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As a valuable source of nutrients, globally fish provides about three billion people with almost 20 percent of their average per capita intake of animal protein, and 4.3 billion people with about 15 percent of such protein, according to the FAO's "The State of…

Patricia S.Gaunt, Mississippi state University looks at the best treatment practices of warmwater fish pathogens using feed medicated with Aquaflor (florfenicol). Taken from the MSD Animal Health 'Bacterial Disease in Warmwater Fish: New Strategies for Sustain…

The toxins from blue-green algae pose a threat to animal health and potentially to consumers if they are present in farmed product. Culture animals that ingest these toxins may not die, but can be weakened, increasing their susceptibility to pathogens. Killing…

Child labour is a great concern in many parts of the world. In 2008, some60 percent of the 215 million boys and girls estimated to be child labourers worldwide were engaged in the agriculture sector, including in fisheries, aquaculture, livestock and forestry,…

This practical manual is produced by the Philippines national team under the ASEAN Foundation supported project "Strengthening capacity of small holder ASEAN aquaculture farmers for competitive and sustainable aquaculture" implemented by NACA in five ASEAN cou…

Worldwide, more than 18 million persons were infected with fish-borne zoonotic trematodes in 2002. To evaluate the effectiveness of interventions for reducing prevalence and intensity of fish-borne zoonotic trematode infections in juvenile fish, authors from t…

Rogrio Salvador, North Paran State University, looks at the impact of streptococcosis on tilapia in Brazil and efficacy of AquaVac Strep Sa for managing the disease under controlled conditions. Taken from the MSD Animal Health 'Bacterial Disease in Warmwater F…

'The UK Fishing Industry in 2011: Structure and Activity' provides a broad picture of the size and composition of the UK fishing industry and its operations.

In 2010, 40.5 percent of world fish production was marketed in live, fresh or chilled forms and 45.9 per cent processed in frozen, cured or otherwise prepared forms for direct human consumption, according to the FAO's "The State of World Fisheries and Aquacult…

Researchers based in Norway have successfully fractionated wheat distillers dried grains and solubles (WDDGS) to improve its nutritional value for rainbow trout.

Overall global capture fisheries production, as derived from the FAO capture database, continues to remain stable. This does not mean that there are no changes in catch trends by country, fishing area or species, which indeed do vary significantly throughout t…

Food quality is increasingly becoming a global concept as suppliers and retailers become larger and fewer. Food should be responsibly sourced, safe and traceable to the farm. In addition, the ethical aspects concerning food production, such as protection of th…

There have been an increasing number of infections in fish associated with different species of Chryseobacterium, being considered potentially emerging pathogens. Nevertheless the knowledge of the diversity of species associated with fish disease is partial du…

Farmed salmon smolts become more robust and more likely to survive if they undergo optimal aerobic exercise training prior to sea transfer. This was the main message from Chilean Vicente Castro in his doctoral defense in Norway recently.

It is widely understood that each fish species has an optimum temperature range and will lose appetite and grow more slowly when water temperatures go much above that range. Until recently the physical effects on the fish leading to these symptoms were not ful…

This article, from the FAO's "The State of World Fisheries and Aquaculture 2012" report, looks at the history and importance of how rice and fish farming can be combined, and also how it promotes enhanced food production and wealth.

The decreasing availability of fishmeal and fish oil for marine ingredients will force the industry to depend more heavily on by-products for fish feed, said Johnathon Shepherd, past Director General for the International Fishmeal and Fishoil Organisation (IFF…

Climate change is a reality and it will affect aquaculture. Sena S. De Silva of Deakin University, Australia discusses the challenges that climate change poses for aquaculture.

Salmon exposed to algal-produced neurotoxins show changes in both their brain activity and general behaviour. It has also been found that very small doses of these toxins can have an affect on how salmon relate to other fish.

Sturgeon hatcheries play an important role in the rehabilitation of the sturgeon stocks in the Caspian Sea and elsewhere. This FAO report gives guidelines for sturgeon hatchery practices and management.

