as part of a packed programme that also included time for recreation – namely golf – an evening reception and gala dinner.

I was honoured to host a panel on animal welfare, and had a great time catching up with familiar faces, making new connections and enjoying the presentations. Bringing together professionals from around the world, the summit highlighted the many innovations underway in aquaculture and fisheries to increase sustainability, efficiency, introduce technology and improve human and animal welfare. Among the many topics discussed were the journey to net zero, developing leadership in seafood, and how aquafeed can become more sustainable. It was an ideal opportunity to gain a valuable perspective on the importance of increasing seafood production to address food insecurity, and hear just how aquaculture and fisheries are innovating and looking to the future.

AI and Statistics
The first big topic was artificial intelligence (AI), which is likely to be key to helping aquaculture and fisheries sustainably feed a growing population. That’s according to Chris van der Kuyl of 4J Studios Ltd and Principal at Chroma Ventures, who kicked off the summit by delivering the keynote address, which focused on AI. “The future promises faster innovation – reshaping industries and societies at speed we’ve never before experienced,” he said.

As a sector that has grown dramatically over the years to provide a half of all seafood, aquaculture is worth keeping an eye on, said Van der Kuyl. With a clear need worldwide for efficient, sustainable and scaled food production systems, he continued, sectors like aquaculture need to embrace AI and digital technology. Van der Kuyl described it aquaculture “a significant investment opportunity, as it has the potential to drive the most transformative advancements in food production.”

Combined with sensors, cameras and more, AI can offer insights, enhance sustainability and improve profitability by tracking fish behaviour, size and movement, and quickly detecting any signs of stress, illness and parasitic infestations. This will help farmers reduce mortality on farms, minimise antibiotics use and act quickly. Tracking fish behaviour through AI will also help determine optimal levels of feed and appropriate feeding times to reduce overfeeding and underfeeding, improve water quality and boost fish growth. AI could also predict environmental changes, enabling proactive steps to protect stocks in advance of events such as harmful algal blooms.

“By leveraging AI, aquaculture can address its biggest challenges, ensuring a more sustainable and profitable future,” said Van der Kuyl.

Meanwhile, GSA’s annual updates on fish and shrimp aquaculture gave a picture of the sector in 2024 and predictions for the next few years. Scotland’s salmon production is likely to be up by 15 percent in 2024 compared to 2023, said Gorjan Nikolik, global seafood specialist at cooperative bank Rabobank. He predicts that salmon production in Scotland will continue increasing in 2025 and 2026, rising by an estimated 7 and 6 percent respectively, while production in the Faroe Islands and a number of other smaller salmon-farming nations is looking promising. For example, Iceland’s salmon production is set to see 24 percent growth in 2024, and this growth is predicted to continue. Another key takeaway was that after two challenging years, Norway’s Atlantic salmon production is also likely to grow. On the topic of salmon, it was encouraging to hear Tavish Scott from Salmon Scotland and Gilpin Bradley, a respected leader in the Scottish salmon farming sector, discuss the wave of negative media that salmon producers face, and emphasise issues such as transparency and the need to educate consumers.

Focus on Fisheries
Another highlight of the summit, which I found a lot of the attendees appreciated, was the focus on both aquaculture and fisheries, rather than just one or the other. Tom Pickerell from the World Resources Institute moderated a great panel on how seafood supply chains can proactively support fisheries improvement. One way to do this, he said, is through Fisheries Improvement Projects (FIPs). These are multi-stakeholder initiatives whose goal is to help fisheries work towards sustainability. Ways to measure FIP progress were described, as well as the certification of marine ingredients, the importance of buyer engagement and sourcing from FIPs, as well as implementation challenges. Could technology also help improve FIP transparency? Jayson Berryhill from Wholechain, who believes that it can, covered this topic in detail.

Fisheries remained in focus, with further discussions on human rights due diligence efforts in the seafood industry and some of the red flags such as forced labour, deception, isolation, and poor working conditions. Alison Potter, Technical Officer at the International Labour Organization, explained what could be done to improve working hours, freedom of movement, and highlighted the importance of WiFi on board vessels to tackle isolation and enable crews to have better contact with families and friends back home. Traceability was described as essential to improving conditions on board vessels and ensuring safe working practices. I also really enjoyed hearing about Marks and Spencer’s fisheries standards and policies, with areas related to the environment, people, fish welfare and legal issues.

Welfare – the need for good management practices
The second day of the summit began with animal welfare. During my panel, I got some important insights from Dr. Sara Barrento of training and consultancy group FAI Farms, Simao Zacarias of the University of Stirling, Linda Wood from Marks and Spencer, and Ben Perry from Ace Aquatec. Sara gave a great talk on FAI Farms’ training programs to improve animal welfare, and highlighted significant indicators, such as nutrition, health and environmental conditions, that can dictate good or bad welfare on a farm. “Once you see bad welfare, you can’t unsee it,” she said.

Simao explained shrimp farms’ attempts to move away from the controversial practice of eyestalk ablation towards alternatives such as sex ratio manipulation, selective breeding, nutrition and hatchery practices. Ben’s talk touched upon the interconnectedness of improved animal welfare and better human welfare, i.e. how good animal welfare practices can result in a less stressful working environment for those on farms and on vessels.

“The slaughter and processing industry has one of the highest staff turnovers of any sector,” he explained. “Physical injuries and psychological health challenges are shown to be highly prevalent in the sector from prolonged exposure.”

He went on to explain that a comfortable working environment that doesn’t test people emotionally will experience greater retention and uptake in positions, and businesses want to cultivate such an environment. One way in which they can do this, he said, is by improving animal welfare practices. Linda touched upon the human aspect in the panel discussion. She described how more and more staff don’t want to work in environments with poor animal welfare practices, and that the human element is a huge part of animal welfare improvement.

