Saving Seafood

Canadian judge says young salmon must be tested before placed in net pens

February 6, 2019 — A Canadian federal judge, in Vancouver, British Columbia, has ruled that fish farms must test their young salmon for contagious viruses before transferring them into open-net pens, StarMetro, a Vancouver newspaper, reports.

In her 199-page decision issued Monday, justice Cecily Strickland gave the Canadian Department of Fisheries an Oceans (DFO) four months to develop a new policy that considers the threat piscine reovirus (PRV) poses to wild salmon and to comply with the country’s preferred precautionary approach.

The ruling addresses two cases brought separately against DFO, the minister of fisheries and oceans and also Marine Harvest. One lawsuit was filed by biologist Alexandra Morton and the other by the ‘Namgis First Nation.

Read the full story at Undercurrent News

 

China’s New Year gift to the world: aquaculture know-how

February 5, 2019 — As Chinese New Year approaches, the dining halls of China’s Agriculture Ministry in the central Beijing district of Tuanjiehu get busy with well-wishers from various embassies dropping in with seasonal gifts or for banquets with officials.

Emissaries in Beijing have been beating a path to the fisheries section at the Agriculture Ministry to greet fisheries officials who maintain relations with counterparts in most countries on the planet.

The gifts aren’t just flowing in one direction. Even as it weeds out low-tech and unlicensed operators in its own aquaculture sector, China is offering aquaculture expertise to developing nations throughout the world.  When Chinese New Year festivities are over, it’s not unreasonable to expect a whole new range of training programs to be born out of those banquets and gift exchanges. These are transactional relationships – developing countries need training and China needs seafood. But they also stand to change the global aquaculture production map.

And it’s not new – China has been at this game for many years now. Just last month, aquaculture officials from around the world were in China’s key freshwater training base for training in bass (perch) production. Delegates from Benin, Ghana, Laos, Liberia, Myanmar, the Seychelles, South Sudan, Uganda, and Zambia were in Wuxi Academy and visited Jiangsu Shui Xian Industry Co. Ltd. to see production on site.

Read the full story at Seafood Source

ASMFC Seeks Proposals for Shellfish Aquaculture Consortia Projects Proposals Due March 15, 2019

February 5, 2019 — The following was released by the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission:

The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission (Commission), in partnership with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), is seeking proposals to form regionally focused research consortia that will address critical research needs surrounding shellfish aquaculture. While oysters are a priority species, proposals for any shellfish species will be accepted.

For FY19, Congressional funds are available to support ongoing research for off-bottom shellfish production in coastal areas. Research should focus on shellfish genetics, disease, seed production and transport, environmental interactions and impacts, regulatory challenges, and socioeconomic modeling. Additionally, regional partnerships are encouraged to classify and preserve natural genetic variation in shellfish.

NOAA Fisheries, through the Commission, is making $880,000 available for the funding period of August 1, 2019 to July 31, 2020. The Commission plans to award funding to support up to two consortia that can justify and demonstrate the greatest collaborative efforts with various investigators and stakeholders. Any consortium seeking support for this period must submit, as a single file, an electronic proposal by email no later than 5:00 p.m. EST on Friday, March 15, 2019. Please see the Request for Proposals (RFP) for complete proposal details, qualifying requirements, and submission instructions. The RFP is available here.

The Gulf and Pacific States Marine Fisheries Commissions have also issued similar RFPs seeking consortia proposals relevant to their respective regions.

For more information, please contact Dr. Louis Daniel at ldaniel@asmfc.org or 252.342.1478.

Cooke Inc. branches into shrimp production with Seajoy acquisition

February 4, 2019 — Cooke Inc. announced on 1 February it has finalized its acquisition of Seajoy Seafood Corporation, one of Latin America’s largest producers of farmed shrimp, with operations in Honduras and Nicaragua.

SeafoodSource previously reported on the acquisition, which was completed in November 2018, but the formal announcement came after the companies finalized the details of the transaction.

“The acquisition of Seajoy is an important element in our focus on product diversification to meet our customers’ needs,” Cooke CEO Glenn Cooke said in a press release. “Seajoy is a world-leading shrimp producer utilizing the highest quality and food safety standards and newest available technology. This aligns perfectly with our existing aquaculture and wild seafood fishery divisions. We feel Seajoy’s entrepreneurial drive, industry knowledge and care for their communities has made them successful and a big reason why we feel this is an incredible cultural fit.”