Temperature changes can alter the growth, survival and feed conversion of cultured Pacific white shrimp, Litopenaeus vannamei. To examine the effects of temperature on these performance factors, Dr Chalor Limsuwan, Kasetsart University, and Dr Carlos A. Ching,…

G. salaris is a tiny creature measuring less than half a millimetre in length. It uses its tiny claws to attach itself to the skin ofyoung salmon, which it then eats. G. salaris breeds prolifically and a young salmon may be host to up to 10,000 individual spec…

Imaging with X-rays and nuclear magnetic resonance imaging (NMR/MRI) are technologies normally associated with hi-tech materials science or medical examinations; now Skretting is using them to examine the humble fish feed pellet.

As part of the FAO 2012 report 'The state of world fisheries and aquaculture', this article looks at the barriers to achieving low impact fuel efficient fishing in today's society.

Atmospheric gases naturally diffuse between air and water to reach an equilibrium of pressure. Gases dissolve in the blood of fish and shrimp, and equilibrate with gases in the animails water. When water is suddenly warmed, gas bubbles can form in the blood of…

Transmission of infection from neighbouring fish farms is the main way that the viral disease Infectious Salmon Anaemia (ISA) spreads during epidemics. This is the key conclusion of Trude Lyngstad's doctoral research.

This article from the FAO's 'The State of World Fisheries and Aquaculture 2012 Report' looks at the acceptance of women in aquaculture and the promotion of women in aquaculture to help develop education, training and economic prospects.

This article by Peter S. Rand and B. A. Berejikian et al, from the Wild Salmon Center in Portland, Oregon, US, and the NOAA Northwest Fisheries Science Center, looks at the ecological interactions between wild and hatchery salmonids.

Researchers from the USDA ERS have explored whether US consumers adjusted their purchases of shrimp in response to the 2005 country-of-origin labels (COOL) requirements for seafood. Findings show that consumers were not responsive to the new country-of-origin …

Due to the build up of bacteria and viruses in bivalves from filter-feeding, bivalves can be harmful to humans when ingested. The different factors affecting the microbial quality of shellfish is therefore analysed in a study by Carlos Campos, Ron Lee, Simon K…

Fast growth and attractive market prices make wreckfish an interesting option among the new species considered for commercial aquaculture. Since 2009, the Spanish institutions Instituto Espaol de Oceanografa and Instituto Galego de Formacin en Acuicultura have…

The 2012 benchmark stock assessment and peer review have concluded that the American eel population is depleted in US waters. The stock is at or near historically low levels due to a combination of historical overfishing, habitat loss, food web alterations, pr…

This article presents the initial results from a program of stock surveys led by professional fishermen and funded via an innovative project of marine renewable energy, writes Laure Robigo, Departmental Fisheries Committee of Ctes dArmor, Brittany, France.

People are at the heart of sustaining aquaculture. Development of human capacity and gender, therefore, is an important human dimension, according to authors from the Aquaculture Department, Southeast Asian Fisheries and Development Center and the Department o…

This report from the European Commission to the European Parliament (published July 2012) looks at member states' efforts during 2010 to achieve a sustainable balance between fishing capacity and fishing opportunities.

Sustainable fisheries and aquaculture play a crucial role in food and nutrition security and in providing for the livelihoods of millions of people. FAO's latest flagship publication on the state of fisheries and aquaculture, launched at the opening of the 30t…

A study demonstrated that byproducts prepared from salmon livers, salmon milt, black cod viscera and arrowtooth heads and viscera from Alaskan fisheries processing plants were easily digested by shrimp. These byproducts also contained a high level of protein o…

Using fishmeal to feed to fish in aquaculture fisheries could prove to be unsustainable in the long run as the aquaculture industry grows and ocean fish stocks diminish, write Chris Harris.

Seafood export value for the first quarter of 2012 is up by 8.6 per cent compared with the first quarter of 2011 to NZ$388m, states a new seafood industry economic report from the New Zealand Seafood Industry Council.

India's marine fisheries are in a state of crisis, despite official statements that there is still scope or fish landings to increase. Ninety per cent of India's fish resources are at or above maximum sustainable levels of exploitation (Srinath 2003, Srinath e…