Aquaculture employs many different strategies to achieve the final goal of producing a marketable farm-raised seafood product. Extensive, semi-intensive, intensive and super-intensive farming methods are all being utilized today. Aquaculture techniques for many different species have been continually refined over the last fifteen to twenty years. In 2000, reported total aquaculture production (including aquatic plants) was 45.7 million tons by weight and US$56.5 billion by value. China was reported to have produced 71 percent of the total volume and 49.8 percent of the total value of aquaculture production. More than half of the total world aquaculture production in 2000 was finfish, and the growth of the major species groups continues to be rapid with no apparent slowdown in production to date. World aquatic plant production was 10.1 million tons (US$5.6 billion), of which 7.9 million tons (US$4.0 billion) originated in China.
Aquaculture production has intensified throughout many regions of the world. According to FAO statistics, aquaculture's contribution to global supplies of fish, crustaceans and molluscs continues to grow, increasing from 3.9 percent of total production by weight in 1970 to 27.3 percent in 2000. Aquaculture is growing more rapidly than all other animal food producing sectors. Worldwide, the sector has increased at an average compounded rate of 9.2 percent per year since 1970, compared with only 1.4 percent for capture fisheries and 2.8 percent for terrestrial farmed meat production systems. This explosion in aquaculture production has been led by China, which now accounts for more than 50% of all cultured seafood products. It is now recognized that approximately one in every four kilograms of seafood products comes from aquaculture.
In contrast to terrestrial farming systems, where the bulk of global production is based on a limited number of animal and plant species, more than 210 different farmed aquatic animal and plant species were reported in 2000. Species such as shrimp, tilapia, carp, catfish, salmon, trout, sea bream, cobia, sturgeon, arctic char, perch, mussels, clams, oysters, scallops, conch and many other aquatic organisms are all being actively farmed today.
It has become crystal clear that farm-raised seafood products have assumed an increasingly important role in the seafood industry as the pressures on the natural fisheries of the world intensifies. For example, wild salmon have increasingly become a rarity in the seafood markets of the world. Approximately 98% of all Atlantic salmon now comes from aquaculture net pen operations in Canada, Chile, Norway and other producer countries.
In the years ahead, there will continue to be a shift away from traditional fishing as the world continues to experience a paradigm shift in seafood production. In many respects, aquaculture is still in its infancy. We have only begun to realize the true potential aquaculture has to offer the world. Much of the current research in the field of aquaculture is being directed towards making the industry more sustainable and environmentally-friendly. This is truly a very exciting time for aquaculture!
Wednesday, November 11, 2009
Fish Farming
Production Methods
Semi-intensive shrimp farming is still the method of choice for most farms in the Western Hemisphere. Farms are usually between 100-500 hectares in size. The majority of commercial farms are stocking between 8-25 animals/square meter and use little or no aeration. A pelleted feed is generally provided and there is strong reliance on fertilization to stimulate phytoplankton blooms. Total growout period is typically 90-120 days and the harvested size of the shrimp is usually less than 20 grams. The yield is normally between 1,000-2,000 kg/hectare. Yields above 2,000 kg/hectare for semi-intensive farming is considered excellent. Farms in tropical climates typically have 2-2.5 crops per year.
After being hit by two serious virus outbreaks, many of the existing farms were forced to take a real hard look at biosecurity issues. While there are so many measures that can be taken, the most critical is that the farm must be converted to a zero discharge system. The luxury of exchanging water in the ponds was no longer an option. Conversion to a zero discharge system almost always requires investment and usually demands technology upgrades that can bring the farms into the realm of intensive shrimp farming in terms of cost of operation. Farms in the Americas typically have large ponds (8-15 hectares) and these are not ideal for recirculation technology. Re-engineering the ponds to smaller sizes is often not economically feasible. Adding aeration is normally required. In most cases, the effort of farmers to combat White Spot Syndrome Virus (WSSV) with technology, common sense and some ingenuity have been successful.
Approximately 10% of the farms in the world are currently using intensive or super-intensive production strategies. There is a tendency for Asian farms to be smaller in size but more intensive in the methods of production. This is particularly true in Taiwan and Thailand, where the industry is extremely well-developed. While Asia has a greater percentage of farms that are intensive, the West is rapidly advancing new methods of production that definitely have the potential to revolutionize the industry. The use of more sophisticated technology to produce shrimp is expected to increase in popularity in the future. One of the most important reasons for use of recirculating systems is that they can be made biosecure to lower the risk of disease significantly. Another important reason why recirculating shrimp farming technology will increasingly be selected as the system of choice will be the ability to locate the facility away from the coastal regions and potentially near urban markets.
The system we are developing here at AquaSol, Inc. is designed for tropical regions with a plentiful supply of low salinity water. It utilizes round tank technology and maximizes the activation of bacterial suspensions within the pond environment. The level of production from this type of system is approximately ten times greater than the more traditional semi-intensive system.
