258 Fish as feed inputs for aquaculture – Practices, sustainability and implications
grow. Another issue facing the plant meal and oil substitution option in Europe
is consumer opinion and the affect that vegetable oil substitutes may have on the
continued acceptance of farmed fish as a “high-quality” product similar to its
wild counterpart. To produce a product as “near to the wild product as possible”,
research is also focusing on the “dilution” of vegetable oils in the flesh when
fish are fed diets containing 100 percent marine fish oils for six months prior
to harvest. In addition, vegetable oil substitutes do not necessarily improve the
environmental sustainability of the product (e.g. increased soybean production
may lead to further rainforest clearance).7.2 Ongoing work of interest
7.2.1 Improved sustainable management of feed-fish stocks
In Europe, most work on northern stocks is through ICES, which includes a number
of relevant working groups:- Planning Group for Herring Surveys
- Planning Group on Northeast Atlantic Pelagic Ecosystem Surveys
- Regional Ecosystem Study Group for the North Sea
- Study Group on Assessment Methods Applicable to Assessment of Norwegian
Spring Spawning Herring and Blue Whiting Stock - Study Group on Regional Scale Ecology of Small Pelagics
- Study Group on the Estimation of Spawning Stock Biomass of Sardine and
Anchovy - Working Group on Ecosystem Effects of Fishing Activities
- Working Group on Northern Pelagic and Blue Whiting Fisheries
- Working Group on the Assessment of Mackerel, Horse Mackerel, Sardine and
Anchovy
These working groups feed information into the decision-making process through
the ICES Advisory Committee on Fishery Management (ACFM). The ACFM meets
twice a year (summer and late autumn) to prepare its advice, which is then translated
into effective management by the national governments and the EU.
EU fisheries management in the Mediterranean Sea tends to be focused upon coastal
fisheries. In general, EU catch limits or quotas are not applicable in the Mediterranean
Sea, with the exception of limits on bluefin tuna that have been introduced in response
to recommendations by the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic
Tuna (ICCAT). In contrast, the GFCM’s work has focused on shared or straddling
stocks, particularly those involving demersal and large pelagic species. GFCM’s Sub-
Committee on Stock Assessment (SCSA) recently assessed the stocks of 11 small pelagic
species, which assessment will result in the development of management programmes
controlling the pelagic trawling and purse-seine fisheries exploiting anchovy (Engraulis
encrasicolus), sardine (Sardina pilchardus) and sprat (Sprattus sprattus) (FAO, 2006b).
The EU is currently finalizing a strategy and action plan to improve scientific
advice and research in stock evaluation in the waters of third countries. This strategy
will combine actions to (i) improve data collection, management and use; (ii) increase
the level of research, especially into ecosystem considerations; (iii) strengthen the role
of Regional Fisheries Organization (RFOs) and (iv) provide greater cooperation with
European research and advisory organizations, as well as improve the capacity of
national fisheries administrations to operate within a regional context.
Ultimately, pressure for improved management of feed-fish stocks must come from
both the aquaculture industry and consumers. One of the barriers to the environmental
certification of aquaculture in Europe has been the inability of the feed manufacturers
to assure the sustainable sources of fishmeal and fish oils in compounded feeds.
As mentioned earlier, this has become an increasingly important issue, with feed
manufacturers looking to FIN for reassurance (see Section 4.2.1). There has also