The purchase gives Cooke Inc., the parent company of Black Harbour, New Brunswick, Canada-based Cooke Aquaculture, an avenue to expand its product repertoire to include shrimp. Seajoy is one of the largest vertically integrated, premium shrimp farms in Latin America, with a focus on producing value-added and organic Pacific white shrimp (Litopenaeus vannamei) and selling to customers in Europe, the Americas, and Asia.

Read the full story at Seafood Source

Scientists, harvesters, farmers talk shop at Northeast Aquaculture Conference

February 1, 2019 — To open the Northeast Aquaculture Conference and Exposition on January 9, a panel of ten experts from Prince Edward Island to New Jersey fired off a round of challenges into the ballroom of the Boston Park Plaza Hotel: labor shortages, complex regulations, public opposition, and climate change, among them.

But, for all the concerns, the aquaculture industry represented by some 550 attendees seemed buoyantly optimistic, despite the absence of federal employees furloughed by the partial shutdown of the federal government, many of whom were speakers.

“It’s an aquaculture pep rally,” said Matt Gregg of the Barnegat Oyster Collective in Barnegat Light, N.J., describing the three-day conference, which included field trips, research presentations, and a tradeshow.

Farm-raised seafood is the fastest growing food sector worldwide, according to the UN Food and Agriculture Organization. Globally, aquaculture supplies more than 50 percent of all seafood people eat.

First-time NACE attendee Kevin Thomson of Duxbury Oyster Company in Duxbury, Mass., emphasized the conference was information-intensive. “They’ve brought a lot of different kinds of people into one room,” he said.

That meant not only shellfish, seaweed, and finfish growers, but also researchers in marine biology, ecosystems ecology, climatology, food science and geothermal engineering, who hosted over 100 sessions on their findings.

“The studies have progressed,” noted Travis Ortega of Watch Hill Oysters in Rhode Island, who has attended three conferences.  “There’s a lot more knowledge now and not as many studies ‘in progress.’  We can apply what we learned when we go back to the farm,” he said.

Read the full story at National Fisherman

Whole Foods reviewing aquaculture feed standards, could challenge RAS suppliers

January 25, 2019 — Whole Foods Market, one of the world’s largest organic and natural food retailers, is reviewing its standards for feed served to the aquaculture fish products it sells and — depending on the changes it adopts — that could make life more challenging for its North American suppliers.

The group that has the most to worry about: land-based producers of salmon and other finfish.

Growing fish in a recirculating aquaculture system (RAS) comes with lots of hefty, upfront development and technology costs, generally forcing these companies to charge a premium for their products. But RAS producers also have the advantage of being able to promote what they say is a cleaner and more sustainable approach than growing fish in an open net pen.

So, there isn’t a seafood counter or freezer that RAS producers covet gaining access to more than those maintained by Whole Foods’ nearly 500 locations across the US, Canada and UK. The roughly $16 billion per year retailer has customers that are both selective and willing to pay a bit more for products they know will be healthier to consume and better for the environment.

Read the full story at Undercurrent News

Changes in Aquaculture have Consumers Buying ‘Higher Value’ Fish

January 25, 2019 — SEAFOOD NEWS — Consumer trends continue to drive an industry change from traditional aquaculture species like catfish to higher value species including redfish and hybrid striped bass, according to a Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service expert. Redfish are trending upward in price and consumer demand along with other alternative species like hybrid striped bass compared to traditional aquaculture species like catfish. Dr. Todd Sink, AgriLife Extension aquaculture and fisheries specialist, College Station, said catfish, a longtime staple for Texas fish production, has experienced a recent decline in pricing and popularity, causing producers to look at other options. Catfish prices were around 93 cents per pound compared to the high of $1.35 per pound two years ago. As a result, discerning U.S.

Consumers are buying less catfish as household wealth and expendable income increase and because other options in the market are perceived as higher quality. Those include salmon, redfish and hybrid striped bass, which are a cross between white and striped bass, he said. Sink said poor prices and consumer trends have some catfish producers switching at least a portion of production to other species like redfish and hybrid striped bass, which bring higher prices – $3-$3.30 per pound and $3.30-$3.60 per pound respectively – and are experiencing increased demand.

