Splash Report 2006.
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Viability of
Aquaculture in the Pacific.
Continued by David Burston
The Pacific Region's greatest asset is the hundreds of thousands
of hectares of island lagoons and reefs that lend themselves to
a uniquely superior, environmentally sustainable aquaculture.
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Majuro in the
Marshall Islands for example is the transshipment capital for
tuna caught in the Pacific, for which it receives US$2.60/ton
for fish transshipped.
These same fish if fattened on an aquaculture farm, have a farm
value of around US$12,000/ton, a
4,600% increase in
export income plus providing businesses and employment to local
communities.
In 2003 thirty
one percent (31%) of all seafood production came from aquaculture
[WHO 2005 Annual Report], and this percentage is increasing every
year. Aquaculture is not new, it has been practiced for centuries in
Asia and Europe and now there is large-scale aquaculture production
on all continents of the world.
The future of food
will be a sustainability factor, that will not just affect the
Pacific, but the entire global population.
In a recent article by Dr Kenneth Brooks a past employee of
Washington State where he served in a policy-making position as
Chairman of the State Conservation Commission he discussed the
effect of salmon farming in Canada.
The summary of
his findings were as follows:
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"The bottom
line is that the environmental cost of producing
1,000,000 kg
of edible
salmon
is the partial degradation of
1.6 hectares
of deepwater habitat for perhaps
two years,
while the cost of producing an equivalent amount of
beef
is the
diversion of
3,573 hectares
of upland from wildlife habitat to pasture and
decades
long degradation of our streams, rivers and lakes due to the bed
load of eroded soil."
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The
pressing need for export income in all Pacific countries can be
addressed in part buy growing out and value adding of tuna and
other fish species, provided the issues of breeding and feeding
are resolved over the next five years, ensuring a long term
sustainable industry.
The Products & Markets.
The global wild catch of live reef fish is dropping alarmingly,
due to vast areas of reefs being destroyed by
cyanide and dynamite fishing
over the last 10 years. The Asian population, a total of 3
Billion people, is growing, and the nominally small percentage
of affluent people is on the increase.
Global Aquaculture is a US$60 billion a year industry (in 2002)
growing at 9.5% annually, one in almost three fish produced is
derived from aquaculture. Of the 32,000 tons of live fish
imported annually into Hong Kong, Coral Trout is one of the most
popular reef fish. At wholesale prices of US$30 - $50/kg, Coral
Trout Plectropomus sp. is considered to be one of the lower
priced fish for Asian diners, that is compared to Barramundi Cod
Epinepbelus altivelis at US$80/kg or Giant Grouper Epinepbelus
lanceolatus at over US$100/kg. (source The Hong Kong Trade in
Live Reef Fish, Pg 35, Lau & Parry-Jones, WWF).
Japan has consumed around 300,000tons of all species of tuna
annually for the last 35 years. The species are dominated by the
Skipjack Tuna that is either canned or used for Katsuobushi, a
smoked product. Only the relatively small production of large
Bluefin, Southern Bluefin and the Yellowfin Tuna are used for
the high priced
sashimi market.
A More Humane Approach.
The commercial fleet uses
Longline Vessels to catch the large tuna's, an
inhumane process where the fish are stressed while being hooked
on the longline, then due to the speed at which they are brought
aboard, they have to be killed and processed in the quickest way
possible.
Caged tuna are grown and fattened and harvested as they meet the
specifications required by the market. They are harvested with
minimum stress, bled, the spinal cord removed, gutted and washed
prior, to either being delivered fresh chilled by air transport,
or immediately frozen to minus 60 deg C, then delivered to the
market by vessel. The quality, presentation and the attention to
detail guarantees that caged fish are sold for a premium price
in the market place.
Reef Fish and Tuna prices are gradually rising after a
depression in prices in the early 2000’s due to SARS, tuna over
production in the Mediterranean and a sluggish Asian economy.
Summary
Every effort has been made to design a
sustainable aquaculture
system that is compatible with the communities of the Pacific
Region.
Whilst the focus is firmly upon Aquaculture we do believe that
many independent businesses will be spawned by the provision of
infrastructure and the stimulation of local economies.
Splash Aquaculture is not a pioneer. We are building upon
existing knowledge within a blue printed structure that allows
for multiple financially independent operations, which have
substantial local ownership.
Splash Aquaculture is leveraging knowledge, funding and human
resources to ensure that substantial, sustainable, profit driven
aquaculture operations are established that are in harmony with
the local environment and communities.
Beginners Guides To Aquaculture
We have made available a number of
ebooks for those who wish to
understand Aquaculture on a higher level.
Thank you for your interest in
Splash
Sustainable Aquaculture.
Note:
Student enquiries should be put to the Bulletin Board, which will be
replied to at our earliest opportunity. Due to work commitments, we
are unable to answer detailed emailed requests.
end.
