Aquaculture

Biofilters are bioreactors (also called biocatalysts) that make use of highly complex metabolic activities of various microorganisms to clean water or air. Here “clean” means, above all, to eliminate or render harmless various pollutants or toxic substances. The term “filter” in the sense of holding back or removing unwanted material is not appropriate in so far as biofilters in fact only transform the substances.

Global aquaculture has to face some major challenges in the coming years. On the one hand it has to produce more fish and seafood to meet the rising needs of a growing world population. And on the other hand we are already now reaching the limits of what the available locations can offer for new farms. One way out of this dilemma would be to shift farming into the offshore region but this necessitates new concepts, independent systems, more robust technology – and more risk capital.

Zander is considered to be one of the most promising fish species for production in closed recirculating aquaculture systems. One problem, however, is that there are not enough fry available that have been adapted to dry feed. This could change now, however, because in May 2013 Fischmaster IP Services GmbH opened an ultramodern facility for the reproduction and farming of zander fry. The investment was made without any subsidies.

As energy costs continue to rise, energy efficiency in aquaculture becomes an increasingly important topic. And addressing the topic of energy efficiency isn’t just about the power requirements of individual devices; it means taking a holistic view of all processes that require energy... because sustainable production also means producing more fish with less energy.

With over 124 ha of ponds and a capacity of about 170 tonnes/year, as well as a state-of-the-art processing facility, Piscicola S.R.L. in Cehu Silvaniei may become one of the important medium-sized fish farming enterprise in Romania, provided it receives an injection of capital in the near future.

Over the past 30 years, Spain has developed its aquaculture sector through technological investments and the promotion of marine and inland aquaculture products. Promotion has been done at government, association, and at producer level. Different tools have been used, such as fairs, exhibitions, implementation of standards, designation of origin, as well as marketing and information campaigns.

All aquacultural facilities need tanks, basins, or other containers to hold the water and the fish. They are available in various shapes and sizes and can be made from different materials. Tank design and construction depends heavily on their intended application. Every model has certain advantages and disadvantages, and no universal solution meets all aquacultural needs.

A lot of aquaculture experts argue that farms should be moved away from the coast and further out into the open sea. Open ocean aquaculture in offshore locations would solve a number of problems and user conflicts that are connected with production in shallow water. Unfortunately, however offshore aquaculture is also quite a lot more expensive; it is more complicated and entails more risks than inshore aquaculture, and farming technologies are still not technically mature.

Although the spectrum of species produced in aquaculture is getting broader and broader only few of them succeed in asserting themselves lastingly on the markets. The ten most produced fish species account for nearly three quarters of the total volume of fish from aquaculture. New aquaculture species stand a good chance of market success in Asia, in particular, where consumers are generally open towards seafood. In contrast, consumers in western countries are often initially more cautious. This is the second part of a two-part article on potential aquaculture species. The first appeared in Eurofish Magazine EM3 2013.

Throughout the course of history Russia has been a leading maritime and fishing nation due to its territorial and geographic characteristics and its place and role in global and regional international relations. Although the end of the 20th and the start of the 21st century was a period of crisis for the Russian fishery industry, it has more recently demonstrated stable positive dynamics and growing volumes of catches and fish production.