June 11, 2024
DHAKA – Aquaculture now officially surpasses fisheries in global seafood production, a new report by the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) of the United Nations states.
In 2022, for the first time in history, aquaculture surpassed capture fisheries as the main producer of aquatic animals, according to the 2024 edition of The State of World Fisheries and Aquaculture (SOFIA), released earlier this week.
Global aquaculture production reached an unprecedented 130.9 million tonnes, of which 94.4 million tonnes are aquatic animals, 51 percent of the total aquatic animal production, findings show.
This year’s edition for The State of World Fisheries and Aquaculture also reveals that Asian countries have emerged as the biggest contributors to this phenomenon.
According to the report, Asia accounted for 167.1 million tonnes of global fisheries and aquaculture production, 75 per cent of the world’s total and leading all other regions by producing 70 per cent of the total global aquatic animals and 97 per cent of global algae.
It is also an interesting finding that the top seven countries in aquaculture production are all located in Asia. The top seven countries, China, Indonesia, India, Vietnam, Bangladesh, the Philippines and South Korea, together contribute 86.2 per cent of the total global production.
Asia has also led the way in tackling food insecurity and malnutrition with the help of aquatic foods. In 2022, the global per capita consumption of aquatic animal foods increased to 20.7 kg, however, in Asia, the per capita consumption was found to be 24.7 kg, highlighting a significantly higher rate of average consumption in the continent.
In a world where nutritious food is hard to access for many, and food insecurity is a cause for concern in various locations, aquatic animal food can be a source of high-quality proteins and key nutrients.
The report also finds that aquaculture production has proven itself as a vital source of livelihoods, with an estimated 61.8 million people employed in the primary sector of fisheries and aquaculture, of which women made up 24 percent of the overall workforce.
While the data indicates that the overall number of people employed in the sector had decreased by about 1 million, the total number of people in the workforce is still noteworthy.
Of the total workforce, about 52.7 million people were employed in the primary fisheries and aquaculture sector of Asia alone, which stood at 85 per cent of the world total.
While aquaculture is on the rise, the report shows that global capture fisheries are still in existence. While the production has remained stable for over four decades, the world has shifted to more biologically sustainable stocks to capture fisheries from.
In regards to the findings of the report, FAO Director-General QU Dongyu shares, “FAO welcomes the significant achievements thus far, but further transformative and adaptive actions are needed to strengthen the efficiency, inclusiveness, resilience and sustainability of aquatic food systems and consolidate their role in addressing food insecurity, poverty alleviation and sustainable governance.”
While Asia has been at the forefront of the developments in aquaculture and global capture, and has created substantial opportunities to combat issues of employment and food insecurity, it is important to note that even with stellar numbers in numerous Asian countries, many other low-income countries in Asia are not utilising their full potential in the sector.
Experts note that targeted policies, technological transfer, capacity building, and responsible investment are becoming increasingly essential in allowing for sustainable aquaculture in places it is most needed.