Fish as feed inputs for aquaculture – Practices, sustainability and implications: a global synthesis 47
7.5.2 Africa and the Near East
In Africa, as far as could be ascertained, there are no organizations that are currently
working specifically on the use of wild fish as feed in aquaculture or research as to
how this practice may impact on food security and poverty reduction in the region
(Hecht and Jones, 2009). However, this issue has been recognized by the Kenya
Marine and Fisheries Research Institute and the fisheries departments in both Uganda
and Tanzania and no doubt by authorities in most countries. In particular, these
three institutions have recognized the impact of the increasing demand for dagaa
(Rastrineobola argentea) by the animal feed industry on food security around the
shores of Lake Victoria. Similarly, the fisheries department in Morocco (Institut
National de Recherche Halieutique, INRH) has recognized the impact of reduction
fisheries on food security and is strongly promoting improved efficiency in the supply
chain so that more fish are available for human consumption (either canned or fresh)
instead of being reduced to fishmeal out of necessity, as has been the case in the past.
In 2001, some 500 000 tonnes, which represented 60 percent of the Moroccan pelagic
catch, were reduced to fishmeal.
7.5.3 Asia and the Pacific
In recent years, the problems associated with the direct use of trash fish as feed in
aquaculture have drawn increasing attention in China. During a “National Freshwater
Aquaculture Development Planning Meeting” in 2004, the concept of “feed-fish”
culture, based on the success of Mandarin fish culture in southern China, was endorsed
as a new priority for developing high-value fish culture in the country. Fisheries
authorities at the national and provincial levels have received suggestions from advisers
for policy development to encourage the use of artificial feeds to gradually replace
trash fish use under the marine finfish culture development framework (Xianjie, 2008).
These suggestions include:
- Develop grassroot-level extension and training programmes to educate and
encourage fishfarmers to use formulated feeds. - Provide preferential financial and loan/credit support to farmers for shifting from
trash fish to artificial feeds. Subsidies could be considered for direct payment
to farmers when they purchase artificial feeds, or subsidies could be paid to
established feed manufacturers or dealers in an attempt to lower the feed price to
reduce initial burden on pioneer farmers. - Develop fiscal and punitive mechanisms to discourage irrational and irresponsible
use of trash fish, especially those practices that cause pollution and damage to the
culture environment. - Identify priority species and key technological areas for public-sector support for
research and development. - Provide guidance, support and coordination services to research institutions and
the feed manufacturing industry for artificial feed development. - Provide incentives to local fishmeal producers to develop quality fishmeal
production capacity from low-quality but high-yielding fish species. - Have stricter fishing regulations of trash fisheries by licensing through mesh-size
restrictions and eliminating damaging fishing gears/methods to better protect
juvenile fish resources.
- CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS
8.1 Conclusions
World capture fisheries have reached a plateau catch at around 94 million tonnes, with
at least half of stocks fully exploited and a further quarter overexploited or depleted.
In order to fulfill the growing demand of a world population that is likely to grow
from around the current 6.6 billion people to 9 billion people by 2050, further growth