This year’s summit came with many presentations and talks that covered much more than what I’ve described, but they all focused on a single goal — to make the seafood industry more sustainable for generations to come.

Trust, relationship-building and maintaining contact with one another can all work towards making the above goal a reality, and this is why events like the Responsible Seafood Summit are so important. I found that talking to people in person, and seeing so many people who want to make positive contributions, was fantastic, and as always, I was very impressed by the technology, innovations, research and more that are helping to drive improvements. This is how we can feel motivated and driven to create significant and meaningful change – by coming together, sharing insights and discussing how to develop solutions for the future of aquaculture and fisheries.

*Next year’s Responsible Seafood Summit will take place in Cartagena, Colombia, in the week commencing 29th September 2025.
*All photos taken by Ryan Murrant

Animal Health &Welfare – How Fisheries and Aquaculture Are Making A Difference

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In spring 2024, I wrote an article for Canada’s Hatchery International magazine on how fish health and welfare certification programmes have evolved over the past 25 years. With a growing movement in fisheries and aquaculture to make positive changes in this area, this particular story couldn’t have come at a better time.

Today, fisheries and aquaculture worldwide are paying more attention to health and welfare amidst an increased consumer interest in seafood safety and quality, and market demands for sustainably-sourced farmed and wild-caught seafood. To give a couple of examples, the 11th International Fisheries Symposium in Bangkok at the end of last year held several sessions on animal welfare, while just last month, a paper by the African Union’s InterAfrican Bureau for Animal Resources (AU-IBAR) and Ethical Seafood Research (ESR) highlighted the pivotal role of aquatic animals in Africa’s ecosystem and the importance of animal welfare to maintain ecosystem health and support sustainable fisheries and aquaculture. There has also been a strong focus on evidence that shows how fish can experience pain and suffering. With stressed animals bad for business, more operators are seeing value in creating less stressful environments.

Improving the health and welfare of aquatic animals has far-reaching implications for sustainable development. This was highlighted in an article by Catalina Lopez, director of the Aquatic Animal Alliance at Aquatic Life Institute. With better health and welfare in place, Lopez says, fisheries and aquaculture can forge a transformational path towards a more sustainable and equitable future.

Aquaculture
So how are both sectors taking steps to address animal welfare? Throughout the aquaculture production chain, various factors are considered to ensure that proper care is taken of the animals being reared. These include disease control, water quality, stocking density, transportation and slaughter methods. Certification programmes such as the Best Aquaculture Practices (BAP) Standards, for example, require farms to inspect water quality, behaviour and conditions of their animals regularly, and set limits for the amount of wild fish that can be used in fish feed depending on the species in question.

Meanwhile, researchers and companies are playing their part. At the Roslin Institute at the University of Edinburgh, researchers are studying responses to stress inducers in fish, such as vaccination and handling, and investigating whether these responses can be passed on through generations. Their aim is to establish breeding strategies that enable good health and welfare. Over in California, a tech startup called Shinkei is blending AI with an ancient Japanese slaughter method called Ikejime, which paralyses fish and drains them of blood. Shinkei’s system uses AI to detect the size and shape of each fish before using that information to identify the location of the brain. The mechanical component of the system then penetrates the brain, taking just a second of time and preventing fish from suffering for minutes on end.

Collaboration between research and industry also boosts the growth of aquaculture and promotes animal health and welfare, according to Ana Manuela de Azevedo at the University of Santiago de Compostela. Her work studying fish diseases aims to improve fish health and welfare and help aquaculture companies increase productivity and food safety. One area of her work involves optimized radiodiagnosis for Senegalese sole and established scales for assessing malformations at different stages of their development. Through this, she hopes to reduce anomalies in the species and improve product quality on farms.

Technology is also drawing attention in Egypt thanks to the Tilapia Welfare Project. With Egypt the top tilapia producer in Africa, the project gives farmers tools and knowledge to assess and improve welfare and enhance fish performance. Launched by FAI and Ethical Seafood Research (ESR), the project ‘s Tilapia Welfare App offers farmers a user-friendly platform to assess and manage the welfare of fish effectively.

Fisheries
Although the majority of my work focuses on aquaculture, I’ve always been impressed by fisheries’ efforts to address animal welfare too. One company that caught my attention a few months back is Precision Seafood Harvesting in New Zealand. This company has developed a modular harvesting system that improves fish welfare, optimises catch quality and reduces bycatch. Fish are contained and swim comfortably underwater inside a large flexible PVC liner. There, the correct size and species can be selected before being brought on board vessels. The system’s design also allows vessels to target specific species and fish size, and greatly increases protection for small fish that can swim free through escape portals, and bycatch, which are released unharmed. This is a huge step for commercial fishing, bringing great benefits not just in fish welfare but also in fish stocks and the environment.

It’s also very encouraging to see more fisheries conferences addressing the topic of fish welfare. In November 2023, the first ever Catch Welfare Platform conference was held in Norway. The key focus was pragmatic solutions to reduce individual stress levels in catch, including unwanted and released animals, and those to be slaughtered onboard. There was also a strong focus on humane slaughtering methods. Reducing stress can no doubt create premium market opportunities for seafood caught with good catch welfare standards.

Animal health and welfare in the context of fisheries and aquaculture can seem overwhelming. There are so many species, fishing operations and rearing environments to consider that no one solution can help every single situation and yet, meaningful progress in this area must come from a place of extreme understanding of the particular species or situation at hand. In this sense, it’s really encouraging to see the improvements that are being made. Fisheries and aquaculture are still adjusting as to how best to approach the issues that arise, but today’s efforts will no doubt make significant contributions to increasing operational resilience in both sectors.