The Market for Farm-raised Shrimp
Today's world market for farm-raised shrimp continues to be characterized by strong product demand and all signs point towards the continuing expansion of the shrimp farming industry. Many seafood buyers worldwide recognize that the farm-raised product is superior to the wild product in many instances. This is due to the farmers ability to freeze shrimp on-site within hours of the harvest, locking in the freshness. In light of this, tremendous marketing opportunities exist for premium quality farm-raised shrimp. The three major markets for farm-raised shrimp are the United States, Europe and Japan. However, a number of new and developing markets throughout the world are now demanding higher and higher levels of this fine and easily accessible product. The growing middle class and subsequent opening of the market gates into China are just one example.
Farm-raised shrimp have been subjected to increasingly greater pricing pressure over the course of the last couple of years. Similar fates have fallen upon other big aquaculture success stories like farm-raised salmon and catfish. In both cases, this commoditization led to consolidation within the industry as farms were forced to increase efficiencies through economies of scale. A detailed report on this issue as it relates to farm-raised shrimp is provided as a courtesy to our prospective clients who must find ways to maintain profit margins in this increasingly competitive marketplace for farm-raised shrimp.
The commoditization of farm-raised shrimp is likely to make success in the industry increasingly more difficult for the less efficient small farmer. Large, vertically integrated players in the global arena are now coming to the forefront of the industry, and with good reason. If conducted on the proper scale and with superior management, shrimp farming has always had the potential to be extremely lucrative. Consolidation and the entrance of multinationals is expected, and in fact already occurring, as these companies seek to diversify into this promising line of business.
Semi-intensive shrimp farming is still the method of choice for most farms in the Western Hemisphere. Farms are usually between 100-500 hectares in size. The majority of commercial farms are stocking between 8-25 animals/square meter and use little or no aeration. A pelleted feed is generally provided and there is strong reliance on fertilization to stimulate phytoplankton blooms. Total growout period is typically 90-120 days and the harvested size of the shrimp is usually less than 20 grams. The yield is normally between 1,000-2,000 kg/hectare. Yields above 2,000 kg/hectare for semi-intensive farming is considered excellent. Farms in tropical climates typically have 2-2.5 crops per year.
After being hit by two serious virus outbreaks, many of the existing farms were forced to take a real hard look at biosecurity issues. While there are so many measures that can be taken, the most critical is that the farm must be converted to a zero discharge system. The luxury of exchanging water in the ponds was no longer an option. Conversion to a zero discharge system almost always requires investment and usually demands technology upgrades that can bring the farms into the realm of intensive shrimp farming in terms of cost of operation. Farms in the Americas typically have large ponds (8-15 hectares) and these are not ideal for recirculation technology. Re-engineering the ponds to smaller sizes is often not economically feasible. Adding aeration is normally required. In most cases, the effort of farmers to combat White Spot Syndrome Virus (WSSV) with technology, common sense and some ingenuity have been successful.
Approximately 10% of the farms in the world are currently using intensive or super-intensive production strategies. There is a tendency for Asian farms to be smaller in size but more intensive in the methods of production. This is particularly true in Taiwan and Thailand, where the industry is extremely well-developed. While Asia has a greater percentage of farms that are intensive, the West is rapidly advancing new methods of production that definitely have the potential to revolutionize the industry. The use of more sophisticated technology to produce shrimp is expected to increase in popularity in the future. One of the most important reasons for use of recirculating systems is that they can be made biosecure to lower the risk of disease significantly. Another important reason why recirculating shrimp farming technology will increasingly be selected as the system of choice will be the ability to locate the facility away from the coastal regions and potentially near urban markets.
The system we are developing here at AquaSol, Inc. is designed for tropical regions with a plentiful supply of low salinity water. It utilizes round tank technology and maximizes the activation of bacterial suspensions within the pond environment. The level of production from this type of system is approximately ten times greater than the more traditional semi-intensive system.
The Market for Farm-raised Shrimp
Today's world market for farm-raised shrimp continues to be characterized by strong product demand and all signs point towards the continuing expansion of the shrimp farming industry. Many seafood buyers worldwide recognize that the farm-raised product is superior to the wild product in many instances. This is due to the farmers ability to freeze shrimp on-site within hours of the harvest, locking in the freshness. In light of this, tremendous marketing opportunities exist for premium quality farm-raised shrimp. The three major markets for farm-raised shrimp are the United States, Europe and Japan. However, a number of new and developing markets throughout the world are now demanding higher and higher levels of this fine and easily accessible product. The growing middle class and subsequent opening of the market gates into China are just one example.
Farm-raised shrimp have been subjected to increasingly greater pricing pressure over the course of the last couple of years. Similar fates have fallen upon other big aquaculture success stories like farm-raised salmon and catfish. In both cases, this commoditization led to consolidation within the industry as farms were forced to increase efficiencies through economies of scale. A detailed report on this issue as it relates to farm-raised shrimp is provided as a courtesy to our prospective clients who must find ways to maintain profit margins in this increasingly competitive marketplace for farm-raised shrimp.
The commoditization of farm-raised shrimp is likely to make success in the industry increasingly more difficult for the less efficient small farmer. Large, vertically integrated players in the global arena are now coming to the forefront of the industry, and with good reason. If conducted on the proper scale and with superior management, shrimp farming has always had the potential to be extremely lucrative. Consolidation and the entrance of multinationals is expected, and in fact already occurring, as these companies seek to diversify into this promising line of business.
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