Aquaculture: Finally Ready for the Limelight?

Aquaculture has been the fastest growing sector of global food production for the past three decades.  Global aquaculture production in 2011 totaled 60 million tons valued at US$119 billion.  The production of food fish from aquaculture has increased at an average annual growth rate of 8.8 percent worldwide from 1980 to 2010.   Approximately 50 percent of the seafood people consume in the U.S. is produced by aquaculture, an increase from almost 0 percent in 1970.  If projections are realized, the human population will grow from its current 7.1 billion people to 9 billion people by 2050.  Many areas of the world are subject to malnutrition and hunger, which will only be exacerbated by an increase in population.  Approximately 50 percent of the world’s population relies on fish to supply 20 percent of their intake of protein and 4.3 billion people with 15 percent of protein.  Of these, 400 million people depend on fish as their principal source of food.  To provide adequate protein, aquaculture production must increase.  It has been estimated that an increase in meat production of 200 million tons needs to occur if the human population is to have enough protein by 2050.  If one projects current aquaculture growth to 2050, approximate production will increase by more than 3 times current levels, meaning if aquaculture can sustainably continue to increase at its previous levels, all of the human population’s protein needs could be supplied by aquaculture.  As aquaculture mainly depends upon the presence of a clean and adequate source of groundwater, it is imperative that water resources be optimally utilized in a sustainable manner if aquaculture is to increase production to supply food to the world’s population.  Several new pond-production technologies which increase fish production while reducing water usage may allow for sustainable production with minimal environmental impact.