“It’s fairly clear that consumer tastes are changing from what is perceived as lower-quality fish to higher-end, higher-value fish,” he said. “The cyclical movement on catfish has been downward for a while, so you have a lot of producers looking to diversify with other options that are trending upward in both price and consumer demand.”

Redfish and hybrid striped bass can handle a range of salinity levels. Bass prefer fresh water to 10 parts per thousand salinity, while redfish are typically produced at five parts per thousand to full-strength seawater.Redfish growth rate stalls when waters are 50 degrees or below, and freezing waters can cause die-offs without proper management, which limits production to warmer climates, Sink said. Hybrid striped bass are more tolerant of cool waters and are grown throughout the U.S., although their growth rate can also decrease drastically below 50 degrees.

Catfish production densities in Texas are around 12,000 pounds of fish per acre compared to 6,500 pounds of hybrid striped bass per acre and up to 8,000 pounds of redfish per acre, Sink said. Texas is the No. 1 producer of redfish and hybrid striped bass, including around 98 percent of the nation’s redfish production and more than half of hybrid striped bass, Sink said. Established producers continue to expand their capacity to meet demand. It’s difficult to ascertain redfish and hybrid striped bass production levels because U.S. Department of Agriculture census reports are infrequent, but Sink estimates Texas produces up to 2.7 million pounds of bass and 2.3 million pounds of redfish annually based on their 2013 report and farm expansions since that time.Hybrid striped bass being harvested at a commercial aquaculture operation in Texas.

By comparison, Texas ranks No. 4 in U.S. catfish production with 18.9 million pounds per year.Several farms are expanding redfish production across Texas with one currently adding 200 acres of production capacity to its operation, which represents a 30 percent increase in overall production, Sink said. Hybrid striped bass production has been expanding at a 3-5 percent rate annually in Texas and southeastern states.

“We don’t expect to see any slowdown in the expansion of both the market and production to meet that market demand over the next five to 10 years,” Sink said. “They’re expanding as they can to supply consumers in a market that is just starting to take off.” Sink said 90 percent of Texas’ hybrid striped bass production serves demand from high-end restaurants on East and West coasts, while nearly all of the state’s redfish production serves restaurants in large cities such as New Orleans and Houston.”

Producers are getting a premium price for their product, many farms are looking to expand, and some restaurants are operating their own farms just to ensure they can supply their consumer demand,” he said. “Right now they are serving niche markets, so there is room and reason to expand.

This story was originally published by SeafoodNews.com, a subscription site. It is reprinted with permission.

China to trial offshore fish-wind farms integrated with aquaculture

January 23, 2019 — One of China’s leading seafood production regions is embarking on an ambitious project to test-run offshore aquaculture integrated with wind farms.

At a government press conference to launch the “Shandong Province Modern Ocean Farming Comprehensive Pilot Scheme Construction Project,” several officials from the Agriculture Department and provincial Ocean Affairs Bureau announced they will build 83 ocean pastures over 60,000 hectares – 32 of which will be “national-level” and make Shandong the national leader in such facilities.

Read the full story at Seafood Source 

MAINE: Aquaculture rule changes

January 21, 2019 — The Maine Department of Marine Resources will hold a public hearing Thursday, Jan. 24 at 5 p.m. at Ellsworth City Hall on proposed changes to aquaculture leasing regulations.

This proposed rule would make a number of changes to clarify the aquaculture leasing regulations, including the elimination of redundant language.

It would also make several changes to the leasing procedures for standard and limited-purpose aquaculture leases, including the timing of scoping sessions, required information regarding an applicant’s financial capability and a prohibition on the siting of leases within a designated zone around a wastewater treatment plant.

Read the full story at the Mount Desert Islander

In Pictures and Words: Bringing back North Carolina oysters after Hurricane Florence

January 21, 2019 — Over the past three to four decades many of the areas that were open to wild oyster harvests have been closed due to water quality concerns, often near the headwaters of creeks and rivers hit by pollutants from farms and industrial developments.

But oyster farms along the North Carolina coast are on the rise, and even after the devastating impact of Hurricane Florence on the shellfish industry, aquaculture represents the state’s hope in catching up with states like Virginia.

Last week, Port City Daily spent the day with two oyster farmers from Three Little Spats Oyster Company, who discussed the role of aquaculture in an industry that has seen wild oyster populations drop over the years, and their hope for Stump Sound’s resurgence as one of the state’s best regions for oysters and commercial fishing.

Read the full story at Port City Daily