February 5, 2021 — “Fish have been an important source of food for humans for millennia, but seafood production and fisheries management are inexplicably still not viewed as key parts of global policies to fight hunger and promote food security,” says John Virdin, director of the Oceans and Coastal Policy Program at Duke University’s Nicholas Institute for Environmental Policy Solutions.
“This needs to change, especially as food systems worldwide face increasing threats from climate change and the global development community falls further behind in meeting its goals.”
The UN Food and Agriculture Organization estimates the number of malnourished people worldwide will increase from 678 million in 2018 to 841 million in 2030 if current trends continue.
Fish, which already account for 17% of the animal protein consumed globally, could help meet this growing need, yet current food policies and funding priorities show little recognition of this, the authors of the new paper in the journal Ambio argue.